Knowledge Level of Farmers on Utilization of Biofertilizers in Annamayya District of Andhra Pradesh

Indian agriculture has changed since the green revolution era. The major thrust of the green revolution is to ensure maximizing food grain production through a package of practices, ensuring assured irrigation and applying higher doses of chemical fertilizers to tap the potential of high-yielding varieties. Biofertilizers are safer for soil health as well as for the ecosystem. Biofertilizers are defined as preparations containing living cells or latent cells of efficient strains of microorganisms that help crop plants uptake nutrients by their interactions in the rhizosphere when applied through seed or soil. Thus, the present study was conducted to evaluate the knowledge level of farmers on utilizing biofertilizers in Annamayya district of Andhra Pradesh. A total of 60 farmers were purposively selected for the study. Ex-post-facto research design was followed. Data were collected with the help of an interview schedule, and the collected data were analyzed with the help of statistical measures like frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. The results of the study revealed that 88.33 of respondents were using biofertilizers without mixing with chemical fertilizers, 80.00 of respondents have knowledge on the expiry date of powder form of biofertilizers, regarding source of availability, 66.66 reported that they avail biofertilizers from research stations, 61.66 per cent of respondents have knowledge on Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB) among the type of biofertilizers used. The major constraints faced by the respondents in utilizing the biofertilizers were Lack of separate marketing facilities for crops produced using biofertilizers (71.66%) and Non-availability of biofertilizers locally at times when needed (66.67%) and suggestions were Provision of better marketing facilities for crops produced using biofertilizers (86.66%) and Biofertilizers should be available in time at local level (76.66%).