Book of Extended summaries ISDA

International Conference on Reimagining Rainfed Agro-ecosystems: Challenges &
Opportunities during 22-24, December 2022 at ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad
2021. Improved availability of fodder has led to an increase in the number of cows and sheep
in the village from 256 to 430 and about 600 to about 1000 respectively between 2018 and
2021. The dairy economy of the village also benefited from an increased collection from 175-
200 litres/day to nearly 1000 litres/day during the same time. Consequently, the milk collection
centres have increased from 1 to 5. Besides Ayyavaripalli, four more clusters totalling 32
villages were part of the programme and altogether 595 farmers cultivated fodder in 622 acres
of land. Importantly 195 farmers have taken up the activity on their own without the programme
support. The fodder development activities were primarily intended to benefit the landless
families with livestock. Formation of Common Interest Groups by these families has helped in
sharing the costs to take land under lease.
Conclusion
Mediation among community members to share resources – land, labour and material like
dung, making the crisis and options visible through ‘Fodder Budgeting’, facilitating negotiated
solutions, intensive support for people during initial fodder experiments to see the results on
ground and natural farming methods with low input costs and high returns can help
communities to move from deficits to surplus. These are the lessons emerging from the
Ayyavaripalli experience and the later spread of the model into several other villages.
The case study demonstrated a strategic mainstream option for enabling increased access to
fallow lands in the villages to livestock farmers under negotiated agreements. Access to
irrigation in such lands could further improve the productivity. The natural farming methods
of production – using Ghana/Drava Jeevamrutam, pre-monsoon dry sowing with mulch,
livestock penning, using multi-species crop mix – with a mix of cereals, millets, pulses for
balanced nutrition aided by access to life saving irrigation can be included in the package of
practices. Investments in such initiatives have high cost-benefit ratios of around 1:4; and much
higher social cost-benefit ratios especially in drought prone rainfed areas.
References
Misra, A.K, Rama Rao, C.A, and Ravishankar, K., 2010. Analysis of potentials and problems
of dairy production in rainfed agro-ecosystem of India. Ind. J. Animal Sci. 80, (11):1126.
NRAA (National Rainfed Area Authority). 2022. Accelerating the Growth of Rainfed
Agriculture - Integrated Farmers Livelihood Approach. Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’
Welfare. p.6
Planning Commission. 2002. Report of the Working Group on Animal Husbandry and Dairying
for the Tenth Five Year Plan. Planning Commission, Government of India. Available at:
https://niti.gov.in/planningcommission.gov.in/docs/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp/wg_anhbndry.
pdf [Accessed on 15 September 2022]
Institutional and policy innovations for accelerated and enhanced impacts
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