Crop Diversification: Concepts, scope, opportunities

Crop diversification
Concepts, scope and opportunities
A Amarender Reddy
Principal Scientist(Agricultural Economics) & Head, Section of Design & Analysis
ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad
Email: amarender.reddy@icar.gov.in
Contact No. 7042361439

Outline of presentation
• Concept of crop diversification
• Trends in crop diversification
• Geographical variation
• Benefits of crop diversification
• Crop diversification in rainfed areas
• Problems of drylands
• CRIDA initiatives
• Managing droughts
• Watershed schemes

Concept of crop diversification

Crop diversification: Field to Global

Crop diversification plot to landscape level

Types of diversification and potential benefits

Crop Diversification: Concepts, scope, opportunities

Trends in crop diversification

Diversification: Gross Value of Output in India

Grain yield of the four main cereal crops in India from 1947 to 2014

Area of 8 major crops and all fruits and vegetables (FV) in India between 1947
and 2014 (A) Crop area and (B) Proportion of crop area.

Crop diversity in India at the country, state, and district level. For the16 states and the 311
districts, the mean and the 10 th and 90 th percentiles are shown. Diversity is expressed as the
"effective number of species".

Crop diversity in India for in 1956, 1974, 1992 and 2008 at the (A) district and (B) state level. Data was not
available for some districts and small states (white areas) for certain years. Diversity is expressed as the "effective
number of species".

Benefits of crop diversification

Fig. 1 Vote count reveals that agricultural diversification practices generally have a positive impact on biodiversity and
ecosystem services.
Number of reported effect sizes with a significant positive (green), negative (red), or neutral (gray) response to agricultural
diversification, overall (A) and to each category of diversification practice separately (B to G). The systematic review comprises
456 effect sizes.

Multiple objectives of crop diversification
• Food and nutrition security
• Poverty alleviation
• Economic stability
• Sustainability (natural resource management)
• Agro-climatic resilience
• Increase income
Macro changes
• Commercialisation and globalisation
• Emerging technologies
• Research and development support
• Institutional and infrastructure development
• Consumer preference

Crop diversification in rainfed
areas

Domain related major challenges of Present Millennium
(a) Reclaiming Degraded Land, (b) Restoring/Safeguarding critical ecological
functions, (c) Improving rural livelihoods, (d ) Increasing food production
The context:
• “Even in the best possible scenario of irrigation development, about 40% of the
additional supply of food grains needed to match future rise in demand will have to
come from the rainfed areas”- Parthasarathy Committee Report (2006), DoLR
• With the rising demand for food in the coming decades, India will depend on the
rain-fed areas to help increase supply”- International Food Policy Research
Institute, Washington
• “Application of new science tools in rain-fed agriculture opens up new vistas for
development through Watershed Management" –ICRISAT
• “If conservation of natural resources goes wrong, nothing else will go right”- Dr.
M.S.Swaminathan
Importance of Dryland Agriculture
A National Perspective
33

• Desertification & Land Degradation Atlas of India (2016) released by ISRO
reveals 96.39 mha land (29.32% of TGA of India) witnessing land degradation.
• Per capita land: : India vis-à-vis World: 0.24 ha:0.90 ha
• Per capita agricultural land: India vis-à-vis World: 0.12 ha:0.29 ha
• India’s commitment towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDG:15.3),
Nationally Determined Commitments (NDCs) and Land Degradation Neutrality
(LDN) to an extent of 26 mha by 2030.
“…India would raise its ambition of the total area that would be restored from its
land degradation status – from 21 million hectares to 26 million hectares
between now and 2030...” Hon’ble Prime Minister of India while addressing
UNCCD, COP-14 at Delhi in September, 2019
Importance of drylands
A National Perspective (contd.)
34

