During the past decade, there has been a continuous migration of rural youth from India's rural areas to urban centers. This trend has resulted in a significant vacuum in the villages, as the talented and skilled farm youth leave their homes and communities in search of better opportunities. This situation has been described as alarming and concerning by many enlightened individuals, who note that the villages are becoming "old age homes" as the young people move away from farming.

The book addresses a range of issues related to youth in rural areas, including their characteristics, interests, and aspirations, as well as their role in natural resource management, the use of ICTs, and successful case studies on farm youth. The book's major subheadings include: Farm Youth in Agriculture, Capacity Building of Rural Youth, Entrepreneurship among Rural Youth, Rural Youth and Information Communication Technology, Women in Agriculture, Rural Youth in Integrated Farming, Leisure Time Utilization by Rural Youth, and Case Studies on Rural Youth.

K. Narayana Gowda hails from a farming family, obtained Master's and   Doctoral degrees in Agricultural Extension from UAS, Bangalore with a Gold Medal for distinction in Ph.D. He is serving the University for 38 years in various capacities and as Dean (Agri.) before taking over as Vice Chancellor on 30-6-2010.  Rendered significant service in Teaching, Research, Extension and Administration.  Guided 10 Ph.D. and 11 M.Sc. (Agri.) students in Extension Education. Published 124 research papers in National and International journals and authored seven books. Dr.Gowda refined and adopted Rural Agriculture Work Experience Programme (RAWEP) model at UASB, which has been well received by students across the country. 

The Rural Bio-Resource Complex Project under his leadership during 2005-2010 has generated three fold added income among 8340 families in Bangalore Rural district and registered 11 percent growth rate in agriculture. The IFS model of this project has been replicated among 1.25 lakh families in Karnataka and few selected places in the country. Responsible for establishment of 10 Commodity Based Associations, and Biofuel initiatives undertaken under the project gave impetus to start Biofuel Park, later Biofuel Task Force and finally Biofuel Development Board in Karnataka. 

He has widely travelled in USA, UK, Spain, France, Belgium, Namibia, Pakistan and China besides heading many Committees at National and International level.  Currently the Chairman of ARYA constituted by ICAR (2012).  In recognition of his outstanding contributions he has been bestowed with 14 prestigious awards including Swami Sahajanand Saraswati Extension Scientist Award of ICAR during 2009.

M.S. Nataraju, currently Professor of Agricultural Extension and Coordinator,   Ministry of Environment & Forests, Regional Centre, National Afforestation and Eco-development Board, Government of India, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, obtained his Ph.D. in Agricultural Extension with specialization in Agricultural Journalism from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. He is the recipient of ICAR Senior Research Fellowship and Gold Medal for Best Research work.  He had the unique opportunity of serving in Research, Extension and Teaching wings of the University for the past 30 years.  Published over 250 scientific and techno-popular articles in various journals, authored ten books, edited more than 50 books, booklets and folders and participated in more than 50 National and International Workshops / Seminars, which includes visit to Srilanka, Phillipines,  Hong Kong and Australia.  He has guided three Ph.D. and ten M.Sc. (Agri) students at UAS, Bangalore, Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra Open University, Maharashtra.  Prof. M.S. Nataraju is an expert member of Central and State Agricultural Universities, GOI and ICAR Research Institutes. He is a member of several National and International professional societies and currently Councilor of International Society of Extension Education, Indian Society of Extension Education, Associate Editor of Journal of Extension Education and Secretary, India Society of Extension Education (Karnataka Chapter).  He has been conferred with several awards including Dr. O.P. Dahama Memorial National Award (2010), Best Extension Professional Award (2011) and Fellow Mobilization Award (2012) for meritorious service and excellence in the field of Extension Education, Teaching and Training.

