An Analysis of Farmer’s Perception Towards WhatsApp as a Farm Technology Dissemination Tools

Abstract

Quick dissemination of technological information from agricultural research systems to the farmers and reporting of farmers’ feedback to the research system has always been one of the critical inputs in transfer of agricultural technologies leading to increased production. At present the ratio of farmers to extension workers is very less.  The cost factor in face to face information dissemination at the right time and the difficulties in reaching the target audience have also created the urgency to introduce Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Agricultural news and communication be spread using social media platforms popular in the farming communities [1]. Social media is essential for closing the communication gap and instantly disseminating information to anyone anywhere in the world. Social media networks are used to share and discuss user-generated content such as opinions, videos, audio and multimedia. These networks are widely accessible, even in remote areas of the country. Among the many social media platforms, WhatsApp is especially useful for forming groups of people with similar interests, enabling the sharing of information. For farmers, WhatsApp has not only become a tool for information dissemination but also created a kind of support system. Hence, the present study was taken to assess the farmer’s perception towards WhatsApp as a farm technology dissemination tools. In this study was conducted in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu with the sample size of 100 respondents. The results indicated that more than two-third (68.00 %) of the respondents had high level of perception towards WhatsApp.