• Rainfed agriculture covers 73 mha of net sown area and supports
40% human population and 2/3rds of livestock
• India’s 84% of rural poor including majority of tribal population live
in rainfed areas
• Contributes about 40% of the food grain production [90% of all
minor millets, 87% major nutri-cereals (sorghum, pearl millet &
finger millet) & maize, 85% pulses, 72% oilseeds, 65% cotton and
44% rice]
• Average per ha yield in irrigated areas: 3 tonnes and in rainfed
areas: 1.1 tonne only
Rainfed Agriculture in India: The current scenario (½)
35

• Degraded resource base: low organic matter and low nutrients
• Diverse climatic conditions, soil types and cropping systems
• Poor economic status of farmers
• High climatic risks: washing away of top soils due to factors like
frequent water and wind erosion
• Shallow depth of soil, poor water holding capacity, sub-surface hard
pans
• Poor vegetation
• Poor productivity and inefficient biomass recycle
Rainfed Agriculture in India: The current scenario (2/2))
36

Half of the rainfall is generally “lost” to the atmosphere as non-productive
evaporation.
Non-productive
evaporation
Rainfall partitioning in Drylands

Classification of drylands
Rainfed areas get precipitation between 500 and 1200 mm
• Dry cultivation: Precipitation is less than 750 mm. The
growing season is less than 75 days
•Dryland cultivation: Precipitation over 750 mm. growing period
75-120.
•Rainfed cultivation: 1150 mm rainfall, generally in sub-humid
and muggy ranges.
•India has almost 108 million hectares of the rainfed zone which
constitutes about 75% of the entire 143 million hectares of
arable land.

Seasonal and Annual Rainfall over India
Season Rainfall (mm) Percent of
Annual Rainfall
Quantum of
Rainwater (m. ha.
m*)
Pre-Monsoon
(Mar – May)
94 9 52
Monsoon
(Jun – Sep)
851 78 296
Post-Monsoon
(Oct – Nov)
109 10 40
Winter
(Dec – Feb)
36 3 12
Annual 1091 400
* Million hectare meters

Range of rainfall variability across hydro-climatic zones

• Any region which has less than 30% irrigated area through
major/ minor/ groundwater irrigation is considered to be as
rainfed and the agriculture practiced is “Rainfed Agriculture”
• Water management ranges from in-situ conservation to
drainage and ex-situ water harvesting for supplemental
irrigation
• Watershed based water management is backbone for overall
land productivity improvement
• Rainfed Agriculture covers all the climates and several annual/
perennial crops; thus encompasses a range of agro-eco-regions
• Contribution to food production 44%
• Supports 40% of population and 2/3 of livestock
Rainfed agriculture

India- Rainfed Region
Irrigated area (> 30% irrigation)
Rainfed area (< 30% irrigation )
Geographical area 328.7 m.ha
Net cultivated area 161.8 m.ha
Net Rainfed area 141.7 m.ha
Net Irrigated area 50.1 m.ha
Extent of rainfed area

Early Drought
Probability of consecutive 3 dry weeks
from July 1st Week
Probability (%)
Terminal Drought
Probability of consecutive 3 dry weeks
from September 2nd Week
Probability (%)

Deficit rainfall
Bijapur
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
week
PPT/PE
PPT
PE
Gulbarga
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
week
PPT/PE
PPT
PE
Gulbarga
AWHC=150.00mm
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38
Week
PPT/PE/WR
PPT
PE
WR
Bijapur
AWHC=150.00mm
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41
Week
PPT/PE/WR
PPT
PE
WR

During the
last five
years, 42
interface
meetings
were
organized
in different
states
About 433
DACPs have
been
updated.
Mid season meetings
• Andhra Pradesh- 1st
August 2017
• Telangana- 7th August
2017
Rabi Interface meeting
• Madhya Pradesh - 24th
September 2017

