By IANS,
New Delhi : India needn’t gamble or fret about the timing of the monsoon any more, but only if it plays smart. An international science and research body for the tropics has suggested some useful strategies for farmers when the rains are tardy.
“The possibility of lower crop production or even crop failure and higher food prices when monsoon rains get delayed can be averted,” said ICRISAT, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, which is headquartered in Patancheru – 25 km from Hyderabad.
ICRISAT is advocating a “four-pronged science-based strategy”, which, it says, helps vulnerable farming communities cope better with drought, global warming and other associated effects of climate change.
The monsoon rains which lash India with varying intensity at this time of the year are critical to the country’s agriculture, and account for a sixth of the country’s economic output. About 70 percent of Indians depend on agriculture for their livelihood, and 60 percent of India’s farms depend on rains, available figures suggest.
ICRISAT Director General William Dar said “below normal rainfall” occurs in rain-fed areas “very often”, and emphasised that “climate change is real and its implications are going to be borne by the poorest of the poor.”
ICRISAT’s formula revolves around:
* First, growing drought tolerant and climate change ready crops to match the available length of the growing season and low soil moisture.
ICRISAT says they have developed and released several varieties of sorghum, pearl millet, chickpea, pigeon pea and groundnut – all of which are more drought tolerant than varieties grown now.
* Second is contingency planning for the replacement of crops affected by drought. With delayed rains, farmers may not be able to grow their traditional crops. Instead, they should grow other shorter-duration crops.
For instance, in sorghum-growing areas, farmers can plant pearl millet instead.
* Third is the efficient management of natural resources, arresting land degradation, conserving soil moisture, harvesting excess water in the rainy season and utilising it to supplement irrigation.
* The fourth strategy involves empowering stakeholders through capacity building, enabling rural institutions and formulating policies that support dryland agriculture. Capacity building and knowledge sharing are key.
ICRISAT said its “science-based strategy” was showcased in Kothapally, Andhra Pradesh. This model is being scaled up in 240 micro-watersheds in India, northeast Thailand, northern Vietnam and China, benefiting around 250,000 people.
An ICRISAT-led consortium observed that vast rainfed areas in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are critically deficient in micro and secondary soil nutrients.
Hence, soil health needs to be improved urgently. Amendments with deficient micro-nutrients increased crop yields by 30 to 70 percent while balanced fertiliser application of deficient major and micro-nutrients doubled crop productivity.
ICRISAT says it uses new science tools like crop-growth simulation models, water balance techniques and geographic information systems (GIS) for assessing the length of the crop growing period and drought characterisation.
“Right and timely information is the backbone of drought-preparedness,” says ICRISAT.
Analysts have describe India’s agriculture as a gamble with the monsoon. ICRISAT says that by implementing the above steps, farmers won’t have to gamble and India could be better prepared against the effects of climate change, enjoying sustainable food security over the long term.