Technology deficit and occupational risk among farm women engaged in vegetable cultivation

Introduction

Agricultural production in developing regions remains highly dependent on manual labour, with women playing a central role in crop cultivation, harvesting and post-harvest operations (Vemireddy & Choudhary, 2021) [17] . In vegetable cultivation, farm women are routinely engaged in repetitive and physically demanding tasks such as weeding, harvesting, carrying produce and post-harvest handling (Raney et al., 2011) [13] . However, their work is predominantly carried out using traditional hand tools and manual handling methods that have undergone little technological adaptation to suit women's physical characteristics and work demands. Traditional agricultural tools often require forceful exertion, repetitive gripping and awkward postures, increasing the likelihood of injuries and musculoskeletal disorders (Joshi et al., 2024; Kwatra, 2017) [8,9] . Manual handling of loads such as baskets, crates and harvested produce further compounds physical strain, especially in the absence of load-sharing or materialhandling devices. Over time, these conditions contribute to cumulative trauma, chronic pain and reduced work capacity. While earlier research has emphasized physiological workload and drudgery among farm women, limited attention has been given to technology deficit as a structural factor underlying occupational risk. Understanding how inadequate tool design and reliance on manual handling translate into injury incidence and musculoskeletal pain is essential for developing effective interventions (Zorrilla-Muñoz et al., 2019) [18] . The present study therefore examined technology gaps in vegetable cultivation and their relationship with occupational health risks among farm women. Moreover, it explores the potential for policy and governmental intervention to establish dedicated task forces that address these occupational hazards and health concerns effectively (Mishra et al., 2024) [10] .

Materials and Methods

Study Area and Sample

The study was conducted in a rural village of Rangareddy district, Telangana. Fifty farm women aged between 25 and 60 years, actively involved in vegetable cultivation and regularly participating in field operations, were selected using purposive sampling. Women with recent major illness or injury unrelated to farm work were excluded.

Tools and Techniques

Data was collected using the following tools:

• Tool-use inventory: A structured tool-use inventory was developed to document the types of tools employed by farm women during various farm operations such as weeding, harvesting, input application and post-harvest handling. The inventory recorded information on the nature of the tool (traditional or improved), frequency of use and perceived ease of handling. Traditional tools included hand hoes, sickles and baskets, while improved tools referred to women-friendly or ergonomically designed implements.

The inventory enabled assessment of technology gaps and dependence on manual tools in vegetable cultivation. • Injury incidence schedule: An injury incidence schedule was used to record the occurrence of work-related injuries experienced by farm women during the agricultural season.

The schedule documented the type of injury (cuts, blisters, abrasions, sprains or strains), frequency of occurrence and the specific farm activity during which the injury was sustained.

• Manual handling checklist: A manual handling checklist was employed to identify farm operations involving physical load handling. The checklist included activities such as lifting harvested produce, carrying baskets or crates, repetitive load transfer and prolonged holding of loads. • Musculoskeletal pain mapping: Musculoskeletal pain was assessed using a standardized body-region-wise pain mapping technique. A human body diagram was used to identify affected regions, including the lower back, shoulders, wrists/hands, knees and neck. Respondents rated the intensity of pain experienced in each body region using a five-point scale, where 1 indicated no pain and 5 indicated severe pain.

Statistical Analysis

Descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation) were used to analyze the data. Chi-square test was applied to examine the association between tool type and injury incidence. Pearson's correlation analysis was used to assess the relationship between manual handling intensity and musculoskeletal pain. Statistical significance was tested at the 5 per cent level.

Results and Discussion

Tool Use Patterns and Technology Gap

The distribution of respondents according to the type of tools used for major farm operations is presented in Table 1. All respondents relied on traditional hand tools for weeding, harvesting and post-harvest handling. Adoption of improved or women-friendly tools was negligible, indicating a pronounced technology deficit in women's agricultural work. Descriptive analysis of tool use revealed complete dependence on traditional tools for major farm operations. All respondents (100%) reported using traditional hand tools for weeding, harvesting and post-harvest handling. Only a small proportion (4%) reported limited use of improved tools for input application, while 96 per cent continued to rely on traditional methods. The findings indicated minimal adoption of womenfriendly or improved agricultural tools among the respondents. This pervasive use of traditional, often ergonomically unsuitable, tools significantly contributed to musculoskeletal disorders and chronic pain among women agricultural workers (Pawlak et al., 2017) [12] . Indeed, agricultural labor-saving technologies have overlooked women's specific production processes and activities, contributing to a lack of suitably adapted implements that consider their physiology, time use, and socio-cultural context (Joshi et al., 2024) [8] .

