Cereal killer

A visible change in the cropping pattern was witnessed after 2001 (almost nine years after continuous rain deficit), says J.C. Rana, Director, Agriculture, but it has ushered in prosperity for farmers “without affecting the food security of the state”. “The areas under cultivation of maize and paddy have gone to vegetables, which can survive in less rain and are damaged in heavy downpour. While vegetables in 2001-2 covered 34,000 hectares, they now span 52,000 hectares in the state,” adds Rana.

The state now produces 9.92 lakh tonnes of vegetables compared to 6.27 lakh tonnes produced in 2001-2. “The farmers who earned a profit of Rs 2-3 per kg from cereals are earning Rs 5-6 per kg as profit. Since farmers in Himachal have small land holdings, the production of cereals on individual holdings was lesser than the vegetables,” says Rana. Now, the state is generating a business of nearly Rs 800 crore from vegetables, with the biggest revenue generators being off-season vegetables like tomato, potato, capsicum, cauliflower and cabbage.

According to studies conducted at the University of Agriculture, Palampur, the fall in rains during monsoon had a direct impact on the productivity of cereals. Says K.K. Katoch, Director, Research Extension Services: “In Himachal, 45 per cent of area under paddy was entirely rainfed, which hit the rice crop badly during lean monsoons, especially during 1997, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006. These years recorded rainfall deficit of -10, -16, -20, -46 and -23 per cent respectively. The productivity of paddy fell to 1.32 lakh tonnes in 2006 from 1.37 lakh tonnes in 2001. This year, the deficit at -34 per cent would have had an adverse impact on cereals.”

It was during these years that the university advised the farmers to plant vegetables along with cereals.

Referring to Himachal’s food security, Rana says that the state is self-sufficient in cereals but pulses and oilseeds are being imported. The state imports the same quantity of wheat as the maize it exports from the lower districts of the state, including Sirmaur, Bilaspur, Una, Kangra and Nalagarh area of Solan.

“Himachal is a surplus state in cereal production at 34 per cent more than required. While the net production is 16.82 kg per capita per month, the state requires 12.65 per kg capita per month,” says Rana, quoting the Mission 2007 report of the M.S. Swaminathan Foundation.

The state might be headed the same surplus way as far asa vegetables are concerned.