Sustainable alternative crop rotations to the irrigated rice-wheat cropping system of Indo-Gangetic plains of India

ABSTRACT

In recent years, the sustainability of the rice-wheat cropping system in Indo-Gangetic Plains is facing many problems in various fronts viz., agricultural, ecological, environmental and economical. Therefore, to ensure long-term sustainability, the rice-wheat cropping system needs to be diversified. The present study was conducted to identify an alternative cropping system for Indo-Gangetic Plains region of India by diversifying and intensifying the current rice-wheat cropping system. Ten treatments (rice-wheat = control, rice-wheat-green gram, rice-potato-green gram, rice-wheat-cowpea fodder, rice-potato-cowpea fodder, rice-berseem fodder-maize fodder, rice-berseem fodder-cowpea fodder, rice-mustard-sudan grass fodder, rice-mustard-cowpea fodder and rice-cabbage-cowpea fodder) were compared consecutively two years in randomized block design with three replications. Diversification of rice-wheat cropping system with rice-potato-green gram resulted in increase in system productivity (142.35%), gross returns (99.57%), net returns (130.34%), profitability (130.96%), relative production efficiency (142.53%), relative economic efficiency (130.79%) and labour employment (55.73%). The inclusion of legume crops in cropping sequences was found better in improving the soil quality parameters. Our results revealed the significance of diversification and intensification of rice-wheat cropping system under irrigated ecosystem of IGP as it enhanced system productivity, profitability and soil health.

KEYWORDS:

• Diversification
• rice-wheat cropping system
• integrated farming system
• rice equivalent yield

Acknowledgements

The present investigation was the part of ongoing experiment of AICRP on Integrated Farming System. Therefore, all financial help received from ICAR-Indian Institute of Farming Systems Research, Modipuram, Meerut, and other facilities for conducting the experiment extended by Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India is gratefully acknowledged. Authors are also very thankful to anonymous reviewers for providing useful suggestions, which indeed improved quality of this paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.