Final Report of Foreign Aided Project Future Rainfed Lowland Rice

Final Report of Foreign Aided Project Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India (ICAR-W3) Funded by International Rice Research Institute

Edited by Sukanta K. Sarangi, B. Maji, Y. P. Singh, V. K. Mishra, P. C. Sharma, S. Singh and A. Srivastava

ICAR-CENTRAL SOIL SALINITY RESEARCH INSTITUTE REGIONAL RESEARCH STATION Canning Town – 743 329, South 24 Parganas West Bengal, India 2016

Foreign Aided Project Funded by International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)

Final Report Project Title: Future rainfed lowland rice systems in eastern India (ICAR-W3) Edited by Sukanta K. Sarangi, B. Maji, Y. P. Singh, V. K. Mishra, P. C. Sharma, S. Singh and A. Srivastava

ICAR-CENTRAL SOIL SALINITY RESEARCH INSTITUTE REGIONAL RESEARCH STATION Canning Town – 743 329, South 24 Parganas West Bengal, India 2016

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” Final Report of

: IRRI-ICAR – W3 Project

Printed on

: December, 2016

Edited by

: Dr. Sukanta K. Sarangi, Dr. B. Maji, Dr. Y. P. Singh, Dr. V. K. Mishra, Dr. P. C. Sharma, Dr. S. Singh and Dr. A. Srivastava

Compiled by

: Dr. Sukanta K. Sarangi, Dr. B. Maji, Dr. Y. P. Singh, Dr. V. K. Mishra, Dr. S. Singh and Dr. A. Srivastava

Copy right

: Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)

Published by

: Director, ICAR-Central Soil Salinity Research Institute, Karnal – 132 001, Haryana, India Telephone: +91-184-2290501, Fax: +91-184-2290480, 2292489 Gram: SALINITY, e-mail: director@cssri.ernet.in website: www.cssri.org

Suggested Citation

: Sarangi, S. K., Maji, B., Singh, Y. P., Mishra, V. K., Sharma, P. C., Singh, S. and Srivastava, A. (2016). Final report of IRRIICAR- W3 Project on: “Future rainfed lowland rice systems in eastern India (Development of crop and nutrient management practices in rice)”. ICAR-Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (ICAR-CSSRI), Regional Research Station (RRS), Canning Town – 743329, South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India. 104 p.

Final Report, 2016● IRRI-ICAR-W3 Project

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” CONTENTS Chapter

Topic

Page no.

1

Executive Summary

1-2

2

Introduction

3-7

3

Short System Characterization

8-28

4

Details of Experiments at CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town

29-38

5

Details of Experiments at CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow

39-43

6

Results of Experiments at CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town

44-58

7

Results of Experiments at CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow

59-63

8

Conclusions

64-66

References

67-71

List of visitors

72-74

Publications

75-75

Participation in conferences/seminars/symposia/workshops

76-76

On-farm demonstrations

77-90

Distinguished visitors

91-95

Published reports

96-104


Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” Project Title: Future rainfed lowland rice systems in eastern India (ICAR-W3) ICAR code no. : 326/NRM/CSSRI/IRRI/Rice/5-2014/4-15 Project Location: 1. Central Soil Salinity Research Institute, Regional Research Station, Canning Town, West Bengal, 743329 2. Central Soil Salinity Research Institute, Regional Research Station, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh –226002 Date of start: June 01, 2014 Date of termination: March 31, 2016 Budget: US$ 12000 (Canning + Lucknow ) Project Investigators: Canning Centre: Dr. B. Maji and Dr. Sukanta K. Sarangi Lucknow Centre: Dr. Y. P. Singh and Dr. V. K. Mishra Main Objectives: CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town 

Increasing nitrogen use efficiency in low land rice in coastal areas during wet season.



Standardisation of management practices for drum seeded rice during dry season.

CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow 

To monitor the yield optimizing level of sodicity for short duration rice variety.



Increasing cropping intensity of salt affected soils with the introduction of short duration rice variety CSR 43.



To find out the economically viable rice based cropping system with short duration and salt tolerant variety for reclaimed salt affected soils.


Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” Phone : +91-3218-255241/ 255085

Fax : +91-3218-255084 E-mail: cssri.canning@gmail.com

ICAR-Central Soil Salinity Research Institute Regional Research Station Canning Town, South 24 Parganas, West Bengal-743 329 (INDIA)

PREFACE Increasing rice productivity, net income and securing livelihood of the farming community in the stress prone ecologies is the challenge for the farmers and scientists. Though rice acreage in India is the highest in the world, it lags behind in productivity, particularly in salt affected areas. Further with increasing the price of inputs, the net income is also decreasing. Concerted efforts are necessary for increasing the productivity as well net income from agriculture by innovative management practices and by increasing cropping intensity. To develop effective management practices, evaluate salt tolerant rice varieties and to adjust the cropping system for increasing cropping intensity, the project entitled “Future rainfed lowland rice systems in eastern India (ICAR-W3)” in collaboration with International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines has been implemented in the coastal as well as inland salt affected areas of the country. The project is successful in fulfilling the objectives of improved crop and nutrient management of rice and extending the outcomes to the farming communities in the stress prone areas. We are extremely thankful to Dr. D. K. Sharma, Ex-Director and Dr. P. C. Sharma present Director of ICAR-CSSRI in inspiring and constantly guiding in bringing out fruitful results out of the project and giving full support and co-operation in execution of project activities as and when needed. The encouragement, support and guidance extended by Dr. Sudhanshu Singh, Rainfed Lowland Agronomist of IRRI-India office from the very beginning to the completion of the project was the driving force behind this project. We also express our deep sense of gratitude to Dr. Abdelbagi Ismail, STRASA Coordinator and Principal Scientist, Crop and Environmental Sciences Division, IRRI, Dr. U. S. Singh, South Asia Regional Coordinator, STRASA and Dr. Ashish Srivastava, Assistant Scientist, IRRI-India office for their keen interest in every aspect of the IRRI-EC-IFAD project. We convey our sincere thanks and gratitude to all the technical and administrative staff of ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town and Lucknow, contractual workers, NGOs, farmers and farm women of Sundarbans and Uttar Pradesh who were sincerely involved in the successful implementation and execution of the project activities. EDITORS


Chapter 1 Executive Summary Under the externally funded project on ‘Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India (IRRI-ICAR W3)’ funded by International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), research experiments were conducted both during wet (kharif) and dry (boro) seasons in the research station of ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town (on-station) as well as in the farmers’ fields (on-farm) during the reported period. Experiment on increasing nitrogen use efficiency of low land rice was carried out during kharif 2014 and 2015 with use of prilled and neem coated urea. These sources were combined with different time of application and method of applications like soil and foliar spray. Rice variety Amal-Mana was used in the experiment. The experimental design was randomized block design with three replications. The grain yield was significantly higher when nitrogen source is neem coated urea and applied 75% to soil (50% at one week after transplanting, 25% at tillering) and 25% foliar spray at reproductive stage. However, straw yield was not affected due to different N management practices. Cost of cultivation was less in the use of NCU, mainly due to less infestation of pests. Gross return, net return and benefit cost ratio were higher with the use of neem coated urea, however, the economics is not different with method of application. With NCU applied 75% to soil and 25% to foliage, the net return was US $ 437 ha-1, which was at par (US $ 375 ha-1) with application of NCU 100% to soil (50% basal, 25% at tillering stage and 25% at PI stage). The BCR for these two treatments were 1.7 and 1.6 respectively and for other treatments it was 1.3 – 1.4. The best result of the on-station study on improving nitrogen use efficiency and economy was evaluated in comparison to farmer’s practice in 8 on-farm locations in the Sundarbans region of West Bengal, covering three villages and two administrative blocks in the district of South 24 Parganas. Neem coated urea application was introduced in the study area along with improved varieties Amal-Mana and Swarna Sub 1. Improved varieties, farmer’s own variety (varied from farmer to farmer) and two fertilizer sources (NCU and PU) evaluated with four replications in each site.

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India”

The objective of the drum seeding experiment was to standardise management practices for drum seeded rice during dry season. The hypothesis for this experiment was improved boro rice variety sown with a drum seeder with seed treatment will increase yield. Highest grain yield of dry season rice (7.2 t ha-1) recorded with variety WGL 20471 treated with seed treating chemical and sown with 2/3rd filled drum seeder. Seed treatment of dry season rice seeds result in about 11% increase in grain yield over control (without seed treatment). Average grain yield of dry season rice increased by about 10% when 2/3rd seed rate is used in drum seeder than full rate. In the on-farm trial sowing of pre-germinated and treated rice seeds with drum seeder resulted in about 20% higher yield over farmers existing practice of transplanting without seed treatment.

For the inland salt affected soils introduction of short duration and salt tolerant rice variety CSR 43 increased grain yield in sodic soils as well as provided opportunity for increasing cropping intensity of traditional rice-wheat system through cultivation of oilseed crop like toria or vegetable like spinach. With the introduction of short duration variety, the cropping intensity of partially reclaimed sodic soils has increased to 300%. CSR 43’s earlier maturation is thought to be helpful in saving approximately three irrigations per season saving the farmers significant costs. In addition, economic benefits of its early maturity yield a, Rs. 3600 ha-1 savings through irrigation water reduction. With the introduction of CSR 43, we can identify certain other rice based crop diversification options for partially reclaimed sodic soils to enhance the income of the farmers.

