<div>Background: This paper has attempted an economic analysis of tissue-culture pointed gourd and non-tissue culture pointed gourd. As we know that vegetables are rich and comparatively cheaper source of vitamins. Consumption of these items provides taste, palatability and fiber for digestion. Their consumption in plenty provides fair amount of protein and also play a key role in neutralizing the acids produced during digestion of fatty foods. While pointed gourd contains 2 per cent protein, 0.3 per cent fat, 2.2 per cent carbohydrate, 153 IU vitamin A and 29 mg vitamin C per 100g edible portion (www.agrifarming.in). 
 
Methods: This study was conducted in the year 2017-18. The study has been conducted in the Anand and Kheda districts of Middle Gujarat using personal interview method. And 4 talukas were selected. Total 80 respondents were selected, out of them 40 were cultivating non-tissue culture and 40 were cultivating tissue culture variety of pointed gourd. Cost and return analysis had been done by using cost concepts. The Garrett ranking technique was used to study the adoption behaviour of farmers.&nbsp; 
 
Result: The study revealed that tissue-culture pointed gourd is more beneficial as compared to non-tissue culture pointed gourd. The cost of cultivation (Cost C2) of pointed gourd per hectare for tissue culture and non-tissue culture was ₹ 306655 and ₹ 237216, respectively. The average yield of tissue culture and non-tissue culture pointed gourd was 483 q and 248.49 q, while gross income was ₹ 597595 and ₹&nbsp;324741 respectively. Per hectare net returns in tissue culture pointed gourd for Cost C2 was ₹ 290940 whereas for non-tissue culture pointed gourd the per hectare net return over Cost C2 was ₹ 87525. The overall per hectare farm business income, family labour income and farm investment income for tissue culture farmer were found to be significantly higher compared to their counterpart non-tissue culture farmers. The overall input-output ratio on Cost C2 was 1.95 for tissue culture and 1.37 for non-tissue culture. &lsquo;Higher yield&rsquo; was the main reason for adoption of tissue culture technology followed by &lsquo;high quality fruit&rsquo; and &lsquo;higher income per hectare&rsquo;. On the whole, the analysis has revealed that the tissue culture technology in pointed gourd cultivation can go a long way in enhancing the farmers income which is the need of the hour.&nbsp;</div>

An Economic Analysis of Technology Change in Tissue Culture and Non-tissue Culture Pointed Gourd in Anand and Kheda Districts of Middle Gujarat

Background: One of the main reasons for India&rsquo;s decreased food production is the depletion of soil fertility. The primary causes of soil deterioration are lack of awareness among farmers and lack of land use regulations. By limiting the erosion and enhancing the nutrients available to the crops, conservation agriculture increases the organic matter content of the soil and contributes to the improvement of field conditions. But compared to conventional agriculture, the practise of conservation agriculture is less advanced. And also there is a dearth of research on the use of crop residues for the management of soil fertility. So this study was undertaken in order to examine the impacts of crop residue, inorganic fertilizers and cropping system as a component of an integrated crop residues and fertility management system on nutrient uptake and net returns of greengram. 
 
Methods: The experiment consists of strip plot design and was carried out during 2020-21 and 2021-22 under zero till conditions at college farm, Rajendranagar, PJTSAU to study the effect of previous crop residues and fertility levels on succeeding greengram.&nbsp; 
 
Result: According to the data, greengram absorbed more nutrients at various growing stages. The residual effect of incorporation of residues treated with microbial consortia composed of Trichoderma viridae, Aspergillus awamori and Phanerocheate spp. along with 300:100:100 kg ha-1 of N, P2O5 and K2O (125% RDF) and phosphorous supplied in the form of single super phosphate (SSP) resulted in significantly higher financial returns. In greengram, residue incorporated plots outperformed residue burning, removal and retention plots with 125% RDF in terms of nutrient uptake, as well as monetary returns like gross returns, net returns and B:C ratio. In a similar vein, yield in residue-incorporated plots was higher than it was in residue-removal and in-situ burning plots during summer, 2021 and 2022.

Nutrient Uptake and Economics of Summer Greengram as Influenced by Residual Effect of Paddy Residues and Fertility Levels

Background: Farmers&rsquo; conventional tillage and residue removal practices in rice-maize-greengram systems in India are input-intensive, costly and soil degradative. A number of soil quality issues have emerged due to continuous cropping and burning of residues threatening the sustainability of rice based cropping systems for the last more than four decades. Nevertheless, the in-situ or in-field decomposition of crop residue using microbial inoculum is rarely studied. This necessitated the use of microbial consortia developed by a combination of potent strains of fungi which can perform harmoniously for rapid decomposition of crop residues. 
 
