Climate-smart agril. options for Mayurbhanj

Climate-smart Agricultural Options in Mayurbhanj District

Climate-smart agriculture is considered as a specialised approach to enhance agricultural productivity under adverse climatic condition and increase farmers’ resilience to climate change without any unfavourable impact on immediate environment. Climate-smart agriculture provides an overall approach to deal with interconnected issues of climate change, food security and sustainable crop production. In recent time, agriculture is remarkably influenced by environmental factors consisting of soil, water, atmosphere, eco-system and bio-diversity. Any change in such factors decided by the climatic modifications can substantially impact agricultural production.

Among other environmental factors, temperature plays a vital role for crop growth. Extreme temperature condition such as heat wave or cold situation can adversely affect crop yield. Heat stress can affect agricultural productivity through wilting, stunted growth of plant and pollination inhibition. Changes in rainfall pattern lead to water stress, substantially affecting yield of crop. Events like drought, flood, cyclone and storm can disrupt overall agricultural production system. The duration of growing season is important for agriculture. The growing season is visibly affected due to ill effects of climate change. Climate has strong impact on distribution and occurrence of pests and diseases. Changes in temperature and humidity strongly affect the life cycle and behaviour of pests associated with crops. Climate conditions influence soil health, soil moisture content and availability of plant nutrients. Changes in climatic conditions impact on the suitability of soils for specific crop. Agriculture in coastal areas is susceptible to sea-level rise, enhanced swampy area and saline water invasion.

Strategic intervention

Several emphases need to be given under climate-smart agricultural activities. Appropriate utilization of resources, adoption & mitigation strategies, conservation agriculture, crop diversification and suitable water management options are some of the key focus areas of climate-smart agriculture. Mayurbhanj district of Odisha has vast potentiality for climate smart agricultural activities due to several reasons. The district has vast acerage of agricultural land, full of natural resources, wide biodiversity and store house of traditional agricultural know-how. Some of the climate smart agricultural activities for the district are enumerated hereunder.

Agro-forestry intervention

There is scope for integration of tree species with crops to improve soil fertility, augment water retention capacity of soil and reduce soil erosion. Inclusion of fruit trees and timber plants in the cropping system can add to the income of the farmers. Besides, it will help to mitigate ill effects of climate change.

Conservation tillage

Conservation tillage consisting of minimum tillage and zero tillage can help to protect soil structure, minimize erosion, enhance water retention capacity of the soil and improve carbon sequestration. Rice, pulses, oilseeds and other crops can be grown with these conservation tillage operations.

Improved water management

Adoption of various micro-irrigation systems such as drip irrigation and sprinkler irrigation will enhance water use efficiency. This will minimize water requirement to obtain specific quantity of agricultural produce. There will be minimum wastage of irrigation water as water is directly delivered to plant roots through drip irrigation system. Use of techniques like mulching and contour farming will increase retention of soil moisture and reduce water runoff.

Rainwater harvesting

Nearly, 79 per cent of rainfall of the district is received during monsoon months from June to September. Hence, huge quantities of rain water go waste during rainy season, which can be collected and utilized through construction of rainwater harvesting structures. The collected water can be utilized as live saving irrigation for kharif crop or growing crops during winter months.

Crop diversification

In the district, the major crop during kharif season is paddy. It requires more water when compared with other crops. But it suffers substantially due to drought situation. Growing diverse range of crops can enhance resilience to changing climatic conditions, including variations in temperature and precipitation. This will also minimize the risk of crop failure during aberrant weather events. Substitution of rice crop with low water requiring crops like maize, arhar, blackgram, greengram, groundnut, horsegram, etc. will be helpful for the farmers.

Cover cropping

A vast acerage of land in the district remain fallow after harvest of kharif paddy resulting in loss of water & soil. Growing legume crops during off-season will help to improve soil fertility and reduce erosion.

Suitable crop variety

Crop varieties suitable for climate stress condition are to be promoted to escape from ill effects of climate change. Varieties with resistance to drought, heat stress, flood situation or extreme cold situation can be selected to get stabilized yield under adverse climatic conditions. There are local land races available with the farmers, which can be utilized for the purpose.

Intercropping

Two or more crops can b grown simultaneously on the same piece of land to enhance cropping intensity, maximize land use and improve resilience against extreme climatic events. For instance; rice+arhar, arhar+groundnut, maize+arhar, maize+cowpea, etc. can be taken up as intercrops.

Integrated pest management

Combination of biological, cultural and mechanical methods can be adopted to control pests and diseases in the field. There are various indigenous methods available with the farmers of Mayurbhanj district to manage insect, disease and rat in the crop field & store house. Several plant products from neem, karanja, begunia, etc. are used by the local farmers to control insect pest in the field. These locally available technologies are to be promoted to reduce use of chemical pesticide. Use of botanicals, neem based products, light trap, pheromone trap, yellow trap, etc. can be preferred to control insects & diseases in the field situation.

Organic farming

Promotion of various organic farming practices will improve soil health and encourage natural pest control techniques. Wide use of farm yard manure, vermi compost, NADEP compost, bio-fertilizer, pot manure, etc. will enhance soil fertility in a sustainable manner. Similarly, biological and mechanical measures are to be emphasized for management of insects & diseases.

Precision agriculture

Adoption of precision agriculture technologies through use of sensors, drones and remote sensing can help farmers to obtain higher yield by utilizing minimum quantity of inputs.

Strengthening collaboration

Establishing collaboration among farmers, local communities and researchers to utilize the locally available resources in a scientific approach will help to attain the objectives on climate-smart agriculture in a sustainable manner.