2


Chapter 2 Introduction In India, nitrogen (N) deficiency afflicts 99% of the soils, and these soils need fertiliser treatment for sustaining their innate productivity potential (Katyal, 2016). Coastal rice growing soils are mostly low to medium in N (Chaudhary et al., 2008; Yadav et al., 2009; Sarangi et al., 2012), whereas, rice the predominant crop in this region requires substantial amount of it for higher production. Further the recovery of applied fertilizer N in rainfed flooded rice soils is very poor due to several types of losses like leaching, volatilization, denitrification etc. Mass balance calculations indicated that about 33% of available inorganic N was recovered by rice and the remaining N was lost from the system (Reddy, 1982). It is the most limiting nutrient in non-legume cropping systems, and the least predictable. Mismanagement of this fertilizer can impact both economic and environmental aspects of crop production (Tubana et al., 2011). Based on 2010 statistics, global rice production accounts for 15% of global fertilizer N use, and 13% of fertilizer P and K use (Heffer, 2013). In Asian rice production, fertilizer is often the second most important input-cost after labor, accounting for 15-30% of total production costs for irrigated rice, depending on government subsidies and labor costs (Moya et al., 2004; Pampolino et al., 2007). Straight N fertilisers produced in India at present are urea, ammonium sulphate, calcium ammonium nitrate and ammonium chloride. Their relative shares towards total N production in the country during 2011-12 were 82.3, 1.0, 0.2 and 0.2 per cent, respectively (Tewatia et al., 2012). Therefore, urea is the most common fertiliser N used by the farmers in India in general, and in coastal region in particular. N being a costly commodity for the individual farmer as well as country as a whole, the manufacture of these types of fertilizers requires import of raw materials which burden the foreign exchequer. Under this scenario, it is high time to find ways and means to avoid N losses from the rice soils, and to economise N for increased efficiency. 3


Nitrogen is conventionally applied to the soil at various stages starting from before transplanting to flowering stage in different splits. Foliar sprays of N are another method of application to the standing crop for absorption through the leaves and other plant parts. Foliar spray of fertilizer did not only increase the crop yields, but also reduced the quantities of fertilizer applied through soil. Foliar application can also reduce the lag time between application and uptake by the plant. In fact, foliar fertilization does not totally replace soil- applied fertilizer, but it does increase the uptake and hence the efficiency of the nutrients applied to the soil. Radioisotope studies have shown that foliar-applied fertilizers enter through the stomata and leaf cuticular pores. Various studies have shown that a small amount of nutrients (nitrogen, potash, or phosphate) applied by foliar spraying increases significantly the yield of crops. The increased efficiency reduces the need for soil-applied fertilizer, reduces leaching and run-off of nutrients, reducing the impact of fertilizer salts on the environment. However, the use of foliar sprays has not been so popular in our country, which is evident from the fact that about 14% crop nutrition goes through this route world-over, against 1% in India. Nitrogen gets easily converted to available forms from various types of fertilizers that are being applied for crop nutrition. Also nitrogen in nitrate form is highly mobile and gets lost through the process of leaching, especially under irrigated conditions. Nitrogen is also lost in the process of de-nitrification, wherein the nitrate form is back converted into Nitrogen and Ammonia and lost to atmosphere. More than 60% of the soil N is lost through a combination of leaching, surface run-off, de-nitrification, volatilization, and microbial consumption. It is estimated that a 1% increase in nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) could save $1.1 billion annually (Kant et al., 2011; Vijayalakshmi et al., 2013). To make the N supply slow, and as per the need of the crop, there are several methods like use of nitrification inhibitors such as Nitrapyrin (N-Serve) and Terrazole (Dwett) which were developed in USA. These nitrification agents are very expensive and add to the already high cost of crop production in India (http://www.nationalfertilizers.com/). Therefore, there is need of a low-cost 4


methodology to reduce the N loss, and make it steadily available to rice crop. One such practice is use of neem coated urea (NCU). Oil derived from the seeds of neem (Azadirachta indica) contains melicians (generally known as neem bitters) of which Epinimbin, Deacetyl, Salanin and Azadirachtin are the active fractions, which showed dose-dependent nitrification inhibition action (Devakumar and Goswami, 1992). Neem cake/oil coated urea with the nitrification-inhibitory properties, is readily available, cheap, having no adverse effect on soil micro-organisms, and thus being increasingly used by Indian farmers. Use of neem-coated urea products prolongs the nitrogen availability for the crop growth, thereby minimizes the losses of nitrogen and improves the nitrogen-use efficiency (Suganya et al., 2009). Neem and its parts are being used to manufacture locally urea-coating agent to improve and maintain the fertility of soil. NCU helps to retard the activity and growth of the bacteria responsible for de-nitrification, prevent the loss of urea, and control a large number of pests such as caterpillars, beetles, leafhoppers, borer, mites etc. (Lokanadhan et al., 2012). Recent policy of Government of India, relaxed the restriction on fertiliser firms to produce neem-coated urea (earlier, production of neem-coated urea was allowed only up to 35% of the total capacity of the plant) in line with the mandate of saving fossil fuel, energy and labour. Most of the lands in the coastal region of India, especially in Sundarbans, West Bengal (The Ganges delta) are low-lying and waterlogged due to heavy rain (more than 1800 mm per annum), therefore the efficiency of applied N fertilizers are low. Again, during the wet season mostly tall varieties are used, which are less responsive to fertilizers and higher application leads to lodging and increased susceptibility to insect pests and diseases. Our previous studies revealed that a fertilizer dose of 50-2010 N-P2O5-K2O kg and 5 tonnes (t) farm yard manure (FYM) ha-1 are optimum for getting higher yield with tall rice variety like Amal-Mana (Sarangi et al., 2016). However, the efficiency of the applied fertilizer is to be improved to the maximum extent under the prevailing agro-ecosystem. Therefore, the present study to improve the efficiency and economy of applied fertilizer N to the lowland rice, was conducted 5


with a hypothesis that slow release N fertilizer like Neem Coated Urea along with appropriate time of N application integrated with soil and foliar spray will increase the yield of rice through better use of applied fertilizers. Farmers in the coastal areas also prefer to grow rice during the dry season due to the lower risks as compared with monsoon crops. In addition, productivity of boro rice is much higher (Sarangi et al., 2014a) than kharif season rice, especially when improved salt tolerant varieties are used. Higher productivity of boro rice is mainly due to higher solar radiation, favourable temperature, control over irrigation water and comparatively more efficient use of resources. Farmers use more inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides, during dry season to get higher yield. However, cultivation of rice during the dry season in coastal saline soils is challenging and requires careful choice of a suitable rice variety and good management practices. The cost of rice cultivation is higher during the dry season due to the high cost of irrigation water. In coastal areas, and especially in the dry season, soil salinity is a common problem mainly due to capillary rise of saline ground water and deposition of salt on the soil surface. In this situation, use of salt tolerant rice varieties is essential to obtain a good rice crop, otherwise the chance of crop failure due to salt injury is high. Varieties like Canning 7, WGL 20471, Bidhan 2 are found to tolerant to salinity and can be grown with improved management practices (Sarangi et al., 2015a). Traditionally, rice is grown by manual transplanting of 25-30 days old seedlings after puddling. Pudddling reduces percolation losses, controls weeds and enables easy transplanting. However, due to labour scarcity for transplanting and excessive water requirements for puddling, and negative effect on soil physical properties, alternative methods of crop establishment like drum seeding has been found to solve such constraints in coastal salt affected soils for its suitability for boro rice cultivation. Uttar Pradesh is having largest area (1.37 Mha) under salt affected soil in India. Generally farmers are growing traditional varieties of rice and wheat because of non availability of salt tolerant varieties and poor knowledge about their cultivation. The 6


perception of the farmers is treating salt affected soil as unproductive and categorizing as third grade land. They are not paying equal attention as normal soil that’s why the crop productivity of salt affected soil is significantly less than the normal soils. Most of the salt affected soils are having mono-cropping system and rice is the only crop grown in such soils. The traditional rice varieties are long duration (140-150 days) variety and needs more water even after receding the rainfall. Because of long duration and late maturity, sometimes sowing of wheat get delayed resulting low yield. CSR 43 is a short duration high yielding salt tolerant variety which can mature in only 110-115 days and also within the monsoon period without application of any additional irrigation. In partially reclaimed sodic soils farmers are growing rice and wheat. After introduction of CSR 43, about 60 days are left in between harvesting of rice and sowing of wheat and a short duration crop may be grown to utilize this period. To identify a suitable cropping system that can be fitted with short duration salt tolerant variety, the present study was carried out under ICAR-W3 Project at Lucknow.

7


Chapter 3 Short System Characterization Center name: ICAR-CSSRI, Regional Research Station, Canning Town, West Bengal -743 329  Key site: Canning Town, South 24 Parganas district, West Bengal, India.  About key site: ICAR-CSSRI, Regional Research Station at Canning Town is located in the coastal region of Ganga Delta (Sundarbans Delta), about 46 km South-East of Kolkata. The demographic agriculture is the primary occupation of the majority (80%) of households of the village. Other primary occupations are salaried job, govt. service - 5%, private business - 5%, student- 15% and secondary occupation (maid servant, laborers including migratory laborers and others) – 35%. Migration to Kolkata, sub-urban areas or faraway places is very common in this village. As the rice is the main crop, almost all the households (100%) are engaged in rice production. About 15 % households are engaged for non-rice crop cultivation and other activities like livestock sales, fishing, non-farm activities etc. for their livelihood. Out of the total area, agricultural operational area was about 83%. The cropping pattern has been observed to be primarily mono-cropped with rice (80% of agricultural land) in Kharif. Most of the lands remain fallow (83 % of agricultural land) during Rabi season due to severe stress of salinity and scarcity of good quality irrigation water. Only 15 % agricultural land is covered by rice crop during Rabi season. Vegetables are grown in a limited area of about 3% and 2 % of agricultural land during Kharif and Rabi season, respectively. Agricultural operational land is highly fragmented and average farm holding size is 0.67 ha. Lands are scattered into different numbers of parcels. The farmers are mostly marginal (50%) having land holding 2 ha. The land type of the village indicated that lands are mostly lowland (84% of agricultural land) which remained waterlogged with > 30 cm of water depth during Kharif season. The rest 16 % lands are mid-land. The soil of the village was mainly heavy in 8


