ERGONOMICAL EVALUATION OF MANUALLY OPERATED WEEDER

For increase the productivity per unit area of small land holdings and considering the economic condition of Indian farmers, it is quite necessary to have suitable agricultural implements which farmers can use and also allow them to use for custom hiring. Weeding is an important agricultural unit operation. Delay and negligence in weeding operation affect the crop yield up to 30 to 60 per cent. Hence present investigation was undertaken with an objective to evaluate performance of manually operated weeder from ergonomics point of view. Present investigation was undertaken in Nagpur, Maharashtra state during the year 2010-2011. For this investigation farmers and farm workers are selected randomly from Nagpur district. Ergonomically parameters like heart rate, oxygen consumption rate and energy expenditure are evaluated while performing the weeding activity. Heart rate readings of form workers show that manually operated weeder is comfortable for farm workers in weeding operation. That’s why increase the efficiency of farm workers and increase the productivity of work. This shows that manually operated weeder is the instrument of drudgery reducing technology for form workers. At each level of moisture content heart rate and energy expenditure rate was greater in traditional method of weeding (khurpi) than weeding by manually operated weeder.