| S.No. | Category | Technology | Major interventions | No. of Farm families participated |
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1
| Agriculture Science | Crop/Varietal diversification for sustainable yield under sodic environments | Non-availability of good quality seed of improved varieties and lack of knowledge about the salt tolerant varieties is one of the major concerns limiting crop production to a greater extent in sodic soils irrigated with high RSC waters.
Varietal demonstrations in wheat (KRL 210) conducted over 126 locations in farmers participatory mode revealed an overall yield advantage of 4.6% compared to other cultivated varieties in the area.
Problematic sodic soils having soil pH>8.5 coupled irrigated with high RSC waters (RSC>4.0 me/l) was found to be the critical limits for significant yield superiority, better salt tolerance and adaptation of wheat variety KRL 210 over the traditional ones in the area.
Farmers survey opinioned KRL 210 as remunerative one in terms of early maturity (5-7 days earliness), higher per day productivity, better factor (fertilizer N) productivity and chappati quality as well as tolerance to water stagnation under sodic conditions.
Varietal intervention through inclusion of salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 can be an important strategy to counter yield reduction under salty environments. | 126 |
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2
| Agriculture Science | Weed management for herbicide resistant Phalaris minor in wheat | Phalaris minor in wheat as a noxious weed difficult to control developing high degree of herbicide resistance.
Farmers’ survey revealed over-dosing of recommended herbicides (68%), recommended water quantity (5%) and spay nozzles (1.5%) were identified as the major constraints among the faulty management practices. Almost all the farmers criticized the spurious quality of pesticides influencing the desired herbicide efficiency. One-third of the farmers are mixing different group herbicides without giving due consideration to herbicide compatibility.
Field demonstration conducted in farmers’ participatory mode revealed that pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 2 lt/acre followed by post-emergence application of recommended herbicide (clodinafop/pinoxaden) (IP) resulted in better weed control efficiency at 30-35 DAS and 115-120 DAS and 4132 kg/ha mean wheat yield of 4132 kg/ha as against the 3888 kg/ha under farmer’s practice (2-3 times higher dose of recommended herbicides) excelling by 6.24 per cent over the later. | 30 |
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3
| Agriculture Science | Ameliorants for neutralization of high residual alkalinity (RSC>2.5 meq/l) for crops grown on sodic soils | Continuous use of high RSC waters results in buildup of soil sodicity and higher proportion of exchangeable sodium ions in the root zone to levels limiting land and crop productivity.
Complementary effects of applying RSC neutralization ameliorants (gypsum or pressmud) either individually or in combination proven their effectiveness in sustainable use of poor quality waters. Integrate use of gypsum (soil pH based) and pressmud (3.75 t/ha) resulted in 15.4 % yield increase while presssmud alone @ 10 t/ha gave 14.9% yield superiority over the untreated control (RSC waters applied as such). | 152 |
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4
| Agriculture Science | Crop/Varietal diversification for sustainable yield under sodic environments: Adaptation of salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 vs HD 2967 | Under normal conditions (pH2< 8.5), HD 2967 attaining 4.44 t/ha grain yield significantly out yielded KRL 210 with yield difference of 0.034 t/ha at 1% level of significance. There was non-significant differences in wheat yield for both the varieties at sodicity stresses ranging between pH2~8.0 to 8.5. With further increase in sodicity stress beyond soil pH2>8.5, yield superiority of KRL 210 was observed compared to HD 2967 revealing yield difference of 0.283 t/ha at sodicity stress ranging between pH2~9.0 to 9.25. The partial budgeting for salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 vis-a-vis HD 2967 in soil sodicity revealed that the added returns/monetary benefit obtained from KRL 210 was of Rs. 3132/ha. Apart from yield advantage, the salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 also reduces the fertilizer cost by Rs. 356/ha. Overall the incremental income of Rs. 3488/ha was obtained from the cultivation of KRL 210 in soil sodicity.
Test of significance for grouped technology adoption trials conducted with poor quality water (RSC water) indicated non-significant differences in grain yield for the demonstrated (KRL 210) and traditional (HD 2967) variety for crop irrigated with RSC waters having residual alkalinity upto 4 meq/l though HD 2967 found numerically superior. While ever t-statistics of groups under technology adoption trials showed that, as the irrigation water quality deteriorating (increasing gradient of RSC) superiority of KRL 210 can be seen in comparison to farmer practices.