S.
No
State Districts
1 Karnataka
(16)
Bagalkot, Bangalore Rural, Belgaum,
Bellary, Bidar, Bijapur, Chitradurga,
Davangere, Gadag, Gulbarga, Hassan,
Kolar, Koppal, Mandhya, Mysore, Tumkur
2. Andhra
Pradesh (4)
Anantapur, Chittoor, Kurnool, Prakasam
3. Rajasthan (4) Ajmer, Churu, Jaisalmer, Nagaur
Departments included for plan preparation:
 Agriculture,
 Animal Husbandry,
 Horticulture,
 Irrigation,
 Groundwater ,
 Rural Development,
 Sericulture (wherever applicable) etc
Drought Proofing Action Plans

During drought years production can be enhanced
in medium to high rainfall areas with more
certainity. Response from Medium to Deep soils
would be higher.
During normal years, cropping intensity can be
enhanced by provision of one irrigation at the time
of sowing in rabi season.
Supplenmental irrigation can be given to low to
medium deep soils in high to medium rainfall zones.
Stability of production can be ensured during
normal years from shallow depth soils also.
Management practices in normal & drought years

Objectives
Challenge
National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA)
Launched in 2011
To undertake strategic research on adaptation and
mitigation
To validate and demonstrate climate resilient
technologies on farmers' fields.
To strengthen the capacity of scientists and other
stakeholders in climate resilient agriculture
To draw policy guidelines for wider scale adoption of
resilience-enhancing technologies and options

ATARI
Unique project brings all sectors of agriculture viz., crops, horticulture, livestock,
fisheries, NRM and extension scientists on one platform.
NICRA Network
Components

Modules & Major Interventions
Technology Demonstration Component (TDC)
Enhancing resilience and adaptive capacity of farmers to Climate Variability
151 Climate Resilient Villages Clusters

Institutional Interventions in NICRA Villages
Village Climate Risk Management Committee (VCRMC)
Functional in all 121 KVKs
Conducted 674 meetings during the year 2018
Implementation and spread of the interventions in the village
Custom Hiring Center (CHC)
Functional in 115 KVKs
Has deposits of Rs. 18,03,338 by the end of 2018
Backstopping the farm equipment needs in the NICRA village clusters
Seed Banks
Functional in 67 villages
Produced 5900 q of seed involving 6020 farmers
Seed of resilient varieties of paddy, wheat, soybean, redgram,
sorghum, mustard, millets, were taken up
Fodder Banks
Functional in 34 KVKs
Besides production of green fodder, fodder seed is also produced at
several locations

Village Water Security Framework
Monsoon
Monsoon
Water
Monitoring
Ongoing community monitoring groundwater
levels, rainfall and land use
Water
Budgeting
Water Budgeting carried out after monsoon to
assess demand and allocate water
Water Supply
Asset Survey
Operation and maintenance needs are assed by
the community in asset survey. Need for new
water source is assessed
Village
Assessment of
Risks
Development of
Village WS Plan
Local Government
Development
of District Plan
Implement of Village
and District WS Plans

Hiware Bazar’s water budget (crore litres)
2009-10 2010-11 2011-12
Total rainfall (mm) 427 387 199
Total available water 417 378 194
From available water, exclude:
Total runoff 31 23 -
Evaporation loss 146 132 68
Runoff + Evap. (% of available water) 42 41 35
Remaining water is in
a. Surface water storage 21 19 10
b. Ground water recharge 42 38 19
c. Soil moisture 125 113 58
d. Artificial groundwater recharge, 52 53 29
Actual available water for use (a+b+c+d) 240 223 116
Required water for village (e+f+g) 234 211 110
e. Drinking water need (human & cattle) 4 4 3
f. Agricultural needs 226 203 104
g. Water needs - other uses 5 4 2
Surplus/Reserve water 5 12 6

Mobile – App for Weather based Agro-advisories for Farmers
AICRPAM 2019
• This Mobile App. provides weather situation & Forecasts of different districts, and
Agromet Advisories for major crops in Andhra Pradesh