Traditional Tools and Injury Incidence

Work-related injuries reported by farm women are presented in Table 2. Cuts and lacerations were the most common injuries, followed by blisters and abrasions. Although most injuries were minor, their frequent occurrence contributes to discomfort, reduced efficiency and increased risk of infection. A Chi-square test revealed a statistically significant association between reliance on traditional tools and injury incidence (χ² = 6.21, df = 1, p < 0.05), indicating that exclusive use of traditional tools was linked to higher occurrence of work-related injuries.

Analysis of injury incidence data showed that cuts and lacerations were the most frequently reported injuries, accounting for 36.0 per cent of total cases. Blisters constituted 28.0 per cent of reported injuries, followed by abrasions (20.0%) and sprains or strains (16.0%). The results indicated a high occurrence of minor but recurrent work-related injuries among farm women during vegetable cultivation activities. This aligned with broader trends in agricultural settings where hand tools are a primary source of injury, particularly cuts and wounds to the fingers and hands (Bhattarai et al., 2016) [1] . Such injuries were often aggravated by the lack of personal protective equipment and proper training on tool use, further increasing vulnerability to occupational hazards (Bhattarai et al., 2016) [1] . The sustained engagement in hard agricultural tasks using outdated implements has been consistently linked to chronic pain and musculoskeletal disorders in various anatomical regions, including the neck, shoulders, and lower back (Tripathi et al., 2021) [16] .

Manual Handling Practices

Manual handling activities performed by the respondents are presented in Table 3. The majority of farm women were involved in lifting and carrying harvested produce and repetitive load transfer without mechanical aids. [4,7,14] .

Manual Handling and Musculoskeletal Pain

Musculoskeletal pain distribution by body region is presented in Table 4. The lower back recorded the highest mean pain score, followed by shoulders and wrists. These findings reflect the biomechanical stress associated with repetitive lifting and carrying tasks. [3,7] . Specific tasks such as mango harvesting, which involve awkward postures and repetitive movements, are known to induce pain and fatigue in the neck, shoulders, elbows and lower back (Boriboonsuksri et al., 2022) [2] . The findings in Table 5. were consistent with studies highlighting that women in agricultural labor frequently experience a higher prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms, particularly in the wrists and hands, due to repetitive tasks and the physical demands of their work (Sombatsawat et al., 2019) [15] . Pearson's correlation analysis revealed a statistically significant positive relationship between manual handling intensity and musculoskeletal pain. Manual handling showed a moderate positive correlation with lower back pain (r = 0.58, p < 0.05), shoulder pain (r = 0.51, p < 0.05) and wrist pain (r = 0.47, p < 0.05). These results indicated that increased involvement in manual handling activities was associated with higher levels of musculoskeletal pain among farm women. Such prevalence extended to other regions like the lower back, fingers, and shoulders, with factors such as age, daily working hours and farming experience further intensifying these conditions (Jain et al., 2018) [6] .

Technology Deficit as a Source of Occupational Risk

The results clearly indicated that technology deficit manifested as dependence on traditional tools and absence of materialhandling aids played a critical role in increasing occupational risk among farm women. Frequent injuries and widespread musculoskeletal pain reduced work efficiency and may lead to long-term health consequences, reinforcing occupational vulnerability. This deficit contributed to chronic conditions such as generalized body ache, back pain, neck pain, joint pain, and stiffness, which are widely reported among women in agricultural and fishery sectors (Halder et al., 2024; Jena et al., 2015) [5,7] . This vulnerability is often compounded by prolonged static postures, such as squatting for extended periods during harvesting, which significantly contributes to severe low back pain and knee discomfort (Tripathi et al., 2021) [16] .

Conclusion

The study demonstrates that reliance on traditional agricultural tools and extensive manual handling significantly increase occupational risk among farm women engaged in vegetable cultivation. High injury incidence and prevalent musculoskeletal pain were strongly associated with technology gaps in women's farm work. Addressing occupational health risks among farm women therefore requires targeted technological interventions, including the development and dissemination of womenfriendly, ergonomically appropriate farm tools and materialhandling devices. Reducing technology deficit is essential for improving safety, health and sustainability of women's participation in agriculture.

Implications

• Promotion of women-centric, ergonomically designed farm tools

• Subsidized access to improved tools for small and marginal farm women • Training programmes on safe tool use and manual handling techniques • Integration of occupational health considerations into agricultural technology dissemination

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