Testing of hypothesis (t-test) of groups under technology adoption trials showed that as the irrigation water quality deteriorating, relative advantage of growing KRL 210 was realised in comparison to farmer’s practice. With the increase in residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC>4 meq/l), KRL 210 significantly outyielded HD 2967 attaining pooled genetic gain of 0.167 t/ha at RSC ranging between 4-5 meq/l to 0.293 t/ha at RSC >7 meq/l. Superiority of KRL 210 over the HD 2967 in high sodic soils may be due to existence of salt tolerance mechanism, being specially developed for salt affected ecosystem. The partial budgeting for salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 vis-a-vis HD 2967 in soil sodicity revealed that the added returns/monetary benefit obtained from KRL 210 was of Rs. 2756/ha. Apart from yield advantage, the salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 also reduces the fertilizer cost by Rs. 356/ha. Overall the incremental income of Rs. 3112/ha was obtained from the cultivation of KRL 210 irrigated at different RSC levels (Table 19).
Confidence of interval of regression coefficient for sodicity indicated lesser yield reduction i.e. 804-1113 kg/ha with KRL 210 for each unit increase in soil pH in comparison to 1143-1529 kg/ha/unit in HD 2967 with the validation limit of pH2 of 8.1-9.3. Similarly, confidence of interval for RSC water indicated yield reduction of 273-345 kg/ha/unit for KRL 210 as against the yield reduction of 348-455 kg/ha/unit in HD 2967 with the validation limit of RSC of 2.5-7.5 meq/l. In contrast, comparative yield reduction for both varieties was relatively higher with sodicity which indicates that sodicity stress has more profound effect on wheat yield in comparison to residual alkalinity in irrigation water.
In conclusion, problematic sodic soils having soil pH2>8.6 irrigated with high RSC waters (RSC>4.5 meq/l) was found to be the critical limits for significant yield superiority of salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 over the traditional ones in the area. Farmers further highlighted KRL 210 as remunerative one in terms of early maturity (5-7 days earliness), higher per day productivity, better factor (fertilizer N) productivity and chapatti quality as well as tolerance to water stagnation under sodic conditions. Therefore, varietal intervention through inclusion of salt tolerant wheat variety KRL 210 can be an important strategy to counter yield reduction under salty environments. | 112 |
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5
| Agriculture Science | Herbicide based weed management for the control of Phalaris minor in wheat | Field demonstration conducted over 77 locations in farmers’ participatory mode revealed that improved technological intervention including pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 2 lt/acre followed by post-emergence application of recommended herbicide (clodinafop/pinoxaden) resulted in better weed control efficiency at 30-35 DAS and 115-120 DAS and 4020 kg/ha mean wheat yield as against the 3802 kg/ha under farmer’s practice (2-3 times higher dose of recommended herbicides) excelling by 5.16 per cent in mean wheat yield over the later. | 77 |
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6
| Agriculture Science | Role of optimum plant population for sustainable rice yield under sodic agroecosystems | Farmer’s generally opt for manual rice transplanting through hired labour at farmers’ fields without any due consideration to plant population. It has been observed that the plant population under manual method of rice transplanting generally remains 60-65% of the plant population total that is actually required for getting satisfactory yield levels. This practice becomes more important under salt affected soils where the seedling mortality rate remains relatively higher compared to normal conditions. To demonstrate the role of optimum plant population under sodic agro-ecosystems, 7 demonstrate were carried out in farmers’ participatory mode. Yield advantage ranging from 8.5 to 25.2% with a mean value of 15.6% was recorded in the demonstrated plots with spacing 20 x 15 cm as against the farmer’s practice of transplanted rice with hired labour. The plant population recorded at final harvest revealed that in the technology demonstrated plots, the plant population remained 81.6% in the optimum one as against the 55.4% in the farmer’s practice plots. | 7 |
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7
| Agriculture Science | Managing reproductive sterility through Boron application in rice | In salt affected (sodic) soils, reproductive sterility is a common phenomenon impacting crop yields to a greater extent. Boron plays an important role in plant system particularly during reproductive phase helping in better pollination, and fruit and seed development. Boron deficiency was identified as one of the major problem in the adopted villages with 90% of the total area (3247 ha) was found deficient. To demonstrate the benefits of B application under sodic soils, 25 demonstrations were carried out in farmers’ participatory mode. Soil application of boron @ 2.5 kg/ha through borax was done and incorporated in the soil at the time of final field preparation before rice transplanting. B deficiency increased with increasing soil sodicity (soil pH) as evident by R2 value of 0.78. With the increase in B deficiency, the yield advantage due to soil application of B was relatively higher ranging from 1.96% (medium) to 3.62% (extremely low) compared to no-B application. B application also helped in managing reproductive sterility. The spikelets sterility also increased with increasing B deficiency. | 25 |
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8
| Agriculture Science | Leaf Colour Chart (LCC) based N management in rice | Farmers apply fertilizer nitrogen (N) in fixed time recommended N split schedule, without taking into account whether the plant really requires N at the time which may lead to loss or may not be found adequate enough to synchronize nitrogen supply with actual crop nitrogen demand. Leaf Colour Chart (LCC) is an instant, easy to use and low cost visual and subjective indicator for the crop’s nitrogen status and need for N fertilizer application. To demonstrate the use of LCC based N management in rice, a total of 10 farmer’s participatory demonstrations were carried out using the LCC plates vis-à-vis fertiliser N application”.
