Significance of Dryland Agriculture in India
- Large Area Coverage: ~70% of India’s cultivated area is rainfed/dryland (~85 M ha). Spread across arid, semi-arid, and sub-humid regions.
- Food Security: Contributes ~40–45% of total food grain production. Backbone for coarse cereals (90% of millets), pulses (75%), oilseeds (80%).
- Livelihood Security: Supports 60% of rural population and major livestock population (cattle, sheep, goats). Livestock provides drought resilience.
- Nutritional Security: Dryland crops (millets, pulses, oilseeds) are nutrient-rich, climate-resilient → crucial for combating malnutrition.
- Environmental Importance: Promotes sustainable land use in fragile ecosystems. Watershed-based dryland systems aid soil and water conservation.
- Economic Role: Provides raw material for oil, pulse, and coarse grain industries. Contributes to exports (groundnut, pulses, spices).
Constraints of Dryland Agriculture in India
- Climatic Constraints
- Low and erratic rainfall (<750 mm in dry areas).
- High variability (temporal & spatial) → droughts & mid-season dry spells.
- High evapotranspiration losses.
- Soil Constraints
- Soils often shallow, degraded, low in organic matter.
- Poor water-holding capacity (red soils, light-textured soils).
- Soil erosion due to runoff in heavy rains.
- Salinity/alkalinity in some rainfed belts.
- Crop & Variety Constraints
- Lack of high-yielding, drought-tolerant varieties for many dryland crops.
- Predominance of long-duration varieties that fail under moisture stress.
- Technological Constraints
- Low adoption of dryland technologies (mulching, water harvesting, intercropping).
- Limited mechanization due to fragmented, undulating lands.
- Input Constraints
- Low use of fertilizers & amendments (fear of crop failure discourages investment).
- Poor availability of quality seed in dryland crops.
- Socio-Economic Constraints
- Majority of farmers are small & marginal → resource poor.
- Limited credit & insurance coverage.
- Risk-averse behavior → preference for subsistence cropping.
- Institutional & Policy Constraints
- Research–Extension gap in technology dissemination.
- Lack of market infrastructure, storage, MSP coverage for dryland crops (millets, pulses).
Facts on Significance of Dryland Agriculture
- Area Coverage: ~85 million ha (about 70% of net sown area) is rainfed/dryland. India has the largest rainfed agricultural area in the world.
- Production Contribution: Contributes ~42% of total food grains. 90% of coarse cereals, 75% of pulses, and 80% of oilseeds are from drylands. Contributes 70% of cotton and 50% of rice in India.
- Livelihoods: Supports nearly 40% of human population and 60% of livestock population in India.
- Nutritional Importance: Millets & pulses are rich in protein, fiber, iron, calcium – essential for combating malnutrition. FAO declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets → most millets grown in Indian drylands.
- Institutions: CRIDA (1983, Hyderabad) → Nodal research body for drylands. AICRPDA (1970) → Largest network on dryland agriculture research.
Facts on Constraints of Dryland Agriculture
- Rainfall: 60% of cultivated area is rainfed → annual rainfall ranges 300–1150 mm in most dryland zones. Coefficient of rainfall variation is 25–60%, causing high uncertainty.
- Soil Degradation: Nearly 50% of drylands suffer from erosion, salinity, nutrient depletion. Organic carbon levels often <0.5% in dryland soils.
- Yield Gap: Productivity in rainfed areas is 1–1.2 t/ha, compared to 2.7–3 t/ha in irrigated areas. Example: Rainfed rice yields are 50–60% lower than irrigated rice.
- Drought Frequency: On average, 1 in every 3 years is a drought year in arid/semi-arid regions. Central India faces 2–3 dry spells even during normal monsoon years.
- Socio-Economic: More than 80% of farmers in drylands are small & marginal. Limited access to irrigation (only 30–35% of gross cropped area irrigated nationwide).
Golden Lines for Exam Answer
- “Drylands are the backbone of India’s food security, contributing ~40% of grains, ~75% of pulses, and ~90% of millets.”
- “Despite covering 70% of cultivated land, productivity in drylands is less than half of irrigated areas due to climatic, soil, and socio-economic constraints.”