texture. The texture of about 91% of agricultural land is clay and rest 9% clayloam. Most of cultivable land of about 195 ha (97%) in this village is affected by salinity stress particularly during Rabi season. Agriculture of this village during Kharif season is entirely dependent on monsoon rainfall but it depends on irrigation during Rabi season (Sarangi et al., 2015b). About 17 % area, of the total cultivated area during Rabi season, was irrigated from shallow tube well and harvested rain water in the pond. The field experiment/demonstrations under IRRI-ICAR-W3 Project was conducted in three villages (2 villages in Basanti Block viz. Modgoran and Dakshin Mokamberia and one village in Canning II block viz. Korakati) in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal.  Geomorphology conditions: Mangrove forest soils and mostly mangrove swamps are found along the seacoast line in the delta region of the southernmost parts of South 24-Parganas and North 24-Parganas districts. The coastal soils of West Bengal are formed on alluvial deposits carried by major rivers in the coastal region. Depending on the nature of deposits, hydrology, proximity to the existing creeks, river and seas, and nature of forest cover etc. different soils are found in the coastal region of the state (Bandyopadhyay and Maji, 1995).  Coordinates: 22015′ N latitude and 88040′ E longitude, altitude 3.0 Meters (A.M.S.L.)  Climatic zone: Coastal zone represents a broad transitional zone between land and sea. It is strongly influenced by both the shoreline and near shore sub-littoral ecosystems with land-based activities. In addition weather adversities like cyclones/storm, heavy rains, very high tides, Tsunami waves are regular features of the this zone. Consequences of climate change are of particular importance to coastal areas because of its closeness to sea. The weather data at Canning Town during the experimental period is given in Table 1.

9


Table 1: Mean monthly weather parameters at Canning Town, West Bengal, India Month

No. of rainy days

Total rainfall (mm)

JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

11 17 12 16 5 0 0

173.5 227.2 255.9 337.8 51.3 0.0 0.0

JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

2 1 2 7 4 15 28 15 11 5 0 1

17.9 15.0 10.9 106.9 89.6 274.2 834.4 372.8 172.2 21.5 1.4 5.5

JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH

1 3 1

8.6 96.6 3.0

Avg. Min. Temperature (oC) 2014 27.1 27.2 26.8 26.3 24 18.1 13.4 2015 14.0 16.8 20.5 24.2 27.4 26.8 25.8 26.8 25.4 24.7 19.1 16.3 2016 13.6 20.0 23.3

Avg. Max. Temperature (oC)

Avg. Sunshine hr.

33.2 31.1 32.4 32.2 31.7 29.9 25.7

4.3 4.0 4.5 5.3 6.6 7.8 6.0

24.6 28.5 32.4 33.7 35.5 33.7 31.6 32.3 31.5 32.3 29.2 26.3

6.3 7.0 8.2 6.5 8.0 4.5 1.4 3.7 4.4 6.1 6.9 3.1

25.3 29.9 33.2

4.5 4.7 6.0

 Soil types: The soils have Hyperthermic temperature and Aquic moisture regimes. The soils are usually heavy textured (silty loam to silty clay) and sub-angular blocky structure with moderate grade, medium size and prominent marks of slickenslides. There is presence of Jarosite mottles in some horizons (Maji and Bandyopadhya, 1995). The soils show negligible variation in hue ranging from 10


2.5Y to 5Y with matrix chroma (Table 2) of around 2.0, many a times associated with yellowish red mottles in the sub-surface horizons indicating the prevalence of Aquic moisture regime in the pedons. The soils show various degrees of salinity (Sarangi et al., 2012) and the salinity gradient of the area increases eastward from the river Matla.

Table 2: Soil analytical data of Sundarbans region, West Bengal, India Horizon Depth

Ap

Colour (moist)

(cm)

Matrix

Mottles

0-25

5Y 7/3

7.5R

Texture

Clay pH

EC

SAR

ESP

OC

(%)

(1:2) (dSm-1)

sic

32

5.6

3.8

6.7

10.4

1.17

sic

42

4.8

7.9

6.9

12.1

0.55

sic

42

4.7

7.8

8.3

13.3

0.89

l

25

8.5

9.4

9.5

14.1

0.14

(%)

6/8,c1d Bwg1

25-69

2.5Y

2.5YR

5/0

3/6, m2d

Bwg2

69-

2.5Y

7.5YR

115

4/0

6/8, m2d

Cg



115-

2.5Y

5YR

175

5/0

5/6, f1d

Basic socio-economic facts: Majority of farmers (85%) in the study area belong to weaker section of the society (primarily SC) and 94% of the farmers are marginal land-holders, rest are either small-farmers (1.7 %) or land less (4.1 %). The land situation is predominantly lowlands - (76%), followed by medium (15%) and upland (9%). Despite having low return, agriculture is the dominating occupation and nearly 42 % of the farm families primarily depend on agriculture. In absence of gainful livelihood options in the local area, migration to nearby cities is quite prevalent (32% of farm families) in the study area for search of alternative livelihood options.

11

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” 

Area/percentage of the major rice environments: Soil salinity was one of the major constraints for agricultural production in the study village similar to other areas of the coastal salt affected region of Sundarbans (coastal areas of Ganges delta, West Bengal), especially during dry season (pre and post monsoon period). Salinity builds up due to gradual drying up of lands after monsoon season and attains maximum in the month of April-May (Fig. 1). It builds up in the soil due to upward capillary movement of saline groundwater present at shallow depth and occasional inundation with saline water from the river (Sarangi et al., 2012). Farmers of this village usually identify the salinity stress by visual observation of salt deposition on the soil surface.

Fig. 1: Seasonal variability of waterlogging and soil salinity in coastal areas of West Bengal

The climate of this region was characterized by high rainfall and hot and humid summer. About 80% of the total annual rainfall of 1800 mm occurred in a short span of a few monsoon months (June-September) (Fig. 2). Due to this heavy concentration of monsoon rainfall, flat topography, low lying area of the village, low infiltration rate, presence of ground water at the surface and lack of proper 12


drainage facility, most of the cultivated fields were deeply waterlogged which was another constraint for crop production during Kharif season (Sarangi et al., 2015d; Sarangi et al., 2016).

Fig. 2: Rainfall distribution pattern of Sundarbans region

Main cropping systems: The existing cropping pattern in Canning has been observed to be primarily mono-cropped with paddy cultivation irrespective of seasons that accounted for almost 99 % of cultivable area. Major crop rotation was rice-rice with very negligible share of vegetables cultivation (Sarangi et al., 2012). Cropping intensity in the study area was calculated to be quite low at 120-125% and the Kharif paddy dominated the cropping pattern. Major cropping systems prevailing in the study area were rice-fallow or rice-rice. Name and characteristics of the most common submergence tolerant/salinity tolerant varieties are given in Table 3 (Pani et al., 2012; Sarangi et al., 2014b). The nutrient, fertilizer and manure recommendations are given in Table 4, 5 and 6 respectively.  Start and end of the normal rice seasons: Kharif rice: Mid June to November 13


Rabi rice: Mid December to April  Prevalent methods of rice cultivation: Transplanting is the prevalent method of rice cultivation in both Kharif as well as Rabi season.  Type of stresses: Flood: August-September Dry Period: December-May Saline Period: December-May Out-mitigation: September-October

Table 3:

Name and characteristics of the most common submergence

tolerant/salinity tolerant varieties Upland (0-15 cm water) Variety

Salinity

Plant

Duration

Photosensitivity

Grain yield

tolerance

Height

(days)

(d Sm-1)

(cm)

Canning 7

6-8

95-105

130

Insensitive

4.0-4.5

CSR4

6-8

95-100

125

Insensitive

3.5-4.0

CSR 36

4-6

95-100

130

Insensitive

3.0-3.5

CST 7-1

6-8

90-95

135

Insensitive

4.0-4.5

(t ha-1)

(Mohan)

Medium land (15-30 cm water) CSR1

6-8

105-110

130

Sensitive

2.5-3.0

CSR 2 (Dasal)

6-8

105-110

130

Sensitive

2.5-3.5

CSR 3 (Getu)

6-8

105-110

130

Sensitive

2.5-3.0

CSR6

6-8

110-115

120

Sensitive

2.5-3.0

(Damodar)

(Nonasail)

14

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” Sumati

6-8

95-105

145

Sensitive

4.0-4.5

Utpala

6-8

90-100

145

Sensitive

4.0-4.5

Bhutnath

6-8

100-115

130

Sensitive

4.0-4.5

4-6

140-145

150

Sensitive

3.0-3.5

SR 26B

4-6

130-145

165

Sensitive

3.5-4.0

Sabita

4-6

160-170

165

Sensitive

3.5-4.0

Geetanjalle

4-6

160-170

165

Sensitive

4.0-4.5

Amalmana

4-6

160-170

165

Sensitive

5.0-5.5

Patnai 23

4-6

160-170

165

Sensitive

3.0-3.5

Namitadipti

4-6

130-145

155

Sensitive

4.0-4.5

Low land (30-45 cm water) CSR8 (Dadsail)

Deep Water (>45 cm water level) NC 678

4-6

165-170

160

Sensitive

2.0-2.5

Asfal

2-4

150-160

165

Sensitive

2.0-2.5

Tilakkachari

2-4

160-165

165

Sensitive

2.0-2.5

Najani

2-4

130-140

165

Sensitive

2.0-2.5

Gavirsaru

2-4

123-130

165

Sensitive

2.0-2.5

CSRC (D) 7- 4-6

160-175

170

Sensitive

2.5-3.0

160-175

170

Sensitive

2.5-3.0

160-175

170

Sensitive

2.5-3.0

0-4 CSRC (D) 13- 4-6 16-9 CSRC (D) 12- 4-6 8-12

Research results recommended integrated nutrient management practices in rice, which are also applicable in the study area, which includes inorganic fertilizes in combination with organic manures such as farm yard manure (FYM), Azolla, composts and crop residues (Sarangi et al., 2008; Sarangi et al., 2010; Sarangi and Lama, 2013; Sarangi et al., 2015c).