V. Veerabhadraiah, a renowned Agricultural Extension Scientist in the country, was born in 1945.  He had a distinguished academic career throughout with specialization in agricultural extension management.  He served the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore for about 38 years in various capacities and as the ICAR Emeritus Scientist after his retirement.  He was the Research Supervisor for 17 Ph.D. and 34 M.Sc. scholars in agricultural extension and has published more than 200 papers and four books.  He has served as either Chairman or Member of many Committees of the ICAR, Planning Commission, Government of Karnataka, other Agricultural Universities and UAS, Bangalore, and as an Expert Member of the Academic Council and Extension Education Council of other Agricultural Universities in the country.  He was conferred with many Medals and Awards for his significant contribution to the field of Agricultural Extension.  He is a Life Member of eight different Professional Societies and served as the President / Vice-President / Secretary of those Societies.

Section I : Farm Youth in Agriculture: 01. Farm Youth Caught in Cross Winds R. Dwarakinath 02. Sustaining Agriculture through Rural Youth A.G. Sawant 03. Natural Resource Management – An Experience of Rural Bio-Resource Complex Project K. Narayana Gowda, K.C. Narayanaswamy, Babu R.M. Ray, H.C. Girisha and B.V. Manjula 04. Youth in Agriculture V. Veerabhadraiah 05. Strategy for the Promotion of Youth in Agriculture V.G. Dhanakumar 06. Youth in Agriculture - Reflections, Re-Orientation and Reforms R M Prasad 07. Strategies to Retain the Farm Youth in Agriculture T. Rathakrishnan 08. Participation of Rural Youth in Farm Activities Y.N. Shivalingaiah and V. Veerabhadraiah 09. Attracting and Retaining Youth in Farming N. Parasuraman 10. Farm Youth : A Catalyst for Sustainable Agriculture Meenambigai, J. Santha Govind and G. Tamil Selvi 11. Augmenting Share of Rural Youth in Agricultural Development : A Case Study of Poonch District of Jammu & Kashmir Pawan Kumar Sharma, Suraj Prakash and Sanjay Khar 12. Rural Youth: Challenges and Strategies M.S. Nataraju

Section II : Capacity Building of Rural Youth: 13. Capacity Building of Rural Youth for Better Livelihoods through Improved Natural Resource Management Sreenath Dixit and B. Venkateswarlu 14. Empowerment of Male Farm Youth through Agro-Based Income Generating Activities Shivakumar B. Hayyal, Madhu Prasad V.L., Shivamurthy, M. and Mahatab Ali K.M. 15. Training Strategies as Preferred by Farm Women on IPM Practices J. Santha Govind, Gopalasamy, K and G. Tamil Selvi 16. Novel Extension Strategies to Enhance Sustainable Livelihood among Livestock Farmers in Tamil Nadu Porchezhiyan. S, R. Senthi Kumar, K. Ranjith Kumar and B.S. Meena

Section III : Entrepreneurship among Rural Youth: 17. Entrepreneurship Development in Agriculture and Rural Youth B.S. Hansra and P.K. Jain 18. Entrepreneurship Development – An Appropriate Option to Rural Industrialisation and Youth V. Sudha Rani and N. Kishore Kumar 19. Entrepreneurship Development in Agriculture – An Opportunity for Unemployed Rural Youth Ashoka Doddamani, V. Govinda Gowda and Jagadajyoti, S. Binkadakatti 20. Profile and Job Preferences of Bhil Youth in Dhule District of Maharashtra Suryawanshi, D.B., K.S. Throat and S.H. Ban 21. Marketing Behaviour of Dairy Farmers in Tamil Nadu R. Senthil Kumar, Ram Kumar, Babu. D and P. Jai Sridhar

