A Study on Agriculture Information Seeking Behavior of Farmer’s through Mobile of West Champaran District, Bihar, India

Abstract

This study explores the information-seeking behavior of farmers in West champaran District, Bihar, specifically through mobile devices. The research was conducted with 120 randomly selected respondents from 18 blocks in the district. The study found that the majority of farmers were young, with middle school education, belonging to the OBC category. Most lived in single-family systems, had families with 7 to 15 members, and small land holdings. Agriculture farming was their main occupation, with an annual income of Rs. 1-2 lakh. Medium levels of knowledge, seeking behavior, and interview schedule assessment were observed regarding information and communication technology tools. Constraints faced by farmers included lack of knowledge about agricultural advisory services on mobile phones, smart phone proficiency, details about advisory sources, linguistic barriers, lack of literacy, and call drop problems. Significant associations were found between certain variables (age, caste, land holding, annual family income, family type, family size, social participation, mass media exposure, and extension contact) and the information-seeking behavior of farmers. This study provides insights into the information-seeking behavior of farmers through mobile devices in West Champaran District, Bihar. It emphasizes the need to address constraints and improve access to agricultural information for farmers in the region.