Methods: A field experiment was conducted during 2020-21 and 2021-22 with eight residue-management treatments and three fertility levels to zero till maize at college farm, Rajendranagar, PJTSAU using strip plot design and the residual effect on the succeeding greengram was studied. 
 
Result: Greengram growth and yield were significantly higher under residual effect of incorporation of residues treated with microbial consortia consisting of Trichoderma viridae, Aspergillus awamori and Phanerocheate spp. along with 300:100:100 kg ha-1 of N, P2O5 and K2O (125% RDF) and P supplied in the form of single super phosphate (SSP) under zero tillage during summer, 2021 and 2022. Growth parameters like plant height, leaf area index, dry matter production and yield attributes like number of pods plant-1, pod length and number of seeds pod-1 in greengram were higher under residue incorporated plots compared to residue burning, removal and retention plots with 125% RDF.

Residual Effects of Microbial Treated Paddy Residues Applied to Zero Till Maize on Growth and Yield of Summer Greengram

Background: To work out the residual effect of rice residue, FYM and fertilizers on summer moong (Vigna radiate L.) in Rice-potato-summer moong cropping system. 
&nbsp; 
Methods: The present study was carried out at research farm, department of Agronomy, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab. The experiment was laid out in factorial randomized block design with two factors. Factor A contains&nbsp; five nutrient management treatments in potato (Rice residue+ 125 % NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM, Rice residue+ 100%&nbsp; NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM, Rice residue+ 75 % NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM, Rice residue + 125% NPK + 0 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and Without rice residue + 100% NPK+ 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM) and factor B contains three&nbsp; nitrogen levels in&nbsp; summer moong&nbsp; (0 kg ha-1&nbsp;N, 6.25 kg ha-1&nbsp;N and 12.5 kg ha-1&nbsp;N ). 
&nbsp; 
Result: The plant height, branches, dry matter accumulation, LAI and chlorophyll content index were significantly affected with the treatments applied to preceding potato crop. The application of rice residue+ 125% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM to potato crop resulted significantly higher plant height, branches, dry matter accumulation, LAI and chlorophyll content index of moong crop as compared to rice residue+ 75% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM and rice residue+ 125% NPK + 0 tha-1&nbsp;FYM while at par to rice residue+ 100% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and without rice residue + 100 % NPK+ 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM. The significantly higher biometric parameters were observed with 12.5 kg ha-1&nbsp;N which was significantly higher than the 0 and 6.25 5 kg ha-1 N. The application of rice residue+ 125% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM to potato crop resulted significantly higher yield and yield attributing characters as compared to rice residue+ 75% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM and rice residue+ 125% NPK + 0 tha-1&nbsp;FYM while at par to rice residue+ 100% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and without rice residue + 100% NPK 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM. The application of higher dose of nitrogen @ 12 kg ha-1&nbsp;also significantly increased the yield and yield attributing characters as compared to lower doses of summer moong. The nutrients uptake ( N,P and K) was also maximum with rice residue+ 125% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM which was at par to rice residue+ 100% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and without rice residue + 100% NPK+ 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM while significantly higher than other treatment. The application of higher dose of nitrogen @ 12 kgha-1&nbsp;in summer moong also significantly increased the nutrient uptake and protein content as compared to lower doses.

Residual Effect of Rice Residue, Fym and Fertilizers on Growth, Yield and Quality of Summer Moong (Vigna radiata L.) in Rice-Potato-Summer Moong Cropping System

<div style="text-align: justify;">In this study, the main aim was &nbsp;to identify the effects of exposure to 17&aacute;-ethinylestradiol-based contraceptives on the ovaries and brain tissues of common carp. For this purpose, histopathological changes were evaluated in ovaries after 21 days of contraceptive exposure. In addition, the expression levels of the CYP1A, CYP3A, FSH, and LH genes were measured in contraceptive-exposed brain tissue and ovaries respectively, using qRT-PCR (p&lt;0.05, p&lt;0.01, and p&lt;0.001, respectively). No histopathological lesions, including inflammation, degeneration, or necrosis in the evaluated ovarian tissue of common carp were found after both high and low levels of exposure to contraceptives. Therefore, it is concluded that these contraceptives were highly dangerous to the reproduction system of common carp; the accumulation of contraceptive waste in the water supply could adversely affect and threat the common carp population. This may indirectly also affect other animals.</div>

Effects of 17&aacute;-ethinylestradiol-based contraceptives on ovarian tissue using histopathological examination and FSH, LH, CYP1A, and CYP3A expressions using qRT-PCR in the ovaries and brain tissues of common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.)

