Chickpea Intensification in Rainfed Rice Fallow Lands (RRFL): Health, Income and Nutrition

Chickpea Intensification in Rainfed Rice Fallow Lands (RRFL): Health, Income and Nutrition

The Rainfed Rice Fallow Lands (RRFL) Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is grown in about 40 million ha in India. About 11.65 million ha remains fallow during the rabi (post-rainy season) after harvest of kharif (rainy season) rice. Nearly 82% of the rainfed rice fallow lands (RRFL) are located in the states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and West Bengal (Fig 1 & 2). The GIS analysis of these RRFL has indicated that they represent diverse soil types and climatic conditions. Available moisture holding capacity (1 m soil profile) for most of these RRFL ranges from 150 - 200 mm. The soils in at least 30% (3.5 million ha) of these RRFL are fully saturated during most of the rice growing season, thus the residual moisture left in the soil at the time of rice harvest offer a huge potential niche for chickpea [Cicer arietinum L.] cultivation profitably during rabi season using available improved pulse production and protection technologies (IPPPT). Chickpea in RRFL can be further intensified by growing short season rice varieties (Fig 3) followed by timely establishment of short-medium duration chickpea varieties (Fig 4 & 5).

Chickpea in RRFLThe RRFL cropping system intensification with chickpea is required to meet the increasing domestic demand, reduce the import of pulses in India and to improve the productivity of the RRFL agro-ecosystems. Chickpea is an ideal pulse for RRFL intensification as it meets 80% of its N requirement from symbiotic nitrogen fixation and can fix up to 140 kg N from the air. It leaves substantial amount of N behind for subsequent rice crop, and adds organic matter to maintain and improve soil health, long term fertility and sustainability of the ecosystem. Chickpea is a hardy crop well adapted to stress environments. It is much more water efficient than wheat and mustard, thus it is a boon to the resource poor marginal farmers in the RRFL. With predictions for more water scarcity in the future, chickpea emerges as an increasingly valuable crop, and can be produced in RRFL using IPPPT (Table 1) and science-led farmer-centric approach (Fig 6).

Proof of Concept: The Pilot Project ICRISAT in collaboration with the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute and an NGO, People’s Resource Oriented, Voluntary Association, made efforts to promote chickpea cultivation in •RRFL of Barind region in Bangladesh and successfully brought over 10,000 ha RRFL area under chickpea cultivation. Similarly in partnership with Nepal Agricultural Research Council, ICRISAT introduced and expanded chickpea cultivation in 14 of the 21 RRFL districts of Terai in Nepal. Recently, in partnership with Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Raipur and Jawarharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur in a National Food Security Mission-Pulses, GoI, funded •project, large scale farmer-participatory trials on IPPPT were conducted in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, which have generated enthusiasm among farmers for growing chickpea in RRFL (Fig 7). Depending upon the rainfall pattern, soil depth and duration of the rice cultivars, short to medium duration chickpea varieties (JG 11, JG 14, JG 16, JG 130, Vaibhav and JG 74) were grown by •more than 3,000 farmers using IPPPT in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The IPPPT was highly profitable and net returns were between 130-400% with 30-100% higher grain yields than either nothing or over farmers’ practices in RRFL. The IPPPT- chickpea has a potential of expansion in RRFL (Fig 8). In a recent initiative with Birsa Agricutural University, Ranchi, supported by Department of Science and Technology GoI, ICRISAT developed short duration (75-80 days) chickpea lines ICCV-2 •and KAK-2 which performed exceptionally superior in the RRFL areas of Jharkhand.

Acknowledgements The funding support provided by National Food Security Mission-Pulses and Department of Science and Technology (Seed Division) Government of India is greatly appreciated.

Fig 1. RRFL area- Potential for introduction and expansion of chickpea. Fig 2. RRFL soils: medium-deep vertisols suitable for chickpea. Fig 3. Selection of early maturing rice varieties for rainfed kharif.

Fig 4. Selection of chickpea varieties for rainfed rabi. Fig 5. Combination of rice and chickpea varieties for rabi and kharif.

Fig 7. Crop establishment- Zero tillage without Irrigation. Fig 8. RRFL- Chickpea area expansion at individual household.

Fig 6. Model- Science-led farmer-centric expansion of chickpea in RRFL.

Table 1: Components of IPPPT- Chickpea. Constraints SolutionsSeed Improved varietiesCrop establishment Zero tillage machinesDiseases Wilt resistant varietiesPod Borer IPM responsiveFertilizers DAP Micronutrients Zn, B, MbHerbicides PendamethalineTransfer of technology Farmers’ participatoryVillage level seed systems Household

IMODInnovate Grow Prosper

Inclusive MarketOriented Development

S Pande1, M Sharma1, R Ghosh1, DR Reddy1; RN Sharma2, S Varma2, A Pachuri2, SK Mishra2; and SK Rao3, D Kathal3, SK Singh3, G Khan3, A Patel3.1International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics; 2Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidhyalaya, Ripur, CG; 3Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Viswa Vidhyalaya, Jabalpur, MP

Chickpea in RRFL Barren RRFL