15


Table 4: Existing nutrient management recommendations Upland

High fertility status

Medium

fertility Low fertility status

status N

P2O5

K2O

N

P2O5

K2O

N

P2O5

K2O

Rainfed

30

20

20

40

20

20

60

30

30

Irrigated

30

20

20

40

20

20

60

30

30

Medium


Land

Rainfed

Medium fertility

Low fertility status

status N

P2O5

K2O

N

P2O5

K2O

N

P2O5

K2O

30

20

20

40

20

20

60

30

30

30

0

0

40

0

0

50

20

20

30

20

20

40

20

20

50

25

25

30

0

0

40

0

20

50

20

20

30

20

20

40

20

20

60

30

30

(FallowRiceLathyrus Irrigated (Veg.-RiceChilli) Irrigated (FallowRiceWatermelon) Irrigated (Veg.-RiceVeg.) Irrigated (FallowRice-Cotton)

16

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” Low Land


Medium

fertility Low fertility status

status

Rainfed

N

P2O5

K2O

N

P2O5

K2O

N

P2O5

K2O

30

20

20

40

20

20

40

20

20

30

0

20

40

0

20

60

0

30

30

0

20

40

0

20

60

0

30

30

20

20

40

20

20

60

30

30

(FallowRiceLathyrus Irrigated (G.M.RiceSunflower) Irrigated (G.M.RiceChilli) Irrigated (FallowRiceCotton)

Table 5: Most common inorganic fertilizers used in the Sundarbans region, West Bengal, India S. No

Name

of

the

inorganic Nutrient content (%)

fertilizer

N

P

K

S

1.

Urea

46

-

-

-

2.

Ammonium Sulphate

20.6

-

-

24.2

3.

CAN (SONA)

25

-

-

-

4.

Single super phosphate

-

16

-

-

5.

Muriate of potash

-

-

60

-

6.

Suphala

10

26

26

-

7.

Suphala

12

32

16

17


Table 6: Common organic fertilizers used in the Sundarbans region, West Bengal, India S. No

Name of the organic manure

Nutrient content (%) N

P

K

1.

Farmyard manure

0.5

0.3

0.5

2.

Sesbania aculeate

3.97

0.37

4.80



Average SRR of rice in major districts of target area: In some villages SRR was 30% while in others it was 80%.



Important public and private sector seed companies/suppliers operating in the target areas: INDO-HYBRID SEEDS Co., PAN Seeds Pvt. Ltd., Palli Seeds Pvt. Ltd. Seed supply by BDO office (State government department) etc.



Average price of grain (polished rice and raw paddy): Polished rice: Rs. 20 kg-1 Raw paddy : Rs. 13 kg-1



Average seed price of major rice varieties/type: Kharif: Rs 20 kg-1 Rabi: Rs 40 kg-1



Seed price of STRVs like Swarna-Sub1 or CSR-36: Rs. 40 kg-1



Most suitable seed/variety dissemination strategy in the target area: Field demonstration, minikit supply.



Appropriate business models with private sector partners for technology dissemination in the target area: Formation of SHG (Self-help groups)

18




Most common existing viable technologies being used for livelihood improvement in the target area: Improved rice varieties for Kharif and Boro seasons

 Existing viable technologies being used for livelihood improvement in submergence and salinity prone environments: 1. Rainwater harvesting in farm pond and raising of farm land 2. Paddy-cum-fish cultivation. 3. Improved rice varieties for Kharif and Boro season

19


Short System Characterization

Center name: ICAR-CSSRI RRS, Lucknow, Uttar Pradsh, India 

Key site: ICAR-CSSRI, Regional Research Station, Lucknow, India



Agro Climatic zone: ICAR-CSSRI, Regional Research Station, Lucknow is located in the Indo Gangetic Alluvial Plain zone of India. The key site of the project is ICAR-CSSRI, Research Farm Shivri comprising of about 24 hectares salt affected soil located 20 Km away from Regional Research Station on the Lucknow- Mohanlalganj road. Almost all the soils of the farm are moderately to severely sodic. The degree of sodicity is slightly less severe in the surface horizons of upper and lower terraces than in the middle terrace. Morphologically, the soils are light in colour with typically higher values and medium chromas. Soil texture grades from sandy loam in the surface profile to silty loam and clay loam in the middle B-horizon and again reverts to sandy loam in the lower C-horizon. Strongly developed sub angular and angular soil structure indicated lesser movement of air and water. The clay content in subsurface B-horizon is 1.3–1.6 times higher than the overlying horizon. The soil reaction in the surface and subsurface layers are strongly alkaline (pH 9.4-10.2). A gradual increase in soil pH down to 1 m depth of every pedon is discernable. Electrical conductivity (ECe) ranges from 0.67 – 2.62 dS m-1 in the surface and gradually decreases with depth. CO3-- and HCO3- of Na+ is the dominant salt in the soil solution. High SAR of soil solution is likely to obstruct infiltration of water during reclamation. ESP is less than 20 in the surface layer of reclaimed soil. ESP of other pedons ranges from 47-91 at varying depth along with higher pH. Large quantities of lime nodules (250 to 500 g kg-1) are present in the subsurface layers but the plough layer with very little lime (0.15–0.25 g kg-1) may supply inadequate Ca++ for displacing exchangeable Na+ during later stages of reclamation. Organic matter content ranges from 0.16-0.62% in the surface soil and shows decreasing trend with depth. The site and soil characteristics of sodic soils showed very poor productivity but appropriate technological interventions including

20


amendments and planting techniques significantly increased their potential use for crops, timber and fruit trees.  Coordinates: 26º47’45” North latitude and 80º46’7” East longitude, altitude 120 m AMSL.  Climatic zone: The climate is semi-arid, subtropical and monsoonal. The Monthly weather parameter for the last five years is given in Table 7.

Table 7: Mean monthly weather parameters at CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow Month

No. of rainy days

Total rainfall (mm)

JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

5 13 8 12 4 2

22.2 264.0 85.6 88.8 70.4 12.6

JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

4 3 4 3 3 5 15 15 3 1 1 1

29.4 15.6 57.1 54.0 3.0 48.0 231.8 186.7 26.2 1.2 0.8 15.6

JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH

1 4

14.2 14.6

Avg. Min. Temperature (oC) 2014 26.74 25.12 23.95 22.02 15.37 9.66 7.84 2015 8.64 12.27 16.40 20.82 22.04 26.27 26.63 27.21 21.35 19.53 19.01 9.01 2016 7.68 12.09 16.72

Avg. Max. Avg. Temperature Sunshine (oC) hr. 40.32 33.82 34.49 32.14 32.30 28.19 20.45

3.01 3.91 4.10 3.12 2.47 1.90 1.06

18.20 26.19 30.50 35.00 40.06 39.46 34.16 35.25 34.86 34.25 30.64 24.01

5.86 8.25 8.22 10.01 8.33 6.58 6.59 8.00 8.75 6.97 4.35

22.93 27.91 33.41

5.28 7.88 9.06

21


 Most important soil types: The soils of the farm have been classified under association of fine loamy, mixed, hyperthermic, Natrustalf and haplustepts.  Analytical data for the most important soils are given in Table 8. Table 8: Soil properties of the representative profile of the experimental site Soil depth (cm)

pH

EC

O.C.

CaCO3

Available N Available P

Available K

(d Sm-1)

g kg-1

g kg-1

(kg ha-1)

(kg ha-1)

(kg ha-1)

0-15

10.6

0.89

0.8

14.1

94.00

19.5

388

16-30

10.5

1.57

0.8

12.6

62.72

18.6

388

31-45

10.6

2.02

0.6

23.2

54.60

17.5

321

46-60

10.4

1.36

0.8

23.2

47.04

17.7

404

61-75

10.2

0.64

0.8

37.7

45.10

18.2

290

76-90

10.0

0.78

0.8

89.4

45.04

17.0

278

91-105

9.8

0.26

0.6

116.9

40.60

16.1

199

106-120

9.6

0.45

0.6

124.6

37.63

16.6

169

 Basic socio-economic facts: The target region is salt affected soils of entire U.P. The technologies developed under the project will be disseminated to all the farmers having salt affected soils. Rice – wheat is the main cropping system in salt affected soils in U.P. Out of the total food grain production in the state, rice contributes about 15%. The productivity of rice in the state is only 2.1 t ha-1 as compared to the potential yield of 4.7 t ha-1 (Table 9). The yield gap of 2.6 t ha-1 i.e. 55% between potential and the actual yield of rice in U.P. can only be filled with the development /dissemination of salt tolerant varieties along with proper management practices.

22


Table 9: Potential and actual yield of major crop of Uttar Pradesh, India Crops

Rice Wheat Maize Gram

Potential yield

Actual yield

Gap

(t ha-1)

(t ha-1)

(t ha-1)

4.7 5.7 4.5 2.6

2.1 2.6 1.4 0.9

2.6 3.1 3.1 1.7

% gap

55 54 69 65

Source: Directorate of Agriculture U.P. The cost of reclamation of salt affected soil is about Rs.70625 ha-1 because of higher prices of gypsum and higher quantity of gypsum required. About 50% of the total reclamation cost is on account of gypsum only (Table 10). Table 10: Initial cost of reclamation (Rs. ha-1) of sodic soils Particulars Bunding and leveling Tube well installation Gypsum application Leaching Rice cultivation Wheat cultivation Total

Cost (Rs. ha-1) 3050 10925 21650 8000 14000 13000 70625

Percentage 7.00 25.00 50.00 18.00 12.66 11.75

To enhance the productivity of salt affected soils, various reclamation and management technologies have already been developed but needs further refinements and policy planning for facilitated diffusion among the farmers. 