<div>Background: The aim is to study the pharmacokinetics and tissue residue status of tilmicosin after administration through &lsquo;in-crop&rsquo; and &lsquo;in-water&rsquo; routes and compare the effectiveness of the two routes and establish a suitable dosage regimen for treating Mycoplasma gallisepticum infection in broiler chicken. 
 
Methods: The plasma pharmacokinetic disposition of tilmicosin in broiler chicken was investigated after administration orally by direct deposition at crop (25 mg/kg body weight) or drinking water (40 mg/kg b.wt.). Residues of tilmicosin in tissues of broiler chicken were assayed. The plasma and tissue concentrations of tilmicosin were analyzed by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. The plasma concentration-time data was described by the non-compartmental model for both routes and pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated. The data were statistically analyzed by Mann-Whitney U test. 
 
Conclusion: The mean plasma concentrations of tilmicosin in two routes tested (in-crop, in-water) were effective above MIC reported for Mycoplasma gallisepticum (0.05 &micro;g/ml) up to 24 h. In addition, the drug residue in lungs was found at desirable concentration up to 22 days. However, residues of tilmicosin in tissues were above the advocated maximum residue limit (MRL) till 18th day in muscle and liver and till 22nd day in kidney. The results of the study indicate that the antimycoplasmal drug tilmicosin can be therapeutically efficacious after administration in crop as well as in drinking water.</div>

​Pharmacokinetic Disposition and Residue Status of Tilmicosin in Broiler Chicken after &lsquo;In-Crop&rsquo; and &lsquo;In-Water&rsquo; Administration

Background: Tilmicosin is an antimycoplasmic drug of great utility in controlling mycoplasmosis in chicken. The drug despite its efficacy, has a high residue impact leading to a long withdrawal period. In this study, an attempt has been made to rationalize the dosage to reduce the residue burden by adopting a lower dose. 
&nbsp; 
Methods: The dose of tilmicosin was arrived at based on a pilot study wherein different doses were administered, and the levels were checked in plasma and meat. In the main study, tilmicosin was administered to broiler chicken as a bolus oral dose or &ldquo;in drinking water&rdquo; at the dose rate of 25 mg. kg-1&nbsp;body weight. Blood was collected at different time points for the study. A trial to assay drug residues in tissues was also carried out. The assay of tilmicosin in chicken plasma/tissues was done using a sensitive HPLC assay. 
&nbsp; 
Result: In both pharmacokinetics study groups, tilmicosin concentrations could be reasonably detected only in 4 of the eight birds tested. In the birds that responded, the mean plasma concentrations remained above the MIC values of 0.05 &micro;g.ml-1. The residue level in the lung and muscle could be detected up to day 14, and no residue from 18th&nbsp;day, after administration of tilmicosin through drinking water. The lung, the organ of mycoplasma infection revealed high concentrations of tilmicosin up to 14 days after the last dose. The results show that the Tilmicosin administered at a reduced rate of 25 mg.Kg-1 can be useful therapeutically, with a reduced residue burden in broiler chicken. 
&nbsp;

Pharmacokinetics and Chicken Meat Residue of Tilmicosin after Administration Through Drinking Water in Broiler Chicken

<div style="text-align: justify;">An experiment was conducted to assess the effect of dietary supplementation of ghee residue on growth performance of Japanese quails. Ghee residue (GR) was included in the diet at 0 (T1), 5 (T2), 10 (T3) and 15 (T4) percent levels and fed to 500 Japanese quails, randomly divided into four treatment groups with five replicates each with twenty birds. The experimental diet was isocaloric and isonitrogenous. The estimated TME, CP and EE of GR were 4800kcal/kg, 24.46% and 40.78%, respectively. The highest body weight (213.55g) with best FE (2.62) was observed at 5% GR fed group (T2). Feed consumption and mortality did not differ significantly among various treatments. Slaughter yield was highest at 5% GR fed group. However, the body weight, FE and carcass yield at 5 and 10% GR fed groups remained statistically similar to that of control. Organoleptic study revealed that the meat of 10% GR fed group (T3) was more acceptable compared to others. Breast muscle cholesterol level was highest in GR fed groups (T2 to T4) compared to control (T1). GR Supplementation at all levels resulted in reduction of feed cost with highest reduction at 15% level (Rs.1.46/kg) but reduction in performance was observed at the same level. It was concluded that ghee residue could be included in the broiler quail diet as an energy, protein and fat source up to 10% level.</div>

