Book of Extended summaries ISDA

International Conference on Reimagining Rainfed Agro-ecosystems: Challenges &
Opportunities during 22-24, December 2022 at ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad
T1-05O-1189
Resilience Through Water Conservation and Adoption of Drought
Tolerant Crop Variety in NICRA Village Gunia, Gumla, Jharkhand
Sanjay Kumar 1 , Atal Bihari Tiwari 1 , Anjani Kumar Singh 2 , Amrendra
Kumar 2 and 1 Subhayan Das
1 Krishi Vigyan Kendra Gumla, Jharkhand 83523, India
2 Director ICAR-ATARI Patna, Zone-IV, Patna-801 506, Bihar
Climate change and global warming impacts all sectors of human life and agriculture is
particularly vulnerable to it. Increase in atmospheric and surface temperatures leads directly to
increase in evaporation rates of water at the earth’s surface. These factors leads to more
vigorous hydrology cycle, influencing precipitation amounts, Intensities, frequencies and
extreme. Keeping the major vulnerability viz. water stress and crop failure, in the centre KVK
Gumla implemented the NICRA project in severely affected (Low rainfall) village of Gunia of
Ghaghra block since 2010-11. Under the project focus was given on water management and
crop production. And accordingly, strategic plan viz. community involvement especially for
water conservation and effective utilization, involvement of policy makers, departmental
convergence and promotion of drought tolerant resilient crop varieties were taken as a major
tools in mitigation of water stress/ scarcity and enhancement in adoption of resilient crop
varieties. As a result farmers of the adopted village succeeded in storage of good volume of
water in created/ developed structure and harvested good crop yield. Through water
management and adoption of resilient crop varieties, resiliency developed against the
vulnerability. And in the village, resilient measures taken under NICRA project have left the
significant impact in the district.
Methodology
The goal of technology demonstration component under NICRA is to maintain some of the
successful practices and technologies that promote resilience to climate risks. And accordingly
the strategic plan was formulated for successful implementation of the intervention with an
objective to conserve and harvest the rain and flowing water to ensure crop production and
cope with water stress vulnerabilities. Although NICRA adopted area receive about 1100 mm
rainfall annually. There was a high degree variation in the spatial and temporal distribution
rendering the farming community vulnerable. There was no proper water storage/ harvesting
structure that can support agriculture during dry spell and beyond kharif season. After assessing
the problem and for its solution major action was undertaken viz. renovation/ excavation of
pond, well, canal and development of Sand bag check dam (Bora-Bandh) for whom community
involvement was ensured. And impression of intervention on the mindset of villagers and other
Resilience through land and water management interventions, water management and governance
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