Total N applied during the crop growing season ranged between 78-129.4 kg/ha under farmer’s practice and 80.0-103.5 kg/ha under LCC based N management. There was non-significant difference in rice yields even with 23.3 per cent N saving under LCC based N management. LCC based N management resulted in NUE of 36.1 kg/kg N applied as against the 27.6 kg/kg N applied in case of farmer’s practice. Monetary benefits and benefit:cost ratio were relatively higher under LCC based N management practice. The farmers were convinced about the potential saving of N (urea) through LCC based N management in rice. | 10 |
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9
| Agriculture Science | Crop/Varietal diversification for sustainable yield under sodic environments: Adaptation of rice variety CSR 30 Basmati vs Pusa 1121 | Pusa 1121 gave significantly higher mean grain yield in comparison to CSR 30 upto moderate sodicity (pH2<9.25). Both the cultivated varieties were found at par with each other at soil pH2~9.25-9.50. With further increase in soil sodicity (pH2>9.5), basmati CSR 30 gave numerically higher yield in comparison to Pusa 1121 though the difference in yield was found to be non-significant. It is interesting to note that inter-varietal differences between Pusa 1121 and basmati CSR 30 narrowed down for mean grain yield at higher gradients of sodicity. Lesser yield reduction with basmati CSR 30 with increased soil sodicity indicates the better salt tolerance mechanism of basmati CSR 30 compared to Pusa 1121. Test of significane of grouped varietal adaptation trials in relation to poor quality RSC waters indicated that the superiority of Pusa 1121 over the Basmati CSR 30 kept on decreasing with the increase in residual alkalinity.
Trend lines depicted for testing the difference in grain yield for both the varieties intersected each other at pH2~9.5. As the intensity of sodicity stress increased, the gap between the trend lines narrowed down, which indicate that performance of salt tolerant rice variety CSR 30 Basmati found superior to Pusa 1121 as indicated by lesser reduction with increasing soil sodicity. Trend lines depicted for testing the difference in grain yield for both the varieties did not intersect each other. It is interesting to note that the yield reduction with increasing RSC in case of Pusa 11211 was relatively more as compared to CSR 30 Basmati indicating its better adaptation under stress environments.
Confidence of interval of regression coefficient indicated that yield reduction of 639-843 kg/ha/unit of soil pH was observed in CSR 30 Basmati as against the yield reduction of 1054-1240 kg/ha/unit in Pusa 1121 with the validation limit of pH2 of 8.0-9.6. Similarly, confidence of interval for residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC) indicated lesser yield reduction of 195-217 kg/ha/unit in CSR 30 basmati in comparison to yield reduction of 280-312 kg/ha/unit in Pusa 1121 with the validation limit of RSC of 2.0-7.5 | 283 |
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10
| Animal Science | Effect of betane supplementation on growth performance, feed intake and stress biomarkers status of buffalo heifers | Supplementation of betane to buffalo heifers indicated better growth rate, average daily gain, feed intake and morphological parameters during heat stress. Stress biomarkers (Glutathione Peroxidase SOD, Cortisol) levels were lower in treatment group than control. Similarly different physiological parameters (RR, HR, RT and ST) used as indicators of stress was lower in treatment group than control. The levels of anti and pro-inflammatory cytokines were higher and lower respectively in treatment group of buffalo heifers during heat stress. Based on the study results, it can be suggested that supplementation of betane to buffalo heifers will helpful in reducing the stress levels and converting the energy towards the enhancing the growth rate for early puberty. | 14 |
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11
| Animal Science | Effect of astaxanthin and prill fat supplementation on energy metabolites, stress markers and milk production of buffaloes during summer season under field conditions | Beneficial effect of supplementation of astaxanthin, prill fat and combination of astaxanthin and prill fat was observed for lactating buffaloes. The milk yield was improved and stress levels were reduced by different supplementation over control group of buffaloes. Supplementation of astaxanthin, prill fat and their combination to lactating buffaloes enhanced the milk yield by 5.39%, 13.8% and 15.6% respectively over control group. Cost benefit ratio indicated the better return in group–III (prill fat supplementation) over other groups. Thermal imaging of different groups of buffaloes showed, higher udder temperature in supplemented groups of buffaloes than control. Prill fat supplementation could be the better option for enhancing milk production of buffaloes during heat stress. | 24 |
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12
