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Though the frequency of occurrence of the dog erythrocyte antigen (DEA) 1 system is well known in many countries, little information is available for dogs in India. The study was conducted to determine the prevalence of the DEA 1 blood group (1.1 and 1.2 subgroups) utilizing 100 1-9 years old dogs of both sexes and various breeds. Blood collected from the cephalic or saphenous vein was immediately subjected to standard DEA 1 blood typing procedure using a commercially available KABB Dog Blood Typing Kit. The prevalence of DEA 1 blood type system was observed to be 78%, of which 52% and 26% of the animals were positive for DEA 1.1 and DEA 1.2, respectively. Considerable variation was observed in DEA 1.1 and 1.2 prevalence among different breeds with Pug and German Shepherd showing the highest prevalence for DEA 1.1 and DEA 1.2, respectively. In conclusion, this study demonstrated general frequencies of DEA 1, DEA 1.1, DEA 1.2 blood types as 78%, 52% and 26%, respectively in different breeds of dogs in the Punjab State of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cultivation of high-yielding crop varieties and intensive cropping has depleted the soil fertility in Northwest (NW) India, resulting in the appearance of multi-nutrient deficiencies in different crops and cropping systems. In the present investigation, geo-referenced soil samples from Indian Punjab were analyzed to map fertility status using a Geographical Information System (GIS). Soil texture, which affects soil hydraulic properties and soil strength, varied from sandy to clayey loam, with majority (47.3%) of the cultivated area being sandy loam. About 95% of the total area of the state shows pH between 6.5 and 8.5 (40% of the area between pH 6.5 and 7.5 and 54% between 7.5 and 8.5) and electrical conductivity (EC) <0.8 dS m−1. Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) with <5% values represents 97% area of the state. The GIS-based maps indicate that irrespective of the agroclimatic variations, more than 90% of the soils showed low to medium soil organic carbon (OC) content and 50% low to medium (<22.4 kg P ha−1) available phosphorus (P) content with a marginal (7%) deficiency of potassium (K). The dominance of low to medium status of available P in these soils could be due to the mining of soil P by the rice–wheat cropping system practiced in the region. The intensively cultivated soils of Indian Punjab showed 11% of soil samples were low in zinc (Zn), 15% low in manganese (Mn), 2% low in copper (Cu), and 12% low in iron (Fe). Availability of micronutrients increased with increase in OC content and decreased with increase in sand content, pH, and CaCO3. GIS-based maps are effective in identifying hot spots, which need immediate attention and call for strategic planning for sustainable management. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Quality of sub-surface irrigation water in a south-western district of Punjab has been studied on the basis of nine hundred and eighty two tube well water samples from four blocks of Muktsar district. On the basis of electrical conductivity (EC), 39, 50 and 11 per cent water samples fall in the category of <2.0, 2.0-4.0 and >4.0 dS m-1 respectively. Whereas, on the basis of residual sodium carbonate (RSC), 71, 13 and 16 per cent water samples fall in the category of <2.5, 2.5-5.0 and >5.0 me L-1 respectively. Taking into consideration both RSC and EC, 23.6, 50.2 and 26.2 per cent water samples were found fit, marginal and unfit for irrigation to field crops, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paddy-wheat is major crop rotation of Punjab and mostly combines are used for harvesting these two crops. The end use of paddy straw is not yet wide spread either on farm or in industrial sector. Thus straw management in combine harvested paddy fields is a major problem in paddywheat rotation. To overcome this problem, it was proposed that paddy straw is first chopped and then incorporated in soil with minimum tillage efforts. Keeping in view, Deptt. of Farm Power and Machinery, PAU had developed a tractor mounted straw chopper-cum-spreader. In this machine harvesting and chopping sections were combined. The study was conducted to evaluate the performance of the machine. Two levels of moisture content of paddy straw (30 & 40 %, wb), three levels of chopping speed (1300, 1450 & 1600 rpm) and three levels of forward speed (2.0, 2.5 & 3.0 km/h) were selected. Optimal combination of variables was selected on the basis of size of cut of straw, uniformity of straw spread (C.V. basis) and fuel consumption. Effect of moisture content on size of chopping was found to be non-significant. Per cent size of cut (up to 4 cm) of paddy straw increased with increase in chopper speed and decreased with increase in forward speed. None of the independent variables had a significant effect on uniformity of straw spread. Fuel consumption at lower moisture content was low. Fuel consumption (l/h) increased with increase in chopping speed as well as with increase in forward speed. Effect of forward speed was more pronounced on fuel consumption than the effect of chopping speed. Optimal combination was a chopping speed of 1450 rpm and a forward speed of 2.0 km/h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]