Evaluation of a Three-Pronged Wheel Hoe for Drudgery Reduction and Weeding Efficiency in Vegetable Crops

Abstract

Weeding accounts for about 50% of the cost of farming and in India, women are the main weeders in the fields. This activity takes about 8-9 hours a day, in addition to about 4 hours of housework. In this way weeding by hand by women on a daily basis not only causes excessive pain in the shoulders, muscles, arms, legs, and fingers, but also costs the farmer more for weeding. To prevent this, a weeding device called a three-pronged wheel hoe weeder for weeding in vegetable crops technology adopted from CRIDA, Hyderabad to reduce the drudgery, labour wages in weeding and demonstrated this technology for three years from 2021-2022, 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 in adopted villages covering 30 farm women in vegetable field crops like tomato, chilli, cauliflower & cluster bean. As per the results, weeding with machine was easier; less labour employed and reduced musculoskeletal problems and low Drudgery Index (48.6) (DI) score was recorded when compared with hand weeding (78.2). Additionally, it is noteworthy that pain in the muscles and bones of the body was more commonly reported when weeding by hand. But pain was less commonly reported when weeding with a machine. Therefore, by adopting the scientific knowledge of weeding with weeding machines, the farmer will not only reduce the physical problems of the person but will also be able to reduce the cost of cultivating the crops.