| Animal Science | Enhancement of reproductive performance during heat stress using proven bull semen and supplanting mineral mixture to cattle and buffaloes | Non availability of good quality semen and balanced ration to the animals is the major problem for livestock production system. This leads to lower growth rate, conception rate and several other reproductive problems in animals. Keeping in view the above facts in mind, a campaign for breed improvement was initiated, for which three hundred eight breedable bovine (Cattle-49 and buffalo-259) were inseminated at the proper time of estrus (heat) using the proven bull semen from NDRI, Karnal. These animals were also supplemented mineral mixture @50-60 gm/day/ animal during the study. Inseminated cow and buffaloes were checked through rectal palpation after three months of insemination. The overall conception rate of the whole period was around 50.54 per cent. The number of artificial insemination, number of conception and conception percentage has been given in following table and figure and calf born are shown in pictures. | 308 |
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13
| Animal Science | Effect of Mineral Mixture Supplementation to Repeat Breeder Buffaloes | Eighteen repeat breeding buffaloes were selected under farmer’s doorstep and these animals were supplemented with mineral mixture @50-60gm daily for three months. The number of animals inseminated and conceived after one, two and three months were 22.35%, 42.8% and 25% respectively. The overall conception rate of these repeat breeding buffaloes was around 66%. Therefore, feeding of area specific mineral mixture and using proven bull semen is a paramount for enhancing reproductive performance of bovines. | 18 |
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14
| Entrepreneurship Module | Entrepreneurship through aquaculture intervention | The success of aquaculture depends largely on the proper selection of a site that is to be developed into a farm. Water supply, soil type, topography, and biological and operational, economic and social factors are to be considered for the proper selection. The aquaculture intervention was suggested to the farmer for the barren land which was giving a poor yield of the rice and wheat crops. The available area of about 0.87 acre was divided into two parts of 205×98×9 ft each for easy feeding, monitoring and surveillance of the pond system.
The phased manuring was done with the cow dung and press mud separately into each pond. Raw cow dung and press mud @ 200 kg/ha was applied in the first phase before 15 days of the stocking. Half of the above doses were applied in subsequent doses after 15- 20 days of stocking depending on the plankton growth. Carp spawn (Catla and Rohu) stocking was done at the rate of 1lakh spawn/acre. Since the natural production of fish food organism doesn’t meet the total food requirement of the stocked spawn, supplementary feeding was done with locally available mustard and soybean cake, rice and wheat polish. Due to the onset of winter season, the feeding rate was reduced accordingly.
The mortality rate noticed was about 60%. The high mortality rate may have occurred due to the prolonged winter season which resulted in a decrease in water temperature. The average weight and length of the fingerlings noticed after four months was 90-100 and 7-9 cm respectively (Fig. 19c). The physic-chemical parameters of water were noticed intermittently and found to be in the normal range.
The aquaculture intervention into the farmers degraded land is forecasted to be the lucrative venture. Since this farming system is new for the farmer selected for the practice, aquaculture training was oriented for him at Rohtak centre of ICAR-CIFE Mumbai. It is envisaged that once the farmer gets well acquainted with this farming system, more degraded land which is available at the site will be converted under the aquaculture practice. | 1 |
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15
| Horticulture Science | Crop diversification through vegetables crops for farm profitability under sodic environments | Continuous rice-wheat monoculture has led to declining water table, deteriorating water quality, soil health and environmental issues vis-à-vis related problems of soil sodicity limiting crop and land productivity. Exploring bio-economic feasibility through vegetable/horticultural crops will help in increasing the farm profitability and diversify the prevalent exhaustive system.
Inclusion of short duration pea (Kashi Ageti) and okra (Kashi Kranti) in place of wheat in prevalent rice-wheat cropping system resulted in 24.4 t/ha of wheat equivalent yield (WEY) with production efficiency (PE) of 81.7 kg/ha/day and net returns (NR) of 3.0 lac/ha in comparison to 15.3 t/ha WEY, 57.5 kg/ha/day PE and 1.97 lac/ha NR obtained under rice-wheat cropping system. | 4 |
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16
| Horticulture Science | Diversifying rice-wheat system through vegetables for sustainable yield under sodic environments | Continuous rice-wheat monoculture has led to decline in water table, deteriorating water quality, soil health and environmental issues vis-à-vis related problems of soil sodicity limiting crop and land productivity. Exploring bio-economic feasibility through vegetable/horticultural crops will help in increasing the farm profitability and diversify the prevalent exhaustive system. A total of 3 demonstrations were carried out to evaluate the feasibility of short duration vegetables replacing wheat in rice-wheat cropping sequence. Total crop growth duration was 270 days under rice-wheat system as against 302 days under Rice-pea-okra.