Convergence With Developmental Programs- Essential for the
Spread of Resilient Practices and for Establishing Resilient Village
KVK Organizations Interventions
Nalgonda, Kutch
Ahmedanagar, Amravati,
Baramati, Gumla, Chatra,
Koderma, Lunglei, etc.
MGNREGA, IWDP, NHM
Andhra Pradesh Micro
Irrigation Project, GGRC
Agriculture Department
Drip, farm ponds, in situ soil & water
conservation practices, check dam,
farm bunding, jalkund, land Levelling
Kodarma. Mokokchung State Departments of
Agriculture
Improved seed of pigeonpea and SRI
Cultivation
Malda, Dibrugarh, East
Sikkim, Mokokchung,
Ri-bhoi, etc.
State Departments of
Agriculture, Animal
Husbandry and Fisheries
Animal health camp, preventive
vaccination, deworming, improved
breeds, fingerlings, fish ponds,
mineral mixtures
Muzzafarnagar,
Gorakhpur, Nalgonda
District Agriculture
Department
Seed of green manuring crops and
vegetables
Bhagapat, Tumkur State Agriculture and
Forest Department,
Vermicompost, tree Seedlings
East Sikkim. Lunglei ATMA Training programs,
exposure visits

• Project on Climate Resilient Agriculture (PoCRA) in state
of Maharashtra, 5000 villages, INR 4,500 Crores (World
bank)
• Drought proofing in Odisha State, INR 70 Cr (State Govt.)
under proposal
• Karnataka State, 200 watersheds, INR 56 Cr (NABARD)
under proposal
Upscaling of Climate Resilient Agriculture

Rating of variables
Variables Scores Total
Score
Selected variables of
each indicator with
the highest score
A B C D E F
Indicator
Note: A-Clear meaning; B-Data is easily available; C-Less effort in data collection and does
1
not require expert analysis; D-Sufficiently representative for the total of the intended results;
2
E-Tangible and observable; F-Difficult to quantify but very important (proxy indicator)
3

69
Preventive
measures
Control
measures
Soil and water conservation
Erosion
management
Water
conservation
Soil fertility
management
Vegetation
management
Water table
management
Runoff
management
In situ
management
Balanced
nutrients
Nutrient
recycling
Integrated
Nutrient
Management
Crops Trees Pasture
Viramani et al.,

Soil Water Conservation
Surplus Index Possible Options
<12 In-situ conservation (I)
12-25 In-situ conservation (I) and Water Harvesting (WH)
>25 Drainage (D), In-situ conservation (I) and Water Harvesting
Crop Management Options
Yield GapPossible Options
<33 Non monetary inputs (NMI) and improved varieties (V)
33-66 Non monetary inputs (NMI), Fertilizer Management (F) and Improved
Varieties (V)
>66 Improved Varieties (V), Fertilizer Management (F), Plant protection
measures (PP), Non monetary inputs (NMI) or shifting alternate land uses

Viability of Water Harvesting in different Climatic
Zones
Climatic zone Rainfall Possibility
Hyper arid <100 mm Too dry for viable runoff farming (P/PET <
0.3) like in desert areas
Arid 100-500 mm Runoff farming is possible (P/PET
0.03 – 0.2)
Semi-arid 500-1000 mm Runoff farming is practicable (P/PET 0.02 –
0.5)
Sub-humid >1000mm Combine runoff farming with shallow water
table/ Choes/ Springs etc.) like in
Himalayan montane and sub-montane region
(P/PET > 0.5)
P/PET is ratio of Precipitation (rainfall) to Potential Evapo-Transpiration

Components of Rainwater Management in watershed Mode
1. In-situ conservation
2. Grade line Bund
3. Drainage line treatment
4. Water harvesting & utilization
5. Groundwater recharge
Agro Climatic Zone Rainfall (mm) Order of components
Arid 100-500 1, 3
Dry Semi-arid 500-750 2, 1, 3, 5
Wet Semi-arid 750-1000 2, 3, 4, 5, 1
Sub-humid 1000-2500 3, 4, 2, 1, 5
Per-humid >2500 3, 4, 2, 1

