What is the dry land agriculture?

Farming in those areas which are deficient in rainfall and which have no assured source of artificial irrigation is referred to as dryland farming.

The dryland farming covers about 70% of the cropped area and account for about 40% of foodgrains output. The annual rainfall in these areas is less than 750 mere the dry land farming requires practices which help to conserve rain water. About one-third of the Indian agriculture belongs to dryland category.

The dry land farmer is also confronted with a multitude of problems related to yield agronomic characteristics, soil and moisture needs, and fertilizers requirements, mechanical and implement needs, water logging, and increase in salinity and nutritional characteristics of these crops. Dryland farming areas are also inhabited by the poor segments of rural population. They are not able to invest in inputs necessary for neutralising the effect of soil infertility and water paucity.

To get over these problems farmers in the past resorted to animal husbandry along with crop farming. Now the scenario has changed entirely. Owing to increasing population pressure, land under grasses is being used for raising crops. Government has also taken several schemes such as the Integrated Rural Development Programme, the Drought Prone Areas Development Programme, the food for work and Employment Guarantees Programme etc. to improve the lots of the rural poor in the dryland areas. These programmes have infused some economic stability but fundamental problems have remained unsolved.

A pilot project also taken up with the assistance of the World Bank. It envisages the development of Water shed dry land areas of about 25,000-30,000 hectares area each in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The project was initiated at field level to lay the basis of sound investment on large scale for (a) reversing the man made-ecological degradation in the Himalayan foot hills and (b) protecting and developing agricultural land which is presently subject to serious erosion and flooding.

But recurring miseries of dryland farmers can be moderated only by the introduction of quick – maturing crops, new techniques, soil moisture conservation, animal based activities and small scale industries. Measures like the use of improved seeds, timely sowing, judicious use of fertilizers and plant protection etc. will also help in increasing production. The provision of adequate infrastructure such as communication, marketing, storage facilities is also necessary.

The special dryland crops which are of short duration and high yield can be of great significance. For example better varieties like sorghum hybrids and bajara hybrids are becoming popular in dryland areas. The International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-arid Trophies, patancheru, Hyderabad and the Central Arid Zone Research Institute Jodhpur, Rajasthan has taken up some of these issues. Research in also done on wheat, rice, arhar, castor, groundnuts, rapeseed, maize, barley etc. suitable to dryland region.

Apart from these measures, rain water harvesting, development of drought resistant seed, Mulching field to check soil erosion, regular filling of land during rainy season etc could be effective crops like sun-flower, red- gram and green gram be popularized in such areas which needed less water.