Impact of Front line Demonstrations o n Sesamum Production in Panchmahal District of Gujarat

Sesamum (Sesamum indicum L.) is one of the most important oilseed crops of the Panchmahal district of Gujarat. However, its productivity in the district is very low. Attempts are being made to improve productivity and to increase area under sesamum by adoption of HYVs (high yielding variety). In order to compare conventional sesamum with HYVs varieties, 50 front line demonstrations (FLDs) were carried out in systematic manner on farmers’ fields to show the worth of new varieties in comparison to local check and thereby convincing farmers about potentialities of improved production management practices of sesamum for further adoption, involving feasible and effective scientific package of practices. The demonstrations clearly showed enhancement of productivity. At the same time area under sesamum cultivation was also noticed to be enhanced. The yield was found to be increased from 369 kg/ha in local check to 470 kg/ha in FLDs. Similarly, the cost: benefit ratio for HYVs varieties was found to be 1.65 as compared to 1.29 in local check. The economic and cost: benefit ratio can be further improved to 1.68 by giving slightly higher inputs for cultivation and marketing. The impact of FLDs was analysed which showed improvement of knowledge and satisfaction of farmers as the main reason for mass scale adoption.