Section IV : Rural Youth and Information Communication Technology: 22. Youth and ICTs for Agricultural DevelopmentSuchiradipta Bhattacharjee and R. Saravanan 23. Krishi Community Radio : An Emerging ICT Tool Sneha M. Talwar., Manjunath, L. and Ashalata, K.V. 24. Providing Management Services through Mobile Telephone to Attract Farm Youth Towards Sustainable Agriculture B.K. Narayana Swamy and N. Shankariah 25. Case Study of Farm Youth in Water Management Bharaswadkar, R.B. 26. Profile of Farmers using Kissan Call Centres Savithramma, K. Venkataranga Naika and M.P. Gokul Raj

Section V : Women in Agriculture 27. Gender Mainstreaming in Agriculture Development and Sustaining Women Youth in Agriculture P.S. Geethakutty 28. Handholding Strategies for Sustainable Development of Women SHGs Anasuya Patil, D.M. Chandargi, N.R. Mamledesai and S.B. Mahajanshetty 29. Training Needs of Dairy Farm Women S.R. Lahoti, R.R.Chole and G.U. Gholap 30. Drudgery Reducing Equipment as a Key to Enhance the Efficiency of Farm Women M.R. Kammar, A.R. Kurubar and Chavan Mohan 31. Potential Income Generation Activities (IGA) and Alternative Options for Women in Sub-Watersheds of Karnataka Chandargi, D.M., Anasuya Patil, S.B. Mahajanshetty and N.R. Mamledesai 32. Empowering Women SHG through Tuberose Cultivation – A Case Study in Karnataka Basavaraj Hulagur, Jamuna Urs and S.G. Goudappa 33. Information Seeking Behaviour of Dairy Farmwomen S.K. Meti 34. Sustainability of Women Self Help Groups of Gender Mainstreaming in Tamil Nadu M.A. Vennila, K. Narayana Gowda and S. Manickam

Section VI : Rural Youth in Integrated Farming: 35. Integrated Farming System – A Successful Case StudyK. Narayana Gowda, K.C. Narayanaswmay, Babu R.M. Ray, H.C. Girisha and B.V. Manjula 36. Integrated Farming System Demonstration Model forAttracting Rural Youth for AgricultureG. Eswarappa, E. Yellappa and Ashok Doddamani 37. Livelihood Improvement of Vulnerable Farmers through Integrated Farming K. Jagadeeshwara, K. Narayanagowda, Y. Nagaraju and Bhagyavathi 38. Role of Rural Youth in Milk and Silk Farming M.T. Lakshminarayan, M.S. Nataraju and B.N. Manjunatha 39. Integrated Farming System – An Avenue for Rural Youth in the Coastal Zone of KarnatakaManjula, N., Dhanunjaya, B. and Nagesha, G.

Section VII : Leisure Time Utilization by Rural Youth 40. Leisure Time Utilization by the Rural Youth R.R. Chole, P.R. Deshmukh and U.N. Fatak 41. Leisure Time Utilization by Male and Female Rural Youth Antwal P.N., J.V. Ekale and P.S. Kapse 42. Leisure Time Activities of Rural Youth Sasane G.K., U.D Jagdale and S.S. Patil

Section VIII : Case Studies on Rural Youth 43. Case Studies on the Functioning of Rural Youth Clubs K.S. Krishna 44. A Case Study of a Young Farmer in Integrated Farming System R.P. Kadam and S.K. Panke 45. Promotion of Jalasri Method of Paddy Cultivation under Tank Achkat – A Case of Young Farmer Eswarappa. G, E. Yellappa and Ashoka Doddamani 46. Bivoltine Chawki Rearing Centre - A Success Story of Sericulture Farm Youth Madhu Prasad V.L., Nanjappa D, Manjunath M and Govinda Gowda V 47. Case Studies on Rural YouthM.S. Nataraju 48. Case Studies on Migrated Rural Youth D. Nanjappa 49. Software Professional Becomes Best Farmer in Coastal Zone – A Case Study G. Nagesha, H. Hanumanthappa and Jayashree. S 50. Mitigation of Migration and Persuasion of Youth toContinue in Farming Profession V. Govinda Gowda, Ashoka Doddamani and Siddaram