Impact of Extension Services Provided by ATMA (Agricultural Technology Management Agency) on Small and Marginal Farmers in Rural Assam

Abstract

Agricultural Extension Services aim at dissemina�ng new knowledge and skill to farmers to aid them in adop�ng new agricultural technologies and use their resources efficiently. Agricultural knowledge improves their skill and decision-making and enhances more efficient u�liza�on of agricultural technologies. With a sample of 160 famers collected from Golaghat district of Assam by using mul-staged random sampling method, this study a�empts to understand the impact of extension services provided by ATMA (Agricultural Technology Management Agency) in rural Assam. The Propensity Score Matching (PSM) technique is employed to control for poten�al sample selec�on biases. The analysis and findings reveal that the extension services provided by ATMA in the study area posi�vely impacts on the income and paddy produc�on of the small and marginal farmers. Timely dissemina�on of extension services which meet the actual needs of the farmers can impact the farmers income and output produc�on to larger extent.