Book of Extended summaries ISDA

International Conference on Reimagining Rainfed Agro-ecosystems: Challenges &
Opportunities during 22-24, December 2022 at ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad
enterprises/components such as cropping systems, animal husbandry, fisheries, forestry,
duckery, poultry, sericulture etc. for optimal utilization of resources thereby it has the
potential to significantly improve the economic status and livelihood of small and marginal
farmers of India. In a nutshell, many of the emerging issues in modern agriculture, such as
declining factor productivity, lowering production and profitability, increasing costs of
farming, inefficient resource use, hidden unemployment, and degradation of the natural
resource base, are successfully addressed by the IFS's core characteristics.
IFS for Environmental Sustainability: The deterioration of natural resources, buildup of
diseases and pests, and decline in factor productivity are just a few of the negative
consequences of monoculture and continuous cropping, such as rice-wheat and rice-rice
systems. All of this has endangered the sustainability of some of India's most productive
regions. Environmental deterioration brought about by excessive use of high-energy inputs,
such as fertilizers and pesticides, has been documented in many economically developed
countries under the stress of intensive agriculture. Utilizing and recycling locally available
inputs while integrating them with the minimum amounts of external inputs will improve the
farm sustainability. In addition to being environmentally sustainable, using locally available
inputs can help keep production costs within the reach of farmers. The role of indigenous
technological wisdom in this process is significant. IFS is advantageous because of greater
sustainability, diversification, intensification, productivity gains, and improvements to the
utilization of natural resources.
IFS for Improved Soil Health: Compared to cropping systems, integrated farming systems
have several advantages. Applying livestock manure increases the amount of organic matter
in the soil, which improves water infiltration, water holding capacity, and cation exchange
capacity, all of which are mostly related to biological aeration. Manure and urine increase pH
levels, which accelerate microbial activity and the decomposition of organic matter. With soil
recuperation on a physical, chemical, and biological level, it helps to enhance and preserve
the productive capacities of soils. Studies conducted under various IFS models across India
have emphasized that recycling of livestock by-products such as FYM, poultry manure, etc.
within the farm itself have led to improved soil physio-chemical properties. Solaiappan et al.
(2007) reported that integration of poultry (20) + goat (4) + sheep (6) + dairy (1) along with
conventional cropping system led to maximum organic carbon (0.35%), available soil N (134
kgha -1 ), soil P (8.5 kgha -1 ) and soil K (378 kgha -1 ) at the end of experimental trial. Integration
of rice-fish-duck system under coastal ecosystem has reported improved soil health due to
effective nutrient recycling among different components.
IFS for Risk Management in Agriculture: A single commodity-based agriculture is more
vulnerable to climatic, biotic (pests and diseases) and economic (relative prices of input and
output) changes compared to IFS. Adoption of IFS would help farmers escape such situations
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Ecosystem based approaches for climate change adaptation, ecosystem services, integrated farming system models,
Land degradation neutrality