Farming system Period (years) Benefit : cost ratio
Agri-horticulture 30 5.53
Silvi-pastoral 10 2.45
Silvi-agriculture
(with castor intercrop)
10 1.99
Agro-forestry
(with sorghum + pigeonpea)
10 1.65
Arable farming 1 1.34
Benefit-cost ratio
under different land use systems

Other water management techniques
How can we mitigate drought?
Farm ponds
Water Tank
Check dam

Ground Nut- Kharif (25q/ha)
Green gram- Summer (4.5q/ha) Okra- Kharif (4.1 t/ha) Carrot- Kharif (20t/ha)
Maize- Kharif (5t/ha)
Red Gram- Kharif (5q/ha)
Farm Pond system

Some examples of alternate crops you can grow are :
• Growing of short duration legume crops,
like mungbean (green gram), cowpea etc.
Mungbean (Green gram) Crop Cowpea crop

• Establishing perennial grasses for livestock
farming
Fields planted with pasture grass

• Alley-cropping, Agroforestry or Silvipasture
practices.
Alley-cropping of sorghum
and Leucaena
Silvipasture system (Trees and
Sorghum for fodder)

Constraints
Uncertain rainfall (low and erratic)
Frequent droughts
Poor and degraded lands
Poor Soil health (soil erosion, run off, low organic matter)
High temperatures
Low yields

We need a Policy
To encourage productivity improvement of natural
resources
To focus on sustainable development of land & water
To make the rainfed less dependent on external inputs
To provide appropriate support for inputs, marketing,
price support, risk mitigation

Factors determining crop diversification
• Resources related
• Technology related
• Household related
• Price related
• Institutional related

Constraints in crop diversification
• 60% rainfed area
• Supply of right variety of seeds
• Fragmentation of landholding
• Lack of mechanisation
• Poor infrastructure
• Inadequate post-harvest infrastructure.
• Weak agro-based industry
• Weak extension
• Diseases and pests
• Poor market intelligence
• Low investments in agriculture.
• Uncertainty in availability of inputs for
alternative crops
• Availability of skilled labour and
mechanisation for alternative crops
• The perishable nature of alternative
crops Infrastructure constraints such as
availability of cold storage and
transportation
• Presence of multiple intermediaries in
the agricultural supply chain
• Access to markets, processing facilities
and uncertainty in demand

Policies and practices for Rainfed Farming in the light of Climate
Change
Land Development
Ground Water Management
Support Systems for Rainfed Farming
Input subsidy for Crop Production
Market and Price Support
Risk Mitigation
Extension System
Conserving the Genetic Material

Government policies
• Horticultural mission
• Bamboo mission
• Crop insurance scheme
• Minimum Support Price
• Technology Mission on Cotton
• Technology Mission on Oilseeds
• Technology Mission on Pulses
• Market infrastructure
• Watershed development
• Seed bank scheme
• FPOs/Cooperatives

• 1995- 2009:
Desert Development Programme (DDP)
Drought Prone Areas Programme (DPAP)
Integrated Wastelands Development Programme (IWDP)
• 2009-2015:
Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP) (w.e.f.
26.02.2009)
• 2015 - 2021:
From 01.07.2015 IWMP amalgamated as the Watershed
Development Component of the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee
Yojana (WDC-PMKSY)
Evolution of WDC-PMKSY
96

WDC-PMKSY
Vision
To ensure sustainable improvement in productivity and livelihood / income potential of
land, in particular rainfed cultivated areas and culturable wastelands.
Mission
• Ensure sustainable development of rainfed cultivable and degraded lands
• Participatory approach by involving the stakeholders right from planning to
execution & post project management of watershed projects.
• Enhance the productivity of degraded lands & enhancing livelihood opportunities in
rural areas.
Goal
To increase productivity of rainfed/degraded land through the process of integrated
watershed management
Integrated watershed management - an effective scientifically proven approach for
development of rainfed and degraded areas. End line third party evaluation reports of
various states reveal remarkable increase in water table, area brought under irrigation,
crop productivity, livelihood opportunities and farmers’ annual income.
97

