Constraints Faced by Trainees of Mushroom Research and Training Center, Pantnagar

Mushroom Research and Training Centre (MRTC) located at the G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar is actively involved in conducting training programmes on edible mushroom cultivation. Main objective of training programmes on mushroom production is to promote mushroom production as a self employment venture which can ultimately improve the socio-economic condition of the poor. It has also been observed that some of the people trained at MRTC have adopted mushroom cultivation on other hand some have not. It was found worthwhile to study the reasons of adoption, rejection and continued adoption of mushroom cultivation as an enterprise. Trainees suffer from various types of constraints while starting, practicing and continuing mushroom cultivation as an income generating activity. A research namely ‘Constraints faced by trainees of Mushroom Research and Training Center, Pantnagar’ was undertaken to find out various constraints faced by the trainees of MRTC, Pantnagar. The study was conducted in three villages of Udham Singh Nagar district of Uttarakhand. Data were collected through pre-tested semi- structured interview schedule Focous Group Discussion and case study. Total 110 ex- trainees of MRTC, Pantnagar were selected through census method as respondents. The study also pointed out the need help trainees to get rid of personal, technological, infrastructural, economic, social constraints and also lack of awareness, training constraints, marketing and manpower constraints faced by them.