Area/percentage of the major rice environments: Soil sodicity is one of the major constraints for agricultural production in about 1.36 million ha soil in Uttar Pradesh. CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow has developed various technologies to reclaim these soils. At present, the main site for conducting the experiments under IFAD project is CSSRI, Research Farm Shivri. The climate is semiarid, subtropical and monsoonic receiving an average rainfall of 817 mm. Maximum rainfall is received between 23–40 standard weeks (June to October) amounting to 741mm, which is 91% of total annual rain. The remaining 9% rainfall is 23


received between 41–19 standard weeks (November to May). The average annual evaporation is 1580mm. Evaporation rate, with increasing air temperature and atmospheric water demands gradually increased from 1-22 standard weeks (January to June). During the rainy season between 23–40 standard weeks (mid June to October) evaporation rate gradually decreased following rains which further decreases gradually up to 52 weeks (December), due to onset of low temperature. The period from 23 – 40 weeks (mid June to mid October) is water surplus while between 1-20 weeks and 40-52 weeks are water deficit period due to lower rain and higher evaporation rate. Mean maximum temperature of 390C in month of May and mean minimum temperature of 7.10C in the month of January indicate a seasonal climate. The mean annual air temperature was 24.60C whereas mean annual soil temperature (MAST) was 26.50C. The mean summer soil temperature (MSST) and the mean winter soil temperature (MWST) were 310C and 180C respectively. Thus, the temperature regime is hyperthermic. The moisture regime of soil is mainly ustic.  Main cropping systems: Rice-wheat cropping sequence is predominant in the region. Large number of rice varieties is grown in the area but Indrasan and Mahsuri are the most popular among the farmers of sodic villages. Some of the farmers have started to grow salt tolerant variety of rice (CSR 13, CSR 27 and CSR 36). Similarly, among the large number of varieties of wheat, the most popular were PBW 343, HD 2285 and HD 2329. Some other crops like maize in Kharif and oilseed like mustard in Rabi are also grown in the region. Since the surroundings of the study site is predominantly under mango cultivation in productive lands, therefore, some of the farmers have also put their productive land under mango orchards. There is a trend of mixed cropping also; therefore, about 4% farmers have grown wheat mixed with mustard in Rabi season.  Start and end of the normal rice seasons: Rice is cultivated in Kharif season only which starts from 15th June to November. The crop calendar of the study site and surroundings is given24


Kharif: Rice- Mid June to October Rabi : Wheat- November to April  Prevalent methods of rice cultivation: Transplanting is highly prevalent in salt affected soils in the region. However, direct seeding is also picking up in certain areas in normal soils.  Type of stress: Alkalinity is the major stress in the target environment. There is no problem of flooding and submergence. However, in certain year’s drought problem is also observed in certain parts of the state especially when monsoon is below normal.  Name and characteristics of the most common normal varieties are given in Table 11. Table 11: List of most common varieties grown in the target area

Variety

Type

Plant

Duration Grain

height

(Days)

Photosensitivity Grain

type

yield (t ha-1)

(cm) Indrasan

Improved 80-100

120

Medium Insensitive

5.0-5.5

bold Narendra

Improved 95-100

130-135

359 Narendra

Mahsuri

Insensitive

6.0-6.5

Insensitive

4.5-5.0

Medium Insensitive

4.5-5.0

bold Improved 98-105

125-130

Usar 3 Samba

Long

Long bold

Improved 90-100

135-140

slender

25


 Name and characteristics of the most common submergence tolerant/sodicity tolerant varieties are given in Table 12 Table 12: List of most common salt tolerant varieties grown in the target area Variety



Plant

Duration Salinity

Sodicity

Grain yield

height

tolerance tolerance

(t ha-1)

(cm)

(d Sm-2)

Normal

Sodic

soil

soil

(pH)

CSR 10

85

120

6-11

10.2

5- 6

4–4.5

CSR 23

115

130

9

9.9

6.6–7

4–5

CSR 27

115

120

10

9.7

6.5-7

4–5

CSR 30

155

155

7

9.5

3–3.5

2–2.5

CSR 36

110

135

11

9.8

6.5

4.5–5

CSR 43

96

120

6-9

9.7

6.2

4.5-5

Normal fertilizer recommendations: Recommended dose of N-P-K @ 150-60-40 kg ha-1. 50% of N+ full dose of P and K were applied as basal and the remaining 50% of the nitrogen in two splits at 30 and 60 days after transplanting. Common inorganic and organic fertilizers used are given in Table 13 and 14 respectively.

The recommendation of fertilizer in sodic soils is about 20-25% higher than the normal soil because of heavy N losses through volatilization. These recommendations are for irrigated environment and based on long term nutrient management experiments conducted in sodic soils. Farmers on the other hand apply N-P-K @ 10040-00 kg ha-1 respectively.

26


Table 13: Common inorganic fertilizers used S. No.

Name of the inorganic Nutrient content (%) fertilizer

N

P

K

1.

Urea

46.0

-

-

2.

DAP

18.0

46.0

-

3.

Muriate of potash

60

Table 14: Common organic fertilizers used S. No.

Name of the inorganic Nutrient content (%) fertilizer

1. 

N

Farm yard manure (FYM) 1.5

P

K

0.5

0.5

Amendments/ practices used for soil reclamation: Chemical reclamation of sodic soil is done though Gypsum while biological reclamation through addition of pressmud and paddy straw etc.

 Nutrient concentration in surface water sources are given in Table 15. Table 15: Water quality of tube well water used for irrigation Parameters pH EC (dSm-1) Ca+2 Mg (mel-1) CO--3 (mel-1) HCO-3 (mel-1) Cl- (mel-1) SO--4 (mel-1) Na+ (mel-1) K+ (mel-1) RSC (mel-1)

Composition 8.2 0.6 3.5 1.6 4.7 1.5 0.0 3.2 0.1 2.8

27


 Average price of grain (polished rice and raw paddy): Raw paddy : Rs. 1180 q-1 Polished rice: Rs. 30-35 kg-1  Average seed price of major rice varieties/ type: Coarse: Rs. 20 kg-1 Fine

: Rs. 40 kg-1

 Seed price of STRVs like Swarna-Sub1 or CSR-36: Swarna-Sub1:Rs. 30 kg-1 CSR 36

:Rs. 25 kg-1

 Suitable seed/variety dissemination strategy: Farmer to farmer seed dissemination mechanism is highly prominent in the region.  Common existing viable technologies being used for livelihood improvement: 1. Low cost sodic soil reclamation technology 2. Integrated farming system 3. Resource conservation 4. Nutrient management 5. Nursery Management

28


Chapter 4 Details of experiments conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town 4.1 Experiment 1: Increasing nitrogen use efficiency and economy in wet season lowland rice in coastal areas: Experiment was conducted at Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) – Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI), Regional Research Station, Canning Town, West Bengal, India during wet seasons (June – December) of 2014 and 2015 to find out the effectiveness of neem coated urea in lowland rainfed rice along with different timing and methods of application.The soil of the experimental station is heavy textured with 40-43% clay, 10% sand and 47-50% silt. The pH of the top soil varied from 5.8 to 7.1, with an average bulk density of 1.49 gcm-3 and organic carbon concentration of 0.48%. The experimental area had the history of rice-rice cropping for the last three years preceding the trials. There were ten treatments [T1: 50% N basal with Prilled Urea (PU) +50 % N foliar, T2: 50% N basal with Neem Coated Urea (NCU) + 50 % N foliar, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) with PU + 50% N foliar, T4: 50% N 1 WAT with NCU + 50% N foliar, T5: 50% N basal with PU + 25% N at tillering with PU + 25 % N foliar, T6: 50% N basal with NCU + 25% N at tillering with NCU + 25% N foliar, T7: 50% N 1 WAT with PU + 25% N at tillering with PU + 25% N foliar, T8: 50% N 1 WAT NCU + 25% N at tillering with NCU + 25% N foliar, T9: Existing recommendation with PU (50% basal, 25% at tillering and 25% at Pl, T10: Recommendation with NCU (50% basal, 25% at tillering and 25% at Pl] and three replications evaluated in a randomized block design. Foliar spray was done with 1% urea solution as per the treatment protocol. In all the treatments, common dose of chemical fertilizer @ 50-20-10 kg N-P2O5-K2O and 5 t FYMper hectare, rice variety Amal-Mana (improved variety suitable for rainfed lowlands in the coastal areas) and uniform weed management practices were

29


used. Nursery was sown in 15th of June and transplanting was done 21st July in each year, the crop flowered during last week of October and harvested in November. The best treatment of this study was evaluated in comparison to farmer’s practice in 8 on-farm locations (Table 1) in the Sundarbans region of West Bengal, covering three villages and two administrative blocks in the district of South 24 Parganas. Neem coated urea application was first introduced in these area along with improved variety Amal-Mana and Swarna-Sub1. Amal-Mana is tall, erect, moderately resistant to lodging; with long slender grains and having long duration (seed to seed maturity 160 days) to suit the low-lying waterlogged lands subjected to stagnant floodingin this region. Swarna-Sub1 is medium duration (seed to seed maturity 140 days) and suitable for lands subjected to flash flooding up to two weeks due to heavy rain and drainage congestion, which is frequently observed in the experimental sites. Out of these two categories of varieties: stress tolerant rice varieties (STRV) and farmer’s rice varieties (FRV), seeds of STRV produced with seed production standards were supplied to the farmers, whereas famers used their farm-grown seeds for FRV, and the type of FRV varied from farmer to farmer (Table 16). The varieties were combined with two fertilizer sources (NCU and PU) and evaluated at8 locations taken as replications in randomized block design. Data over 8 locations were analysed for significant variation, and mean are presented. Table 16: Details of the on-farm trials conducted during wet season (Kharif) 2015 in the Sundarbans region (West Bengal, India)for evaluation of neem coated urea in lowland rainfed rice Farmer*

