More crops, same area

8216;There should be a threshold level under which the production of wheat should not go down,8217; said Agriculture Secretary Radha Singh

This year, the Rabi conference started off on a note of worry. States were asked not just their plans for the coming Rabi season but for a concrete action plan to increase productivity of both wheat and pulses. It is clear that there is limited scope for increasing the area under cultivation of rice-wheat, making increasing productivity the key to food sufficiency.

Special attention was given to areas like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, where there is potential for increase in productivity with comparatively less effort. In Punjab, for example, the yield per hectare is 42 quintals per hectare compared to 47 quintals, five years ago.

While inaugurating the National Conference on Agriculture for Rabi Campaign 2006-07 here today, Radha Singh, Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation said: 8220;There should be a threshold level under which the production of wheat should not be allowed to go down.8221;.

Under the diversification programme, about two to three million hectare area has gone out of rice cultivation for crops like pulses, oilseeds and cotton. The reduction in area can be made up by high productivity.

Wheat cultivation occupies 26.5 million hectare area and the production stands at around 68 to 70 million tonnes in recent years. Earlier this year, India decided to import wheat for the first time in six years. Recently, there has been plenty of brainstorming on increasing production of wheat.

The reasons identified for low productivity of wheat included delayed planting in the rice-wheat system, low seed replacement rate and low and imbalanced use of fertilisers, high cost of inputs and depleting soil health.

Emphasising the need for using quality seed for stepping up production, Singh urged the state governments to give more thrust to seed production and distribution among farmers through the existing seed producing agencies. 8220;The private agencies cannot be expected to tackle seed replacement,8217;8217; she said pointing to the fact that in some states seed replacement was as low as 2 per cent.

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Irrigation was another factor key to productivity. She said the Government had recently constituted a National Rainfed Area Authority NRAA to address the problem faced by farmers in rainfed areas under the Chairmanship of the Union Agriculture Minister.

8220;The authority would bring about convergence and synergy among the numerous ongoing programmes and will advise, guide and monitor their implementation,8217;8217; she said.

The state governments should also take initiative in setting up Terminal Markets at important locations to provide competitive alternate marketing structure providing multiple choices to farmers for sale of their produce, she said.

The Terminal Markets are to function in a Hub-and-Spoke Format wherein the Terminal Market would be linked to a number of collection centres conveniently located to allow easy access to farmers for the marketing of their produce.

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Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mangala Rai, DG, Indian Council for Agricultural Research, said that productivity in agriculture could not be increased without increasing profitability.

He said profitability could be increased by strategies like inter-cropping and improving soil health.

There is widespread deficiency of zinc, manganese and boron in different soils. There is wide disparity in consumption of plant nutrients. While in Punjab, it is as high as 16 kg per hectare, it is 37 kg/hectare in Rajasthan.

While there was enthusiasm in the way various states approached their plans, it seemed to be wishful thinking that India would be able to meet the growing consumption demands, which is expected to touch 26 million tones by 2020.