Biostatistics is a broad discipline encompassing the application of statistical theory to real-world problems, the practice of designing and conducting biomedical experiments and clinical trials, the study of related computational algorithms and display of data, and the development of mathematical-statistical theory.
Agriculture plays an important role in the economy of developing countries and provides the main source of food, income and employment to their rural population. Improvements in agriculture and land use are fundamental to achieving food security, poverty alleviation and overall sustainable development.
Importance of Agriculture
Agriculture plays an important role in the economy of developing countries and provides the main source of food, income and employment to their rural population. Improvements in agriculture and land use are fundamental to achieving food security, poverty alleviation and overall sustainable development.
Importance of Agriculture
1. Is the hub of the agrarian economy
2. Is a Key Economic Driver
3. It is central to Individual livelihood
4. Poverty alleviation
5. Contributor in Nation’s Economic Growth
6. Is the Key to Healthy Biosphere as it provides Nutrition which is a key determinant of human health
7. Provider of energy-fuel-wood and medicinal plants
2. Is a Key Economic Driver
3. It is central to Individual livelihood
4. Poverty alleviation
5. Contributor in Nation’s Economic Growth
6. Is the Key to Healthy Biosphere as it provides Nutrition which is a key determinant of human health
7. Provider of energy-fuel-wood and medicinal plants
Agricultural research has played a key role in the development of statistical methods. The presence of wide heterogeneity in the experimental material that is often used in agricultural research led to the application of statistical tools and consequently many refinements and newer developments in statistical followed.
The famous Statistician, Sir R.A. Fisher and his colleagues at Rothamsted Experiment Station in the UK and elsewhere, while attempting statistical solutions to agricultural problems, led to the development of the design of experiments and analysis of variance techniques which are fundamental to the subjects of statistics.
Agricultural Statistics has three core subjects’ areas, namely, sample surveys, design of experiments and biometric techniques. Sample surveys in agriculture are primarily concerned with estimation procedures for the area under different crops, crops yield and crop production.
Besides the estimation of land use statistics, statistics related to input use in crops such as the varieties, seeds, fertilizers, irrigation, insecticides/pesticides, machines/implements/tools, the supply and demand of various inputs are often collected through sample surveys.
The cost of cultivating /production needs to be compiled through detailed survey inquiries to understand the farm level efficiency.
The information about markets, prices, imports/exports is also becoming important now that India has attained food sufficiency leading to surpluses in certain pockets and the fair competitive trade discipline being enforced under the World Trade Organization regime.
Statistics provides scientific tools for representative data collection, appropriate analysis and summarization of data and inferential procedures for concluding in the face of uncertainty.
It is indeed true that statistical tools have wide applicability to almost any branch of science dealing with the study of an uncertain phenomenon involving aggregates.
However, in agricultural research, statistics find some of the very interesting applications which often led to the development of newer statistical techniques or at least a refinement of existing ones.
Consequently, the branch of statistics dealing with the agricultural research sector is termed Agricultural Statistics
Purpose and Objectives of Agricultural Statistics
Agricultural Statistics has three core subjects’ areas, namely, sample surveys, design of experiments and biometric techniques. Sample surveys in agriculture are primarily concerned with estimation procedures for the area under different crops, crops yield and crop production.
Besides the estimation of land use statistics, statistics related to input use in crops such as the varieties, seeds, fertilizers, irrigation, insecticides/pesticides, machines/implements/tools, the supply and demand of various inputs are often collected through sample surveys.
The cost of cultivating /production needs to be compiled through detailed survey inquiries to understand the farm level efficiency.
The information about markets, prices, imports/exports is also becoming important now that India has attained food sufficiency leading to surpluses in certain pockets and the fair competitive trade discipline being enforced under the World Trade Organization regime.
Statistics provides scientific tools for representative data collection, appropriate analysis and summarization of data and inferential procedures for concluding in the face of uncertainty.
It is indeed true that statistical tools have wide applicability to almost any branch of science dealing with the study of an uncertain phenomenon involving aggregates.
However, in agricultural research, statistics find some of the very interesting applications which often led to the development of newer statistical techniques or at least a refinement of existing ones.
Consequently, the branch of statistics dealing with the agricultural research sector is termed Agricultural Statistics
Purpose and Objectives of Agricultural Statistics
a) To provide comprehensive knowledge of the basic information of agriculture, rural areas and the farmers
b) To provide the scientific basis for the study of the development of economic and social development, planning and decision making.
c) To provide statistical information services to the planners, scholars and public.
What should be measured in an Agricultural Statistics System?
To determine which statistics should be collected, it is important to look at the objectives of the user community which is being supported and to consider which type of decisions may need to be made at various levels in the system.
The reason we need agriculture is that we need to eat, be clothed and be able to earn money. Thus we end up measuring the stocks under the following headings: Crops, Horticulture and Floriculture, Livestock, Poultry, Aquaculture, Purchased inputs and investments, paid labour, Equipment and capital stock.
Experimental design is the most important step in agricultural research, and an appropriate design can help reduce experimental errors. The ANOVA approach invented by Fisher (1925) has remained the dominant approach in the natural sciences, including agronomy and crop research.
b) To provide the scientific basis for the study of the development of economic and social development, planning and decision making.
c) To provide statistical information services to the planners, scholars and public.
What should be measured in an Agricultural Statistics System?
To determine which statistics should be collected, it is important to look at the objectives of the user community which is being supported and to consider which type of decisions may need to be made at various levels in the system.
The reason we need agriculture is that we need to eat, be clothed and be able to earn money. Thus we end up measuring the stocks under the following headings: Crops, Horticulture and Floriculture, Livestock, Poultry, Aquaculture, Purchased inputs and investments, paid labour, Equipment and capital stock.
Experimental design is the most important step in agricultural research, and an appropriate design can help reduce experimental errors. The ANOVA approach invented by Fisher (1925) has remained the dominant approach in the natural sciences, including agronomy and crop research.
Emerging Issues
Approach towards Agriculture Statistics: Sector Wide Approach (SWAP) or Adhoc Approach :
For the developing countries, agricultural Statistics are an essential and basic part of their statistical system. The Adhoc approach focused on only one domain of statistics did not prove to be the most successful approach for the development of sustainable statistical systems. Therefore SWAP should be adopted.
Globalization trend in Agricultural Statistics:
Globalization is recognized as an important challenge for economic and social statistics. Also in agriculture, the globalization trend is visible in countries specializing in certain crop production and increasing trade flows of agricultural products between regions and countries.
Coordination with International Agencies:
Compared to other statistics Biostatistics are relatively far from the direct reach of statisticians. As a result, the communication and coordination on the international level of agricultural statistics are rather restricted, which needs to be improved.
Globalization trend in Agricultural Statistics:
Globalization is recognized as an important challenge for economic and social statistics. Also in agriculture, the globalization trend is visible in countries specializing in certain crop production and increasing trade flows of agricultural products between regions and countries.
Coordination with International Agencies:
Compared to other statistics Biostatistics are relatively far from the direct reach of statisticians. As a result, the communication and coordination on the international level of agricultural statistics are rather restricted, which needs to be improved.
Written By - Chavi Goel
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