F1

Address

Vill. Modgoran,

Latitude

Longitude

Improved

Farmer’s

Plot size

variety

variety

(m2)#

22010ʹ14ʺ N

88044ʹ26ʺ E

Amal-Mana

Patnai 23

320

Block- Basanti F2

_do_

22010ʹ21ʺ N

88044ʹ23ʺ E

Amal-Mana

Varshadhan

400

F3

_do_

22010ʹ13ʺ N

88044ʹ27ʺ E

Amal-Mana

Sabita

400

30

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” F4

Vill. Dakshin

22010ʹ27ʺ N

88044ʹ11ʺ E

Amal-Mana

CR 1001

420

Mokamberia, BlockBasanti F5

_do_

22010ʹ04ʺ N

88044ʹ30ʺ E

Amal-Mana

Dudheswar

400

F6

_do_

22010ʹ08ʺ N

88044ʹ22ʺ E

Amal-Mana

Dudheswar

600

F7

_do_

22010ʹ05ʺ N

88044ʹ21ʺ E

Swarna-Sub 1

Gobinda Bhog

400

F8

Vill. Korakati, Block-

22017ʹ31ʺ N

88039ʹ26ʺ E

Amal-Mana

Dudheswar

640

Canning II

*F1:Mr. Binod Ghosh, F2: Mr. Arabinda Haldar, F3: Mr. Mukunda Haldar, F4: Mr. Nirmal Ghosh, F5: Mr. Nishikanta Maity, F6: Mr. Murari Haldar, F7: Mr. Haripada Ghosh, F8: Mr. Bhaskar Naskar, # Plot size of each replication

The experimental site is located in tropical monsoon climate with annual means of 1802 mm rainfall, 13 MJ m-2 day-1 solar radiation, and 26.60C temperature. The weather data (rainfall, maximum and minimum temperatures) during the experimental period for both the years are given in Fig. 3 (a&b). Rainfall received from June to November was 1045.7 and 1676.5 mm during 2014 and 2015 respectively. Higher rainfall in 2015 was mainly due to unusually high rainfall in the month of July 2015 (834.4 mm), which is significantly higher compared to 49 years average rainfall for the month of July (372 mm). Maximum temperature varied from 29 to 340C and minimum temperature from 18 to 270C. Both maximum and minimum temperatures declined towards end of the season.

31


(a)

900 800 2014

Rainfall (mm)

700

2015

600 500 400 300 200 100 0 June

July

August

September

October

November

Months

(b)

40

Temperature (0C)

35

Maximum

30 25

Minimum

20 2014

15

2015

2014

2015

10 5 0 June

July

August

September October

November

Months

Fig. 3. (a) Rainfall and (b) air temperature recorded at Canning Town during wet seasons of 2014 and 2015

Field and laboratory observations The in-vivo assay of Nitrate Reductase activity (µM NO2- produced g-1 fresh wt. hr-1) in the rice leaf was done according to the procedure given by Jowarski (1971). Fresh leaves of rice collected at booting and flowering stages, and 250 mg of fresh chopped leaf samples were suspended in screw cap vials having 4.5 ml medium containing 2 32


ml of 0.2 M phosphate buffer (pH 7.5), 0.5 ml of 0.02 M KNO3 and 2 ml of 5 % propanol. The vials were capped and kept in dark at 300C for 2 hours. Nitrate released into the medium was determined by treating 0.4 ml aliquot with 0.3 ml each of sulphanilamide and N-1 naphthyl ethylene diamine hydrochloride (NEDH). After 20 minutes, the solution was diluted with distilled water to make the final volume up to 5 ml, and the absorbance was measured at 540 nm using reagent blank. Standard curve was prepared by using graded concentrations of sodium nitrate (NaNO2) solution. Amount of nitrite produced by the activity of nitrate reductase in the assay medium was calculated and expressed in µg nitrite produced g-1 fresh weight. The Trimble® GreenSeeker® handheld crop-sensing system was used to measure normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values of the rice crop canopy under different treatments at weekly interval, beginning from 7 weeks after sowing (WAS) to 21 WAS. The GreenSeeker system uses optical sensors to measure and quantify the variability of the crop.The sensor was held ata constant height of 75 -90 cm above the crop canopy, and then the trigger was pulled and walked over the one-third of the plot to get an average reading when the trigger wasreleased. Hence, three observations were recorded from each plot and mean of three was used for analysis. Net photosynthesis rate (Pn) was measured (mol m-2 s-1)with a CI-340 Ultra-Light Portable Photosynthesis System (CID BioScience Inc., 4901 NW Camas Meadows Drive, Camas, WA 98607, USA) and calculated using the equation: Pn = -W  (CoCi), where W = Mass flow rate per unit leaf area (mol m-2 s-1) and Co (Ci) = outlet (inlet) CO2 concentrations(mol mol-1). Pn of third healthy leaf from the tip was measured at 1100 – 1200 hours on a clear sunny day with photosynthetically active radiation of 900–950 mol m-2s-1. Mean of ten measurements taken from each plot was used for analysis. Plant height (cm) was measured from the stem-base to the tip of the longest leaf or panicle, whatever longer. Twelve hills from each plot were randomly sampled for determining plant height, panicles per hill and panicle length. From each plot (size 33


31.96 m2), grain and straw were harvested, sun dried and weighed, and grain weight was adjusted to a moisture content of 0.14g H2Og-1 fresh weight. Panicles were handthreshed and grains per panicle were counted. After thoroughly sun-drying the grains, 1000-grain weight was recorded for each treatment. Grain and straw samples from each treatment were collected, oven-dried at 700C for 3-5 days until constant weight was recorded, ground to pass through a 0.5 mm sieve and then used for tissue N analysis following micro-Kjeldahl method (Yoshida et al., 1976). Total N uptake by aboveground parts (grain+straw) at harvest was calculated by summing the multiplication ofgrain and straw tissue N concentration with respective yields. Total (grain+straw) N uptake (kg ha-1) = [Grain N content (%) × Grain yield (kg ha-1)] + [(Straw N content (%) × Straw yield(kg ha-1)] / 100 Nitrogen-use efficiency (NUE) has been defined as grain yield per unit of N available in the soil. To measure the NUE, different parameters such as agronomic efficiency (AEN), recovery efficiency (REN), internal (=physiological) efficiency and partial factor productivity (PFPN) of different N management practices was calculated following standard formulae (Cassman et al., 2002; Dobermann and Fairhurst, 2000; Ladha et al., 2005). Agronomic efficiency (AEN; kg grain kg-1 N applied) = [Grain yield (kg ha-1) in treatment plot – Grain yield (kg ha-1) in plot with existing practice of fertilizer N application]/[Quantity of fertilizer N (kg ha-1) applied] Recovery efficiency (REN; %) = [Total N uptake (kg ha-1) in treatment plot – Total N uptake (kg ha-1)in plot with existing practice of fertilizer N application] / [Quantity of fertilizer N (kg ha-1) applied] 34


Internal (=physiological) efficiency (IEN; kg grain kg-1 N uptake) = Grain yield (kg ha1

) / Total aboveground N uptake (kg ha-1)

PFPN(kg grain kg-1 N applied) = GY+N/FN WhereGY+Nis the grain yield (kg ha-1) andFN is the amount of fertilizer N applied (kg ha-1)

Data analysis Treatment means were compared using the least significant difference (LSD) test at p≤ 0.05 level of significance (Gomez and Gomez, 1984). Economic evaluation was done based on total variable cost, gross return, gross margin, and benefit/cost ratio (BCR). Total variable cost included the costs of inputs (seed, fertilizer and pesticides); labor (for land preparation, nursery, seedling uprooting, transplanting, fertilizer and pesticide application, harvesting, bundling, hauling and threshing), and costs of hiring a power tiller for land preparation. Gross returns were calculated by multiplying the amount of produce (grain and straw) by its corresponding price at harvest. The gross margin was computed by subtracting total variable costs from gross returns, and BCR was calculated by dividing gross returns by total variable costs. The economic analyses were conducted using prevailing market prices of inputs, labor and produce during 2014-2015 in Indian Rupees (INR), and then converted to US$ using the conversion rate of 1$ =60 INR.

4.2 Experiment 2: Validation of management options for drum-seeding of dry season rice (boro) in coastal areas: The objective of the experiment was to standardise management practices for drum seeded rice during dry season. The hypothesis for this experiment was improved boro

35


rice variety sown with a drum seeder with seed treatment will increase yield. The technical programme is given below.

Experimental design: Split-split Treatments: Main-plot (Variety): WGL 20471, Annada, Canning 7 Sub-plot (Seed treatment): Without seed treatment, with seed treatment* Sub-sub-plot (Seed fill in drum): 2/3rd filled, fully filled Replication: 4 *Seed treatment: Seeds were treated with seed treating chemicals (Amisan 0.5% + Streptocyclin 0.1%).