Diversifying rice-wheat cropping system by including short duration pea (Kashi Ageti) and okra (Kashi Kranti) in place of wheat resulted in 22.36 t/ha of wheat equivalent yield (WEY) with production efficiency (PE) of 75.0 kg/ha/day and net returns (NR) of 3.08 lac/ha in comparison to 14.8 t/ha WEY, 55.15 kg/ha/day PE and 2.21 lac/ha NR obtained under traditional rice-wheat cropping system. | 3 |
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17
| ICT | Mobile enabled ICT based Decision Support System-Salinity Expert | Developed mobile app “Salinity Expert” for the dissemination of farmer friendly technologies and under salt affected agro-ecosystems. This is a user friendly app available in hindi version compatible to Andriod phone with features:
• Knowledge based digital compendium including management practices for rice, wheat and mustard crops under salty environments.
• Gypsum requirement considering inherent soil sodicity (pH) and residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC) and their concomitant effect on crop yields (yield predictions)
• User friendly query handler to raise queries either as text messages or in graphic/recorded form.
• Aadhar/Mobile Login ID based digitization of soil health cards (SHCs)
• Methodology and precautionary measures for soil and irrigation water samples
• Updated agro-advisories and information regarding other important events | 2500 |
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18
| Mechanization and Marketing | Residue Management in rice–wheat cropping system | The in-situ disposal of paddy residue has turn out to be a huge problem due to short time span (hardly 10-15 days) between rice harvesting and wheat seeding is hardly 10-15 days, enforcing farmers to opt for open-field burning of crop residues. More than 90% of the rice and wheat crops in the adopted villages are mechanically harvested. Therefore, residue management is of utmost important as it contains valuable plant nutrients and helps to improve soil physical, chemical and biological health through buildup of organic matter content in soil.
A Super Straw Management System (SSMS) SSMS was provided and attached to the already existing combine. During kharif 2017, a total of 110 ha of land was harvested with the SSMS equipped combine harvester. With this intervention, 3.76 tons of N, 0.35 tons of P2O5, 2.23 tons of K and 0.32 tons of S was saved which otherwise lost due to residue burning. In addition, 1124.2 tons of CO2, 46.2 tons of CO, 1.5 tons of SO2 and 2.3 tons of PM might have generated if not harvested by the SSMS equipped combine harvester.
A field day on Rice Residue Management was also organized at village Mundri 20 October 2018 to acquaint the farmers on situation based rice residue management options and awareness on importance of residue retention in conserving soil health and environmental quality. The usefulness of combine harvester equipped with Super Straw Management System (SSMS) followed by direct wheat sowing with Happy Seeder in anchored residues and uniformly spreaded rice straw was also demonstrated. The farmers were convinced and satisfied with the performance of SSMS fitted combine harvesting and happy seeder option.
To demonstrate the direct wheat seeding with Happy Seeder in SSMS equipped combine harvested rice fields, a total of 25 demonstrations were carried out in FFP adopted village.Mean yield data indicated 4294 kg/ha with Happy Seeder sown wheat as against the 4160 kg/ha yield with 3.2 per cent yield advantage over the conventional wheat sowing. In addition, the farmers perceived lesser incidence of resistant Phalaris minor, 10-15% water saving in first irrigation and there was lesser crop lodging under aberrant weather situations where wheat sowing was done with Happy Seeder. | 296 |
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19
| Natural Resource Management | Managing localized water stagnation and improving ground water quality by harvesting excess rain water into aquifer through drainage-cum-recharge structure | The five villages (Mundri, Geong, Kathwar, Sampli Kheri and Bhaini Majra) in Kaithal district of Haryana adopted under Farmer FIRST Project in Kaithal district have major limitations of poor quality groundwater (high RSC > 2.5 meq/l) and soil sodicity (soil pH>8.2) reducing soil infiltration rate and submergence of crops during the periods of intense rains resulting in crop failure.
To provide location specific drainage-cum-recharge facility for safe disposal of excess rain water in low lying areas where runoff gets accumulated and adversely affects the crop production, a total of six cavity type groundwater recharge structures were installed. The recharge cavity consisted of conventional cavity tube well coupled with radial (2 No.) and sand-cum-radial filtration (4 No.) units, constructed by drilling a bore hole until a sandy layer found below a clayey layer. A high pressure (10 kg/m2) blind PVC pipe of 9'' (22.5 cm) diameter was drilled upto 165-235 feet soil depth into the clay layer and sand was pumped out until a stable semi-spherical cavity was developed.
Point observations through periodic water monitoring indicated rise in ground water table (upto 1 m) during the monsoon period (July-September 2017) beneath the recharge structure and improvement in ground water quality with concomitant reduction in residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC: 1.5-2.5 meq/l). Piezometers have been installed at a distance of 10, 30 and 50 from the main unit (2 structures) to further monitor the spatio- temporal improvement in water quality.
