Megh R. Goyal, PhD, PE, is a Retired Professor in Agricultural and Biomedical Engineering from the General Engineering Department in the College of Engineering at University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Campus; and Senior Acquisitions Editor and Senior Technical Editor-in-Chief in Agriculture and Biomedical Engineering for Apple Academic Press Inc. He has worked as a Soil Conservation Inspector and as a Research Assistant at Haryana Agricultural University and Ohio State University. He was first agricultural engineer to receive the professional license in Agricultural Engineering in 1986 from College of Engineers and Surveyors of Puerto Rico. On September 16, 2005, he was proclaimed as "Father of Irrigation Engineering in Puerto Rico for the twentieth century" by the ASABE, Puerto Rico Section, for his pioneer work on micro irrigation, evapotranspiration, agroclimatology, and soil and water engineering. During his professional career of 45 years, he has received many prestigious awards. A prolific author and editor, he has written more than 200 journal articles and textbooks and has edited over 25 books. He received his BSc degree in engineering from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India; his MSc and PhD degrees from Ohio State University, Columbus; and his Master of Divinity degree from Puerto Rico Evangelical Seminary, Hato Rey, Puerto Rico, USA.

This book covers an array of issues on emerging agricultural engineering and technology, featuring new research and studies. The volume is broken into three parts: emerging technologies, energy management in agriculture, and management of natural resources, in which particular attention is paid to water management, a necessary consideration for successful crop production, especially in water-scarce regions. Topics include: alleviating drainage congestion solar energy for agriculture anaerobic digestion by inoculation with compost self-propelled inter-cultivators agrobiodiversity watershed development and management This volume offers academia, engineers, technologists, students, and others from different disciplines information to gain knowledge on the breadth and depth of this multifaceted field of agricultural engineering. There is an urgent need to explore and investigate the current shortcomings and challenges of the current innovations and challenges.

Preface

1. Issues and Opportunities to Augment Crop Production: Drainage Congestion in Hirakud Command, Odisha

Balram Panigrahi, Jagadish Chandra Paul, and Kajal Panigrahi

2. Irrigation Technology Options for Selected Agricultural Crops

Vishal K. Chavan

3. Solar Energy: Principles and Applications

M. K. Ghosal

4. Enhanced Anaerobic Digestion by Inoculation with Compost

Zhiji Ding, Nirakar Pradhan, and Willy Verstraete

5. Tractor Utilization in Vidarbha Region, India

D. V. Tathod, Y. V.Mahatale, and V. K. Chavan

6. Performance of Reversible Mold Board Plough

Yogesh V. Mahatale, Dnyaneshwar V. Tathod, and Vishal K. Chavan

7. Performance of Self-Propelled Inter-Cultivator

Uddhao S. Kankal, M. Anantachar, and V. K. Chavan

8. Agrobiodiversity: Collection and Conservation from Arid and Semi-Arid Regions of India

Raju R. Meghwal and N. K. Dwivedi

9. Watershed Development and Management

R. K. Sivanappan

10. Water Resources of India: Problems, Solutions and Prospects

R. K. Sivanappan

11. Present Status of Water Resources in Tamil Nadu

R. K. Sivanappan

12. Water Conservation and Increased Crop Production under Precision Farming

R. K. Sivanappan

Part IV: Principles of Soil and Water Engineering

13. Basics of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

R. K. Sivanappan

Index