Potential and Challenges of Rainfed Farming in India

Abstract

India ranks first in rainfed agriculture globally in both area (86 Mha) and the value of produce. Rainfed regions in India contribute substantially toward food grain production including 44% of rice, 87% of coarse cereals (sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum),maize (Zea mays)), and 85% of food legumes, 72% of oilseeds, 65% of cotton, and 90% of minor millets. Overall, the rainfed areas produce 40% of the food grains, support two-thirds of the livestock population, and are critical to food security, equity, and sustainability. India is home to 18% of world’s population, 15% of the world livestock, 4.2% of fresh water resources, 1% of forests, and 0.5% of pasture land, but only has 2.3% of the geographical area. India is home to 25% of the world’s hungry population ofw1 billion along with an estimated 43% of children malnourished under the age of five. The net sown area in India has remained constant for several years at 141 Mha, but the human and livestock populations have been steadily increasing. Though the Indian population increased from 361 million in 1951 to 1140 million in 2011, tripling over 60 years, the food-grain production has more than quadrupled, but the yield gains are largely from the irrigated agroecosystems. Notwithstanding the increase in average productivity from 0.6 Mg ha 1 in the 1980s to 1.1 Mg ha 1 at the present time, large yield gaps exist for rainfed crops in the semiarid regions. Even after realizing the full irrigation potential, nearly 40% of the net sown area of 141 Mha will remain totally rainfed. The per capita availability of land has fallen drastically from 2.4 ha in 1951 to about 0.32 ha in 2001; and it is projected to decline further to 0.09 ha by 2050. Increasing productivity of rainfed cropping systems is of critical importance to meet the food demands of an ever-increasing population in India. The potential productivity of maize (Z. mays) in high rainfall regions under rainfed condition is 8.0 Mg ha 1 vis-a-vis the national average yield of 2.1 Mg ha 1, indicating an unbridged yield gap of w6 Mg ha 1. Large yield gaps exist in other crops as well which are primarily grown under rainfed conditions. Recommended management practices (RMPs) such as improved cultivars, site specific nutrient management (precision agriculture), and water harvesting and recycling can potentially increase the yields in several crops up to 6 Mg ha 1, indicating the large realizable potential under rainfed conditions. There are many districts in India where the actual yields are much lower than the national average, and there is enormous potential for improvement. The objective of this article is to discuss the production potentials and the yield gaps of predominant crops grown under rainfed conditions in India, biotic and abiotic constraints, and RMPs for realizing the potentials.