Heavy downpour during the last week of June 2017 (150 mm on a single day) during the last week of June 2017 immediately after rice transplantation resulted in complete crop submergence. The installed structure reduced flood volumes through drainage-cum-recharge structure and saved transplanted rice crop in lowest 5 ha area, though low to modest impact was also clearly visible in the surrounding areas.
Investment on drainage-cum-recharge structure revealed its economic feasibility in term of augmenting ground water, improving its quality (reduction in alkalinity) through recharge of excess water and enhancing farmers income by saving submerged rice crop during the period of intense rains.
| 750 |
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20
| Natural Resource Management | Distribution of Soil Health Cards (SHCs) for balanced fertilization, reclamative measures for problematic soils and sustainable use of poor quality waters | Farmers are not much aware of balanced fertilization and sound knowledge of reclamative management practices for the salt affected soils in the area.
A total of 150 SHCs being provided to the farmers free of cost. GPS based characterization with precise information on nature of soil salinity (pH/EC), fertility status including macro (N,P, K, S) and micro (Zn, Fe, Mn, Cu, B) and water quality (pH/EC/RSC). will not only serve the purpose to create awareness in tacking the existing problems of soil sodicity and high residual alkalinity in irrigation water but also helpful in taking up cost effective farm management practice curtaining input costs.
| 150 |
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21
| Natural Resource Management | Drainage-cum-recharge structure for augmenting groundwater and improving its quality by harvesting excess rain water into aquifer | The periodic observation taken from point source revealed that a declining trend for water table depth was observed at all locations, probably due to lesser monsoon rain and groundwater exploitation for cultivation of rice crop during Kharif 2018. In general, groundwater table depth from the surface was maximum during Sept-Oct 2018 months, however, slight rise in groundwater was recorded during Dec 2018-Mar 2019. The good winter rain received might have facilitated groundwater recharge as well as fulfilled wheat crop water requirement. A reduction in RSC in the tune of 2-3 meq/l was recorded beneath the installed structure at each site from the peak values. In order to assess the impact of recharge structure on groundwater spatially, periodic observation on water table depth and quality ware taken from the points 10, 30, 60, 90 m away (through piezometers) from the installed structure at one site. More fluctuation in WTD near to structure i.e. 0 and 10 m points of observation as compared to others shows that recharge structure also contributed water to aquifer. That effect is much pronounced within 10 m radius but spread may even longer if more recharge events would take place. It is interesting to note that reduction in RSC is visible up to 30 m distance from the structure. This could be the radius of influence for this recharge structure with recharge event took place, but spread may increase or decrease according to rainwater available at recharge point. The data shows that Reduction in SAR was recorded up to the distance of 10 m from the structure, thereafter, no conclusive observation on dilution effect was noticed.
On the basis of above results, it can be summarized that installed structure influenced groundwater in 30m radius from the point of installation. However, radius of influence may vary according to amount of rain water recharged. | 250 |
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22
| Natural Resource Management | Management strategies for reclamation of sodic soils and neutralization of residual alkalinity in irrigation waters: Effect of pressmud application for sustainable productivity and profitability in rice-wheat system | Complementary effects of applying pressmud as reclamative/neutralization ameliorants proved its effectiveness in sustainable use of poor quality waters for rice-wheat cropping system practiced on sodic soils. To evaluate the effect of pressmud (PM) application on sodic soils, the average yield data of 37 locations revealed that PM application @ 10 t/ha in rice resulted in 3157 kg/ha paddy yield as against the 2743 kg/ha yield obtained under farmer’s practice (absolute control) indicating 15.33 per cent yield superiority over the later. Similarly in wheat, residual effect of PM application in rice (Kharif season) resulted in wheat yield of 4474 kg/ha with 14.37 per cent yield advantage where no application was done (farmer’s practice). It is interesting to note that relative advantage of pressmud application increased with the increase in soil pH2.
In system (rice-wheat) perspective, the yield advantage ranged between 10.99 (soil pH2<8.25) to 18.07 (soil pH2>9.25) per cent in response to pressmud application. Mean yield of 11176 kg/ha (wheat equivalent yield) indicating 14.65 per cent yield gain was observed in comparison to farmer’s practice/absolute control (9747 kg/ha).
The economic analysis showed added monetary benefit ranging from Rs. 22069/ha at lower pH (pH2<8.25) to Rs. 26303/ha under highest sodicity stress (pH2>9.25) with overall mean advantage of Rs. 24799/ha against the added cost of Rs. 4920/ha incurred towards pressmud application @ 10 t/ha (including material cost, labour and transportation charges). Pressmud application showed incremental input-output ratio of 5.04 for each rupee invested towards the cost of pressmud application.
