Determination of preferences by YouTube users for farm information and constraints faced by them

The study was conducted in Maharashtra's Parbhani district, where 120 farmers who were YouTube users were surveyed. Among the various preferences for 11 different types of content on YouTube, content such as weather forecasting and agricultural advice was most preferred by farmers, with a mean preference score of 1.975. This was followed in descending order by pest management (1.958), disease management (1.950), weed management (1.933), and success stories of farmers (1.900). These were the most preferred topics on YouTube among the farmers. Conversely, post-harvest management (1.850), new technology (1.816), various government schemes (1.800), current affairs (1.783), farm mechanization (1.725), and improved crop varieties (1.683) were the least preferred content on YouTube. The study also aimed to understand the constraints faced by the farmers. The analysis revealed that the majority of respondents (92.5%) expressed concerns about the high cost of ICT gadgets like computers and smartphones regarding YouTube utility. This was followed by the need for a monthly mobile recharge to access internet facilities or the high cost of internet access (90%), difficulty in understanding the content language on YouTube (89.16%), and a lack of YouTube literacy among farmers (88.33%). These were the major problems faced by the user farmers. Minor problems included unscientific information on YouTube (86.66%), lack of uninterrupted power supply in rural areas (85.83%), insufficient skills to access YouTube (85.00%), and poor internet connectivity in rural areas (76.66%).