Book of Extended summaries ISDA

International Conference on Reimagining Rainfed Agro-ecosystems: Challenges &
Opportunities during 22-24, December 2022 at ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad
harvesting times and sources of high-value products from new crops (Reddy and Suresh,
2009). The Kyrdem village in Ri-Bhoi district of Meghalaya under the subtropical hill agroclimatic
zone is a climatically vulnerable area mostly affected by an acute scarcity of water
during rabi season or excess water in the lowland rice ecosystem which leads to rice fallow.
Farmers grow lowland local long-duration paddy from May to August which is ready to
harvest in November- December and remain fallow due to excess water and late harvesting of
paddy leading to again low cropping intensity. Therefore, KVK Ri-Bhoidemonstrated climate
resilient raised bed temporary land configuration technology with field pea variety Prakash
under NICRA-TDC (Technology Demonstration Component) Project in rice–fallow area in
the adopted village in order to enhance the cropping intensity, system productivity and
profitability.
Methodology
The climate resilient technology of paddy (var. RCM 10) – pea (var. Prakash) cropping
system under temporary land configuration using raised beds in low land rice fallow
demonstrated at 95 farmers’ field covering 15 ha area at NICRA adopted Kyrdem village
located at a latitude of 25° 41 ´487ʺ N and longitude92° 04ʹ 308ʺ E at an elevation of 864 m
above MSL in Bhoirymbong block in Ri Bhoi district of Meghalaya during 2015-18 to
increase the cropping intensity, system productivity, and profitability. The population in the
village was 1760, with households 220 witha cultivated area of 600ha with major crops of
rice, maize, ginger, turmeric, and vegetables having only streams as the source of irrigation.
The climatic vulnerability in the village was high intensity & erratic rainfall, hail storm, cold
wave, frost, and terminal drought. Total Kharif (June -Sept) rainfall received during the
paddy growing season was normal except during 2017 with an excess rainfall deviation of
25.3 percent. The paddy variety RCM 10 (125 days duration - June-Sept) was sown in the last
week of May and transplanted in the first week of June. The climate resilient technology
demonstrated to mitigate the soil moisture stress at planting time, water logging, and
excessive moisture in November/December in rice fallow through raised beds of size 1m
width and 0.3m height and 5-8 length and sunken spacing of 1: 0.5 ratios. The field pea (var.
Prakash) was grown in raised beds in October/November after the harvest of paddy in
sequence on raised beds. The soil of the demonstrated site was high organic carbon (0.83-
1.15%), low to medium nitrogen (KMnO4– N 243-276 kg/ha) and phosphorus (12.43-14.78
kg/ha Olsen P), medium in potash (189-205.43kg/ha NH4OAC-K) and acidic to slightly
acidic in reaction (pH 4.15-5.58). The system productivity in terms of rice equivalent yield
was calculated by converting crop yields into rice equivalent yield (REY) with the physical
output of each crop and their price of output. Market prices prevailing during the crop season
each year were used for computing maize equivalent yield.
Climate resilient agriculture for risk mitigation
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