• Institutional Mechanisms with multi-disciplinary
capacity:
-- Central level - Steering Committee
• State level - State Level Nodal Agency (SLNA)
• District level - Watershed Cell cum Data Centre (WCDC)
• Project level - Project Implementing Agency (PIA)
• Village level - Watershed Committee (WC)
• Cluster Approach: Size of project about 5,000 ha.
• Cost Norms: Rs.12,000/ha. in plains; Rs.15,000/ ha
in difficult/hilly areas and upto Rs.15,000/ha in IAP
• Funding pattern: 60:40 between Centre & States;
90:10 for NE and Hill States
• Project period: 4-7 years.
Snapshot of WDC-PMKSY
LU/LC
Water
Drain
Soil
Road
Parcel
98

Present Status of the Scheme
• 8214 projects sanctioned during 2009-10 to 2014-15 in 28 States (including erstwhile
J&K)
• 39.07 million ha. (approx.)
• Projects transferred to States: 345 uninitiated and 1487 projects in Preparatory Phase
(Total 1832).
• No new watershed projects sanctioned since FY 2015-16.
99

Source : Evaluation Report of Centrally Sponsored Schemes in Water Resources Sector, NITI Aayog, December, 2020
Evaluation of WDC-PMKSY : Major findings (1/3)
100

• WDC-PMKSY: effective in realizing benefits; such as improvement in surface and
groundwater availability and increase in productivity and livelihood opportunities.
• Ensured the principle of equity in implementation at field level.
• Srishti & Drishti ‘Bhuvan Portal’ has significantly improved the planning and monitoring of
watershed projects.
• Latest technology has been adopted for monitoring of physical and financial progress.
• Urgent need to incorporate measures to improve climate change resilience into the
design of watershed schemes and need to educate the people at the grass-root level.
• The existing cost norms are outdated and needs revision.
• Convergence should be brought in at the planning phase of the project and not in the
implementation phase.
Evaluation of WDC-PMKSY by NITI Aayog through M/s KPMG Advisory Services
Private Limited : Major findings (2/3)
101

• Focus on creation and nurture of Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and Farmer
Cooperatives (FCs).
• Need to raise awareness among local communities for proper maintenance of assets
during O&M Phase.
• DoLR: needs further strengthening of professionals and requires additional capacity.
• WDC-PMKSY: extremely relevant keeping in view SDG and vision of the government for
agriculture productivity and socio-economic upliftment of farmers in rainfed areas.
• India aims to double current annual agriculture productivity (2,509 kg/hectare) to
5,018 kg/hectare by 2030..
• There is a need for continuation of the watershed programme in the country to cover
untreated areas.
Evaluation of WDC-PMKSY by NITI Aayog through M/s KPMG Advisory Services Private
Limited : Major findings (3/3)
102

Way Forward and Action Plan for 2021-22
• Sanction new projects under WDC-PMKSY 2.0: DoLR’s current proposal
envisages 10 million ha from 2021-22 to 2023-24. Intends to take additional area
of 10 million ha under WDC-PMKSY 2.0 subsequently.
• Launching of REWARD Project:. “Rejuvenating Watersheds for Agricultural
Resilience through Innovative Development (REWARD)”: Appraisal by World
Bank under progress
• Completion of balance 1586 projects (consolidation phase & work phase)
• Utilization of Rs 2000 crore allocated for WDC-PMKSY for 2021-22
• DoLR, through WDC-PMKSY 2.0, intends to contribute significantly towards (a)
doubling farmers income, (b) livelihood opportunities in rural areas, (c) India’s
commitment towards –
(i) Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs),
(ii) Land Degradation Neutrality targets (LDN targets); and
(iii) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
103

References
• Reddy, A. A., Bhattacharya, A., Reddy, S. V., & Ricart, S. (2021).
Farmers’ distress index: An approach for an action plan to reduce
vulnerability in the drylands of India. Land, 10(11), 1236.
• ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad.
• NICRA project reports.
• World Bank
• FAO
• OECD
• IFAD

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