Deteriorated water quality as indicated by increased RSC levels adversely affected the yields of both rice and wheat crops. Compared to PM application, yields of rice and wheat remained comparatively lower at each RSC level when no amendment was applied. Yield of rice reduced from 3617 kg/ha at RSC<3 meq/l to 2913 kg/ha at RSC>7 meq/l when pressmud application was done while corresponding reduction ranged from 3264 kg/ha (<3 me/l) to 2507 kg/ha (>7 me/l) when no amendment was applied (farmer’s practice). Similarly in wheat to visualize the residual effect of PM application in rice, the yield reduction varied from 5078 kg/ha (<3 meq/l) to 4167 (kg/ha (>7meq/l) when PM @ 10 h/ha was applied whereas it ranged from 4642 kg/ha (<3 me/l) to 3534 kg/ha (>7 me/l) when no amendment was applied (farmer’s practice). Overall, PM application @10t/ha resulted in 3157 kg/ha in rice and 4474 kg in wheat indicating 15.33 and 14.37% yield advantage compared to absolute control (farmer’s practice).
In system (rice-wheat) perspective, the yield (wheat equivalent yield) advantage ranged between 10.24 (RSC<3 meq/l) to 17.33 (RSC>7 meq/l) per cent in response to pressmud application. Soil samples were taken to observe the change (before and after) in soil pH as a result of continuous use of RSC waters as such or whether there is any complementary effect of PM application. At each RSC level, using RSC waters as such resulted in buildup of soil sodicity (soil pH) while relative decrease in pH values (compared to initial ones) was observed with PM application (Fig. 5). It is interesting to note that with increasing RSC level, PM application complemented to greater reduction in soil pH compared to what was observed at lower RSC levels.
To estimate the incremental economic benefits obtained by application of pressmud in sodic soils, the partial budgeting technique was employed. The study revealed that the overall added returns/monetary benefit obtained from the system (wheat equivalent yield) was of Rs. 24134/ha against the added cost of Rs. 4920/ha incurred towards pressmud application @ 10 t/ha (including material cost, labour cost and transportation charges). The study indicating an incremental input-output ratio of 4.91 for each rupee invested towards the cost of pressmud application. | 37 |
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23
| Natural Resource Management | Management strategies for reclamation of sodic soils and neutralization of residual alkalinity in irrigation waters: Effect of integrated use of gypsum and pressmud application for sustainable productivity and profitability in rice-wheat system | Complementary effects of applying gypsum+pressmud (Gyp+PM) in combination as reclamative/neutralization ameliorants proved their effectiveness in sustainable use of poor quality waters for rice-wheat cropping system practiced on sodic soils. The relative advantage of Gyp+PM application increased with increasing soil pH2 compared to what was obtained when no amendment (farmer’s practice) was applied. The yield of both rice and wheat crops decreased with the increase in soil pH though the yield reduction was relatively lesser in plots where both gypsum and pressmud (Gyp+ M) application was done. The average yield data of 121 locations revealed that Gyp+PM application in rice resulted in 3120 kg/ha paddy yield as against the 2767 kg/ha yield obtained under farmer’s practice (absolute control) indicating 17.38 per cent yield superiority over the later. Similarly in wheat, residual effect of Gyp+PM application in rice (Kharif season) resulted in wheat yield of 4382 kg/ha with 15.02 per cent yield advantage where no application was done (farmer’s practice).
To visualize the impact of Gyp+PM application on crops yields in rice-wheat cropping system considering system as a whole, the yield advantage ranged between 11.89 (soil pH2<8.25) to 21.73 (soil pH2>9.25) per cent in response. Mean yield of 11004 kg/ha (wheat equivalent yield) indicating 16.04 per cent yield gain was observed in comparison to farmer’s practice/absolute control (9483 kg/ha).
The study revealed that the overall added returns/monetary benefit obtained from the system (wheat equivalent yield) was of Rs. 26794/ha against the added cost of Rs. 3885/ha incurred towards integrated use of Gyp+PM application (including material cost, labour cost and transportation charges). The study indicating an incremental input-output ratio of 6.95 for each rupee invested towards the cost of pressmud application.
Yields of rice and wheat remained comparatively lower at each RSC level when no amendment was applied in comparison what was obtained when Gyp+PM were applied together (Table 7). Yield of rice reduced from 3791 kg/ha at RSC<3 meq/l to 2717 kg/ha at RSC>7 meq/l when Gyp+PM application was done while the corresponding reduction ranged from 3402 kg/ha (<3 me/l) to 2218 kg/ha (>7 me/l) when no amendment was applied (farmer’s practice). Similarly in wheat to visualize the residual effect of Gyp+PM application in rice, the yield reduction varied from 5275 kg/ha (<3 meq/l) to 4034 (kg/ha (>7meq/l) when Gyp+PM was applied whereas it ranged from 4793 kg/ha (<3 me/l) to 3375 kg/ha (>7 me/l) when no amendment was applied (farmer’s practice). Overall, Gyp+PM resulted in 3120 kg/ha in rice and 4382 kg in wheat indicating 17.38 and 15.02% yield advantage in comparison to absolute control (farmer’s practice).