Direct wet seeding of rice using a drum seeder is effective and could enhance yield and net returns for farmers in coastal areas. The eight-row drum seeder is 1.8 m wide, the diameter and length of each drum are 0.18 m and 0.25 m, respectively. Distance between rows 0.20 m. Each drum has a capacity of 2 kg of pre-germinated seeds, however, the drums should not be filled completely and about 1/3rd of each drum 36


should be kept empty for easy flow of seeds through the perforated holes. The seeds are soaked in water for a day and then incubated for another 24 hours for sprouting. To prevent sprouts intermingling with each other, sprout length should not be more than 7-8 mm. The sprouted seeds are air-dried in the shade for about 10-15 minutes before sowing to facilitate proper dropping of seeds. The land is puddled as usual, leveled carefully and excess water is drained out. Drum seeder is drawn manually over the puddle soil with triangle marks on the drums pointed towards the pulling direction. The field is not irrigated for 2-3 days after sowing to allow roots to anchor and then the depth of water is increased gradually as the seedlings grow.

4.3 Experiment 3: Effect of moisture conservation, boro rice seeding date and variety on irrigation water productivity: On-going The source of water for dry season rice (boro) in eastern India is mainly pumping of groundwater through shallow tube wells in addition to conserved surface water in farm pond, which is particularly used for growing of vegetables. Indiscriminate pumping of groundwater lowers the water table and cause intrusion of brackish water into groundwater aquifers which result in salinization. Therefore, judicious use of irrigation water is essential to sustain boro rice production and to optimize the boro rice cultivated area. To reduce the irrigation water requirement of boro rice effective use of residual soil moisture after the kharif crop, optimum time of seeding and transplanting, and salt tolerant rice varieties are needed. Our hypothesis is early seeding of boro rice crop will utilize the residual soil moisture, therefore need less irrigation water. Early sown crop also avoids the higher temperature, evaporation, recession of groundwater table and salinity in the later part of growing season. Moisture conservation measures like use of hydrogel may reduce the water requirement for rice. Keeping these facts in view an experiment was conducted during boro season of 2015-16, the technical programme of which is given below.

37


Treatments: Main plot (Moisture conservation): Control, Hydrogel Sub-plot (Seeding date): 11 Nov 2015, 26 Nov 2015, 11 Dec 2015 & 26 Dec 2015 Sub-sub plot (Variety): WGL 20471, Annada, DRR 39, Canning 7 Replication: 3 Design: Split-split plot

38


Chapter 5 Details of experiments conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow 5.1 Experiment 1: Effect of Short duration Salt Tolerant variety of Rice ‘CSR 43” on Cropping intensity under Different Sodic Environments Objectives: 1.

To monitor the yield optimizing level of sodicity for short duration variety.

2.

Increasing cropping intensity of salt affected soils with the introduction of short duration variety CSR 43.

3.

To find out the economically viable rice based cropping system with short duration salt tolerant variety for reclaimed salt affected soils.

Technical programme: A. SODICITY LEVELS S1: pH2 8.8 S2: pH2 9.0 S3: pH2 9.2 S4: pH2 9.4 B. CROPPING SYSTEMs First Year (2014-15) Rice- Wheat Rice- Toria-Wheat Rice- Spinach - Wheat 39


Second Year (2015-16) Rice- Wheat Rice- Cabbage -Wheat Rice- Beetroot-Wheat VARIETIES

: Rice: CSR 43, Wheat: KRL 210 & DWL17, Cabbage: Golden

Acre, Spinach: HS 23, Beetroot: Datroit Dark Red REPLICATION

: 4

PLOT SIZE

: 105 m2

DESIGN

: SPLIT PLOT

40


Details of experiments conducted: To monitor yield optimizing level of sodicity and identify a highly economical and sustainable cropping system that can be fitted with short duration salt tolerant variety ‘CSR 43’ experiments were conducted with four sodicity levels (pH 8.8, 9.0, 9.2 and 9.4). Five rice based crop rotations viz. Rice-Toria-wheat, Rice-Spinach-Wheat (1st year), Rice- cabbage-wheat, Rice-Beet root-wheat (2nd year) were compared with traditional rice-wheat cropping system under different sodicity levels. The experiments

were conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, Research Farm Shivri during Kharif

2014-15 and 2015-16. Thirty days old seedlings of short duration variety ‘CSR 43’ was transplanted on 1st and 2nd July during 2014-15 and 2015-16 respectively. The agro-morphological characteristics of CSR 43 are given in Table 17. Table 17: Agro-morphological and grain quality features of CSR43 Feature/value 96

Character Plant height (cm)

Vigorous

Seedling vigour

Lodging tolerant due to short stature

Lodging resistance

Medium

Plant type

Green

Leaf sheath colour

Moderate (9-10 effective tillers)

Tillering ability

21-25

Panicle length (cm)

Easy

Threshability

110

Maturity in days

82-100

No of grains/ panicle

26

1000 grain weight (g)

Long slender

Kernel shape

7.1

Length (mm)

2.0

Breadth (mm)

3.43

L/B ratio

Translucent

Kernel translucent

82

Hulling (%) 41


69

Milling (%)

59

Head Rice Recovery (%)

Good

Cooking quality

Rice crop in all the treatments were harvested on 29th September and 1st October respectively with a total duration (nursery sowing to harvest) of 119 and 121 days. The cropping schedule of all the crop rotations is given in Table 18. In rice–wheat cropping system, wheat (KRL 210) was sown on 15th and 24th November and harvested on 15th and 24th April in 2014 and 2015 respectively. As per treatment toria ( PT 9), spinach (HS 23), cabbage(Green flash ) and beetroot (Datroit Dark Red) and Wheat (DBW 17) were sown after harvesting of rice in all four cropping systems however, in rice-wheat cropping system, wheat variety KRL 210 was sown. Recommended doses of fertilizers were applied uniformly in all the crops.

Table 18: Cropping schedule of different cropping systems with CSR 43 IIIrd crop

IInd crop

Ist crop

Cropping systems

DOH

DOS

DOH

DOS

DOH

DOS

-

-

15.04.2015

15.11.2014

29.09.2014

01.07.2014

Ricewheat

20.04.2015

10.12.2014

03.12.2014

09.10.2014

29.09.2014

01.07.2014

Ricespinachwheat

25.04.2015

05.01.2015

25.12.2014

01.10.2014

29.09.2014

01.07.2014

Rice-toriawheat

2015-16

42


25.04.2015

10.12.2015

08.12.2015

10.10.2015

01.10.2015

02.07.2015

Ricebeetrootwheat

25.04.2015

20.12.2015

13.12.2015

05.10.2015

01.10.2015

02.07.2015

Ricecabbagewheat

-

-

25.04.2015

24.11.2015

01.10.2015

02.07.2015

Ricewheat

Days to maturity: Rice 117-120d, Spinach 55d, Toria 75d, Beetroot 70d, Cabbage 59d

Rice var. CSR 43

43


Chapter 6 Results of experiments conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town Experiment 1: Increasing nitrogen use efficiency and economy in wet season lowland rice in coastal areas: On-station experiment: Growth parameter, yield attributes and crop grain and straw yield Plant height did not vary with different N sources, method and time of application of nitrogenous fertilizers. Among yield attributes, there was a significant difference in number of spikelets per panicle and spikelets fertility per cent. Highest spikelet fertility (90.2%) in Amal-Mana was observed when 50% NCU was applied at 1 WAT, 25% at tillering stage and remaining 25% as the foliar spray with prilled urea at reproductive stage. However, this treatment was also at par with NCU applied to soil at three splits (50% basal, 25% at AT and remaining 25% at PI). Simple replacement of NCU over PU produced significantly higher spikelet fertility per panicle. This was lowest (81%) when PU was used as N source and 50% of which applied to soil and 50% applied as the foliar spray, and it was also at par with all other treatment where 50% of the dose was used as the foliar spray. Spikelets per panicle were also highest (139 and 126) in two treatments for NCU with 75% soil + 25% foliar, and 100% soil, respectively. By replacing the N source from PU to NCU and applying 50% at 1 WAT, 25% at AT and remaining 25% to foliage, there was increase of about 15 spikelets per panicle as compared to the full dose applied to soil in three splits (50% basal, 25% AT and 25% at PI). The effective panicles per hill and grain weight did not vary with different treatments (Table 19).

44


Table 19: Growth, yield attributes and yield of Amal-Mana as influenced by N fertilizer source, method and application time in on-station experiment conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS Caning Town, West Bengal, India (Mean data of 2014 and 2015). Treatments

Plant

Panicles Spikelet

Spikelet

1000-

Grain

Straw

height

no. hill- panicle-1

fertility

grain

yield

yield

-1

(tha )

(tha-1)

26.7 (g)

3.09

7.56

83.2

33.1

3.43

8.15

117

83.3

31.4

3.42

6.78

8

118

83.1

31.3

3.51

7.42

156.3

8

115

85.0

31.8

3.46

6.84

T6

150.0

8

115

85.2

27.1

3.64

7.13

T7

151.2

8

115

85.1

30.6

3.66

6.85

T8

156.2

9

139

90.2

32.3

4.57

8.81

T9

159.1

8

111

85.0

29.3

3.31

7.29

T10

163.2

8

126

87.5

31.5

4.07

8.24

LSD0.05

nsa

ns

14.7

2.3

ns

0.39

ns

(cm)

1

T1

155.4

8

T2

158.6

T3

(%)

wt.

112

81.0

8

116

154.0

7

T4

156.0

T5

T1: 50% basal N through prilled urea (PU) + 50% N through 6 foliar applications with PU (one at active tillering (AT), four during panicle primordial initiation to booting and one at flowering stage), T2: 50% basal N through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) through PU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T4: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as T1, T5: 50% basal N through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through 3 foliar applications (one each at panicle initiation (PI), booting and flowering), T6: 50% basal N through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T7: 50% N at 1 WAT through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T8: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as T5, T9: Recommended dose of N in coastal lowland through PU (50% basal, 25% at AT and 25% at PI), T10: Recommended dose of N through NCU (Splitting as in T9); a ns, not significant.

