Benchmark survey analysis in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan

A survey was carried out in ten villages of Bharatpur District of Rajasthan by Participatory Approach method. Bharatpur stands on top ranking in mustard cultivation in Rajasthan. The district has dry climate with hot summer, cold winter and short monsoon season. The average annual rainfall in the district is 645.2 mm. Major crops grown in area are mustard, wheat, barley, gram, and lentil. Occupation is mainly (85%) based on the agriculture. The Average landholding is 1.39 ha. Area under mustard is 1.77 lakh ha. (65%) of total cultivated area in rabi. After interviewing the 100 respondents of 10 villages of district Bharatpur (Raj.) different categories personally, it was found that the average family size was 7 and number of male exceed over the number 0f females in the society. The joint family system was predominant than nuclear family. About 30 per cent respondents were illiterate. Farming was the main occupation of all the respondents and animal husbandry was the widely adopted as a subsidiary occupation. The average size of land holding was found 1.39 hectare. Except few cases of leasing in, the leasing in and leasing out was not a common practice among the farmers. Only 24 per cent farmers used certified seed. Neighbours were the main source of information in the area. Only 33 per cent community were aware about the quality of mustard oil. Major constraints faced by the mustard growers felt the diseases and pest susceptibility of crop and unavailability of irrigation.