Farm power based land use planning in rainfed agriculture

Abstract

Land use planning is the systematic assessment of physical, social and economic factors in such a way as to encourage and assist land users in selecting land use options. This is an interactive and continuous process of development, to assess the future potential of the agriculture and allied sectors in order to achieve accelerated growth and productivity through judicious management of land and water resources and maintain a sound ecological balance together with optimal fulfilment of human demands, land use and land management have to be well-adapted to the land resources and to the ecological conditions. Increasing pressure on land means that planning decisions ought to be made only after a comprehensive analysis of all relevant factors. In India, low rainfall regions (450-750 mm) suffer from a number of biophysical and socio-economic constraints which affect productivity of crops and livestock, therefore the farmer in low rainfall regions i.e. arid and semi-arid areas has established traditional land use with multiple/mixed crops and crop-livestock farming systems to cope with the risks associated with drought, market prices etc. The various strategies employed to achieve the best land-use options are minimal or reducing land degradation; efficient soil health management strategies such as (cover crops, crop residue management, integrated nutrient management, tank silt application); conservation agriculture strategies; rainwater management; higher land productivity with efficient crops and cropping systems; alternative land use systems; integrated farming systems; efficient farm mechanization and agro-advisories. The goal of the new integrated approach to planning the use and management of land resources is to make optimal and informed choices on the future uses of the land. Finally, for efficient land use planning, long-term planning (over a 50 year horizon) is necessary for sustainable land use in both rural and urban areas, backed by ten year periodic action plans.