Public Sector Advisory Services for Rice Productivity: A Case Study of Farmers' Awareness in Tehsil Shakargarh of Pakistan

Fine rice of Pakistan is globally famous and its demand is increasing at the national and international level because of the long kernel, strong aroma, and grain elongation at the time of cooking. This crop also serves as a source of livelihood for the majority of the farming community residing in the rice zone. Public sector advisory services are considered as a pillar for agricultural crop productivity; therefore, the present study was designed to explore the role of public sector advisory services for rice productivity as perceived by the farming community in the Narowal District. A multi-stage sampling technique was used for this study; firstly, one tehsil out of three tehsils i.e. Narowal, Shakargarh, and Zafarwal was selected, secondly, 6 union councils were selected, and then two villages from each union council and 10 farmers from each village were selected randomly. Thus, a total sample comprised of 120 rice growers. A well-structured interview schedule was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics i.e. frequency, mean and standard deviation were applied through Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Results showed that the use of farmers' training as an extension method for promoting rice production technology was rated first. Weeds problems were ranked first among the problems faced by farmers for rice production. The data also showed that insect pests and disease problems were ranked the second problem. The study suggested that the public sector advisory services providers must address different hurdles hampering the successful development and execution of the latest rice production strategies. Furthermore, the public sector advisory services providers must develop strategies to make farmers aware of the latest rice production technologies.