Indigenous agricultural practices among tribal women

Abstract

The tribal women living In the Kalrayan Hills have rich knowledge about the indigenous practices, especially in post harvest and cultivation aspects on paddy (<i style="">Oryza sativa</i> Linn.) and tapioca (<i style="">Manihot esculenta</i> Crantz). Indigenous knowledge has evolved within the community and has been passed on from one generation to another. The role of indigenous knowledge in sustainable agricultural production in developing countries is beginning to gain recognition within scientific circles. Tribal women are generally noted for the wealth of indigenous knowledge. Hence, a study on adoption of indigenous farm practices among tribal women of the Kalrayan hills was taken up to assess the extent of adoption of identified indigenous farm practices in paddy and tapioca. The study was conducted in the Kalrayan hills of district Villupuram, Tamil Nadu. A total of 120 tribal women selected based on proportionate random sampling technique. The data were collected from the respondents with the help of a well-structured pre-tested interview schedule and suitable statistical tools were used to analyze the data.