Energy consumption pattern of wheat production in India

Abstract

Wheat covers approximately 25% of the total global area devoted to by cereal crops. Wheat production needs to be augmented to meet the growing demand. The amount of wheat produced is a direct function of energy inputs. Wheat is produced using energy sources ranging from human and animal power to power of heavy machinery. The basic purpose of the present study is to optimize energy use patterns of different wheat growing regions (Western Rajasthan, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Madhya Pradesh (MP)) of the Country in order to maximize yield. Villages and farmers were randomly selected for collecting data on energy requirement of wheat in Western Rajasthan and data for other regions were taken from reports. Wheat consumed maximum energy input in Western Rajasthan because light textured soil required frequent irrigation. Punjab and UP recorded maximum output–input energy ratio, 5.2 and 4.2, respectively. Punjab recorded minimum specific energy of 4.6 MJ/kg followed by UP (6.0 MJ/kg). Further, Punjab occupied the first place among all the States with 3334.8 kg/ha average yield, which is about 31% higher than the average productivity (2550.5 kg/ha) of the regions considered under the study. However, use of commercial energy was found maximum in Punjab (91.7%). Therefore, by ensuring optimal energy inputs in different regions wheat production in the Country could be increased