In system (rice-wheat) perspective, the yield (wheat equivalent yield) advantage ranged between 10.90 (RSC<3 meq/l) to 21.26 (RSC>7 meq/l) per cent in response to Integrated use of Gpy+PM application.
At each RSC level, using RSC waters as such resulted in buildup of soil sodicity (soil pH) while relative decrease in pH values (compared to initial ones) was observed with Gyp+PM application. It is interesting to note that with increasing RSC level, integared use of Gyp+PM application complemented to greater reduction in soil pH compared to what was observed at lower RSC levels.
The study revealed that the overall added returns/monetary benefit obtained from the system (wheat equivalent yield) was of Rs. 26060/ha against the added cost of Rs. 4520/ha incurred towards Gyp+PM (including material cost, labour cost and transportation charges). The study indicating an incremental input-output ratio of 5.77 for each rupee invested towards the cost of Gyp+PM application. | 121 |
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| Natural Resource Management | Management strategies for reclamation of sodic soils and neutralization of residual alkalinity in irrigation waters : Effect of gypsum application on rice yield | Continuous use of high RSC waters resulted in build-up of soil sodicity (soil pH) as indicated by R2=0.74 in gypsum (Gyp) treated plots. The mean data collected over 94 locations where gypsum was used as reclamation/neutralization ameliorant revealed that soil test based gypsum application (GR50) resulted in rice yield of 2980 kg/ha as against 2607 kg/ha under farmer’s practice (control) indicating 14.61 per cent yield advantage over the later. With the increase in soil sodicity (soil pH) and residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC), the relative advantage of gypsum application for sustaining rice yields showed gradual enhancement in comparison to farmer’s practice indicating the complementary effect of gypsum application under sodic agroecosystems. The per cent yield increase due to gypsum application ranged between 8.07 (soil pH<8.25) to 18.19 (soil pH>9.25) for soil sodicity parameter while it ranged from 8.34 (RSC<3 meq/l) to 17.19 (RSC>7 meq/l) for resuldual alkalinity in irrigation water parameters. | 94 |
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| Natural Resource Management | Management strategies for reclamation of sodic soils and neutralization of residual alkalinity in irrigation waters: Effect of pressmud application on rice yield | Continuous use of high RSC waters resulted in build-up of soil sodicity (soil pH) as indicated by R2=0.74 in pressmud (PM) treated plots. The mean data collected over 105 locations where pressmud was used as reclamation/neutralization ameliorant revealed that pressmud (PM) @ 10 t/ha resulted in rice yield of 3004 kg/ha as against 2619 kg/ha under farmer’s practice (control) indicating 14.95 per cent yield advantage over the later. With the increase in soil sodicity (soil pH) and residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC), the relative advantage of PM application for sustaining rice yields showed gradual enhancement in comparison to farmer’s practice indicating the complementary effect of PM application under sodic agroecosystems. The per cent yield increase due to PM application ranged between 9.66 (soil pH<8.25) to 20.61 (soil pH>9.25) for soil sodicity parameters while it ranged from 9.94 (RSC<3 meq/l) to 17.34 (RSC>7 meq/l) for resuldual alkalinity in irrigation water parameters. | 105 |
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| Natural Resource Management | Management strategies for reclamation of sodic soils and neutralization of residual alkalinity in irrigation waters | Continuous use of high RSC waters resulted in build-up of soil sodicity (soil pH) as indicated by R2=0.57 in gypsum + pressmud (Gyp + PM) treated plots. The mean data collected over 44 locations where gypsum and pressmud were used in combination (Gyp+PM) as reclamation/neutralization ameliorant revealed that Gyp+PM resulted in rice yield of 2797 kg/ha as against 2409 kg/ha under farmer’s practice (control) indicating 16.50 per cent yield advantage over the later. With the increase in soil sodicity (soil pH) and residual alkalinity in irrigation water (RSC), the relative advantage of Gyp+PM application for sustaining rice yields showed gradual enhancement in comparison to farmer’s practice (Table 14) indicating the complementary effect of gypsum application under sodic agroecosystems. The per cent yield increase due to Gyp+PM application ranged between 9.01 (soil pH<8.25) to 22.77 (soil pH>9.25) for soil sodicity parameters while it ranged from 10.73 (RSC<3 meq/l) to 18.93 (RSC: 6-7 meq/l) for resuldual alkalinity in irrigation water parameters. | 44 |