Studies on the socio-economic status and gap in management practices among dairy farmers in Shahdol district of Madhya Pradesh, India

The study was conducted on 400 farmers of four blocks of district Shahdol – a prominent tribal district of Madhya Pradesh. Most of the farmers were in age group between 31–40 years and illiterate. They reared more than four animals and not cultivated green fodder. They grazed their animals in the forest. Lack of good quality feed and fodder the productivity was very low.

Among the constraints perceived by milk producers indicated that first rank given to lack of knowledge of scientific feeding with mean 1.35 ranked first, followed by high calf mortality with mean 1.32 and high cost investment in construction of scientific dairy shed with mean of 1.26. It was conclude that scientific feeding and calving interval period directly affect the milk production and economic returns of the dairy farmers. The gap between standardised and existing management practices as high and low cost practices, the high gap was in block Jaisinghnagar, 84% followed by Gohparu, 83.17% due to lowest educational status among farmers.