Effect of dietary supplementation of ghee residue on the performance of Japanese quails

<div style="text-align: justify;">An experiment was conducted to analyse the chemical composition and nutritive value of ghee residue collected from various regions of Tamil Nadu. The per cent dry matter, crude protein, crude fibre, ether extract, total ash and Nitrogen Free Extract in ghee residue was 90.61, 24.32, 0.26, 40.69, 4.71 and 30.02, respectively. The calcium, phosphorus and magnesium of ghee residue were 0.58, 0.58 and 0.58 per cent, respectively. The copper, manganese and iron levels in ghee residue were 7.06, 350.57 and 413.62 ppm, respectively. Essential amino acids like lysine and methionine were at lower levels in ghee residue. Fatty acid profile in ghee residue including myristic acid, palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, ecosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and other fatty acids were 12.76, 38.13, 1.73, 12.45, 28.20, 3.81, 0.83, 0.16, 0.63, 0.50, 0.18, and 0.56 per cent, respectively. Oleic acid levels were observed to be higher in ghee residue. Thus, it could be concluded that ghee residue is a rich source of fat and protein and also a rich source of unsaturated fatty acid and oleic acid. Further in vivo trials are needed to find the digestibility and inclusion levels in mongastrics.&nbsp;</div>

Estimation of nutritive value of ghee residue procured from western districts of Tamil Nadu, India

<div>Background: Pesticides act as endocrine disruptors and cause enormous disturbances in steroidogenesis, spermatogenesis and sexual behavioural display. These toxicants modulate and/or disrupt the reproductive and hormonal environment by acting on hypothalamus, pituitary and reproductive organs. Few studies have been carried out to assess the levels of pesticides in dairy cattle / buffaloes. The information on pesticide residues in body fluids especially blood and semen in breeding bulls is lacking.&nbsp; 
 
Method: In the light of above background nineteen fresh semen ejaculates were collected from Milkfed, Khanna and PLDB (Punjab Livestock Development Board), Nabha, Punjab and stored at -80◦C. Immediately after collection, the semen was centrifuged at 4500 &times; g for 20 min at 4◦C. The supernatant (seminal plasma) was stored at -20◦C until processing for the assessment of pesticide residues using gas chromatography (GC). In the present study on crossbred breeding bulls, the semen samples were analyzed for organochlorines, organophosphates and synthetic pyrethroid pesticide residues. Seven OCP were screened namely Heptachlor epoxide, Chlordane, Fipronil, Lindane, Methoxychlor, op-DDT, Endrin. Eleven OPP were screened namely Chorpyrifos, Dichlorovos, Ethion, Monocrotophos, Malathion, Parathion-methyl, Profenphos, Phorate, Triazophos, Quinalphos and Phosalone and four SP&rsquo;s namely Cypermethrin, Permethrin, Deltamethrin, Cyalothrin were screened in the semen samples. Semen samples were also assessed for viability, HOST (%) and abnormality (%) for both fresh as well as post thaw samples. 
 
Result: None of the semen samples were found positive for any of the above pesticide residues. This may be attributed to the feeding of fodder cultivated at the stations without using any pesticides, hence no pesticide residue found in the semen samples of the crossbred breeding bulls of these semen stations In present study, viability (%) of sperms were found to be significantly higher (p&lt;0.05) in fresh (75.57 &plusmn; 5.31) as compared to post thaw (70.17 &plusmn; 4.64) semen of bulls. The abnormality (%) of sperms was found to be significantly lower (p&lt;0.05) in fresh (13.61 &plusmn; 3.71) than post thaw (18.22 &plusmn; 3.59) semen bulls. Also in present study the host (%) was found 67.23&plusmn;4.76 in fresh semen which decreased to 46.82&plusmn;3.55 in post thaw semen.</div>