ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Farmers, Farmers network, FPO members, Information seeking behaviour, Farmers’ interactions http://doi.org/10.48165/IJEE.2023.59311 Conflict of Interest: None Received 09-03-2023; Accepted 08-06-2023 Copyright@ Indian Journal of Extension Education (http://www.iseeiari.org) Research Article Indian Journal of Extension Education Vol. 59, No. 3 (July–September), 2023, (58-62) ISSN 0537-1996 (Print) ISSN 2454-552X (Online) Information Receiving Behavior of Farmers: The Structural and Functional Analysis Saumyesh Acharya 1 , S. K. Acharya 2 *, T. K. Mandal 3 , B. K. Mohanty 4 and Monirul Haque 5 1 Ph.D. Research Scholar, Department of Agricultural Extension, Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva-Bharati University, Sriniketan-731236, West Bengal, India 2 Professor, 3 Associate Professor, 5 Ph.D. Research Scholar, Department of Agricultural Extension, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia-741252, West Bengal, India 4 Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural Extension, IAS, S ‘O’ A Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar-751030, Odisha, India *Corresponding author email id: acharya09sankar@gmail.com ABSTRACT Farmers are the primary producers of food and other agricultural goods play a crucial part in the agricultural sector. Farmers need fast and accurate information on a variety of farming-related issues including weather, markets, pests and diseases, farming techniques, and agricultural inputs, to make informed decisions. Farmers’ information-seeking behaviour, however, differs based on several conditions. The proficiency in information-receiving behavior and its interpretation merit humongous importance for the triumph of entrepreneurial success far beyond subsistence farming. The study was conducted in the Nayagarh district of Odisha by selecting one hundred FPO member farmers following multistage and snowballing sampling techniques. A structured interview schedule was prepared and data were collected using the personal interview method. The study envisages that variables viz. age, crop yield, no. of male workers, marketed surplus, and materials possessed and training exposure have significant contributions to the functional contribution of information receiving behaviour of the farmers. The study suggests that improvement of farmers’ network and extension agent farmers’ relationship may be helpful for quick technology dissemination and overall improvement of the farming community. INTRODUCTION The world’s expanding population depends heavily on farmers for its food needs. Nonetheless, their access to information can dramatically alter their agricultural practices and yields (Fróna, 2019). In the current digital era, farmers have access to a wealth of information via a variety of media, including mobile phones, television, and the internet (Chowhan, 2020). The adoption of sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural practices can also be facilitated by good communication, assuring the long-term viability of agriculture and the wellbeing of the farming community (Rao et al., 2016). Several studies suggest that, the formation of group of farmers may act as the catalyst in increasing the information receiving abilities of the farming community (Munoz et al., 2015; Fleming et al., 2021). Farmer Producer Organization (FPO) is one of the greatest institutional innovations tailored to the much needed transformation of subsistence farming into entrepreneurial farming in India through reducing transactional costs (Parthiban et al., 2015). Producer organizations (POs) are formal rural organizations comprised of smallholder farmers who organize with the goal of increasing farm income through improved production, marketing, and local processing activities (Rondot & Collion, 2001). FPO leads to enhanced income for farmers by providing them with access to institutional credit, informed and better decisions, access to better and improved inputs, effectiveness & efficiency in farming operations, and better marketing facilities (Sharma et al., 2019). Smallholder farmers who form FPOs with the aim of raising farm revenue through enhanced production, marketing, and regional