45


The grain yield was significantly higher when N source as NCU was applied 75% to soil (50% at 1 WAT, 25% at AT) and remaining 25% as the foliar spray at reproductive stage. However, straw yield was not affected due to different N source, methods and time of application. NDVI values, photosynthetic rate, and Nitrate Reductase activity NDVI values recorded at different stages of crop growth (Fig. 4) revealed that up to6 WAT there was no variation among treatments, however, at later stages values were significantly higher for treatment T8 and T10 (NCU application).Similarly, the net photosynthesis rates (Pn) were also significantly higher in these treatments (> 15 mol m-2 s-1), as compared to others (Fig. 5). NR activity was higher at flowering stage than the booting period. There was a significant variation among treatments with respect to NR activity. It was 11.6 µg NO2- produced hr-1 g-1 fresh wt. in the case of NCU application, when 50% of the total N applied 1 WAT, 25% at ATrest 25% as the foliar spray at reproductive stage (Fig. 6). T1

T2

T3

T4

T5

T6

T7

T8

T9

T10

0.8

NDVI

0.6

0.4

0.2 2

3

4

5

6

7 8 9 10 11 12 Weeks after transplanting (WAT)

13

14

15

16

Fig. 4.Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values of Amal-Mana canopy under different treatments of N fertilizer source, method and time of application at weekly interval beginning from 7 weeks after sowing (WAS) to 21 WAS, in onstation experiment at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS Canning Town, West Bengal, India. 46


Vertical line represent corresponding SD values. T1: 50% basal N through prilled urea (PU) + 50% N through 6 foliar applications with PU (one at active tillering (AT), four during panicle primordial initiation to booting and one at flowering stage), T2: 50% basal N through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) through PU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T4: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as T1, T5: 50% basal N through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through 3 foliar applications (one each at panicle initiation (PI), booting and flowering), T6: 50% basal N through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T7: 50% N at 1 WAT through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T8: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as T5, T9: Recommended dose of N in coastal lowland through PU (50% basal, 25% at AT and 25% at PI), T10: Recommended dose of N through NCU (Splitting as in T9).

22

T1

T2

T3

T4

T5

T6

T7

T8

T9

T10

Pn (µ mol m-2 s-1)

20 18 16 14 12 10 2

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

Weeks after transplanting (WAT)

Fig. 5.Net photosynthesis rate (Pn; mol m-2 s-1) measured at vegetativestage (7 weeks after sowing; WAS) and reproductive stage (11 – 19 WAS) underdifferent treatments of N fertilizer source, method and time of applicationin on-station experiment at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS Canning Town, West Bengal, India. Vertical line represent corresponding SD values.

47

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” T1: 50% basal N through prilled urea (PU) + 50% N through 6 foliar applications with PU (one at active tillering (AT), four during panicle primordial initiation to booting and one at flowering stage), T2: 50% basal N through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) through PU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T4: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as T1, T5: 50% basal N through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through 3 foliar applications (one each at panicle initiation (PI), booting and flowering), T6: 50% basal N through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T7: 50% N at 1 WAT through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T8: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as T5, T9: Recommended dose of N in coastal lowland through PU (50% basal, 25% at AT and 25% at PI), T10: Recommended dose of N through NCU (Splitting as in T9).

NR activity (µg NO2- produced hr-1 g-1 fresh wt.)

15

Booting

Flowering

12

9

6

3

0 T1

T2

T3

T4

T5 T6 Treatments

T7

T8

T9

T10

Fig. 6. Nitrate Reductase (NR) activity (µg NO2- produced hr-1 g-1 fresh wt.) in the 3rdrice leaf at booting and flowering stages underdifferent treatments of N fertilizer source, method and time of applicationin on-station experiment at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS Canning Town, West Bengal, India. Vertical line represent corresponding SD values. T1: 50% basal N through prilled urea (PU) + 50% N through 6 foliar applications with PU (one at active tillering (AT), four during panicle primordial initiation to booting and one at flowering stage), T2: 50% basal N through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) through PU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T4: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as T1, T5: 50% basal N through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through 3 foliar applications (one each at panicle initiation (PI), booting and flowering), T6: 50% basal N 48

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T7: 50% N at 1 WAT through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T8: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as T5, T9: Recommended dose of N in coastal lowland through PU (50% basal, 25% at AT and 25% at PI), T10: Recommended dose of N through NCU (Splitting as in T9).

Nitrogen content in grain and straw, uptake and use efficiencies N content in grain and straw varied from 1.01 – 1.11% and 0.32 – 0.41%, respectively (Table 20). Variation in N content of grain and straw was statistically non-significant in all the treatments. Highest grain N uptake (50.95 kg ha-1) was recorded in the treatment with 75% N applied as NCU (50% at 1 WAT, 25% at AT) and remaining N as the foliar spray with prilled urea. Simply replacing the source of N by NCU in the existing fertilizer recommendation also resulted in higher N uptake than other treatments, except the one where the basal application is deferred by one week and 25% of the dose applied as foliar.Nitrogenuse efficiencies were computed in terms of agronomic efficiency (AEN), apparent recovery efficiency (REN), internal efficiency (IEN) and partial factor productivity (PFPN). Treatments with 100% PU as N source, and 50% applied as the foliar spray, caused lowest AEN as well as REN, even recorded negative values, due to a decrease in yield over the existing practice. The AEN and REN were highest when at least 75% of the dose was applied to soil as NCU, with 50% application at 1 WAT and 25% at AT and rest N as foliar applied PU. Replacing the source of N by NCU produced 15 kg more grain per kg of applied N due to 18 and 27% increase in PFPNand REN, respectively. The IENdid not vary in different treatments.The advantage of NCU over PU application was observed in terms of PFPN(Table 3). Irrespective of methods and time of application, PFPN for PU and NCU were 68 and 76 kg grain kg-1 applied N, respectively. Lowest PFPN was observed (61.8 kg grain kg-1 applied N), when N was applied as PU with 50% basal and remaining50% by the foliar spray. This index was highest (91.4 kg grain kg-1 applied N), when NCU was used with 50% of the dose applied 1 WAT, 25% applied 49


to soil at ATand rest 25% applied to foliage at reproductive stage. PFPN exhibited about 18% increase when the source of N changed from PU to NCU (Table 3). Table 20: N content, uptake and use efficiencies of Amal-Mana as influenced by N fertilizer source, method and application time inon-station experiment conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS Caning Town, West Bengal, India (Mean data of 2014 and 2015). Treatments

a

Grain

Straw

Grain N

Straw N

AEN

N (%)

N (%)

uptake

uptake (kg

(kg grain

-1

(kg ha )

-1

ha )

REN

b

(%)

IEN

c

PFPN

d

(kg grain

(kg grain

kg-1 N

kg-1 N

kg-1 N

applied

uptake)

applied

T1

1.03

0.33

31.89

24.57

-4.40

-12.56 54.93

61.80

T2

1.04

0.32

35.44

25.99

2.33

-2.64

56.06

68.53

T3

1.01

0.34

34.54

23.18

2.23

-10.04 59.57

68.43

T4

1.08

0.33

37.81

24.54

3.93

-0.78

56.34

70.13

T5

1.04

0.41

36.02

27.99

2.97

2.53

54.14

69.17

T6

1.12

0.41

40.86

29.05

6.63

14.34

52.27

72.83

T7

1.05

0.41

38.35

27.68

7.03

6.57

55.44

73.23

T8

1.11

0.39

50.95

34.50

25.23

45.41

53.77

91.43

T9

1.08

0.37

35.80

26.94

0.00

0.00

53.42

66.20

T10

1.07

0.40

43.39

32.75

15.13

26.80

53.81

78.00

LSD0.05

nse

ns

5.31

ns

7.74

24.95

ns

6.94

T1: 50% basal N through prilled urea (PU) + 50% N through 6 foliar applications with PU (one at activetillering (AT), four during panicle primordial initiation to booting and one at flowering stage), T2: 50% basal N through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) through PU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T4: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as T1, T5: 50% basal N through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through 3 foliar applications (one each at panicle initiation (PI), booting and flowering), T6: 50% basal N through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T7: 50% N at 1 WAT through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T8: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as T5, T9: Recommended dose of N in coastal lowland through PU (50% basal, 25% at AT and 25% at PI), T10: Recommended dose of N through NCU (Splitting as in T9); a AEN, Agronomic efficiency;bREN, Recovery efficiency;cIEN, Internal efficiency;dPFPN, Partial factor productivity; e ns, not significant. 50


Economics of PU and NCU The cost of cultivation was less in the use of NCU, mainly due to less infestation of pests. Gross return, net return, and BCR were higher with the use of coated urea with neem, however, the economics didnot varywith the method of application. With NCU applied 75% to soil and 25% to foliage, the net return was US$ 437 ha-1, which was at par (US$ 375 ha-1) with the application of NCU 100% to soil (50% basal, 25% at ATand 25% at PI stage). The BCR for these two treatments were 1.7 and 1.6, respectively, and for other treatments, it ranged from1.3 – 1.4 (Table 21). Table 21: Economic analyses of Amal-Mana under different N fertilizer source, method and application time in on-station experiment conducted at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS Caning Town, West Bengal, India (Mean data of 2014 and 2015). Treatments

Cost of cultivation Gross

return Net

return BCRa

(US$ha-1)

(US$ha-1)

(US$ha-1)

T1

623

822

199

1.3

T2

617

836

219

1.4

T3

623

773

150

1.2

T4

619

801

182

1.3

T5

622

786

165

1.3

T6

614

839

224

1.4

T7

621

797

175

1.3

T8

616

1052

437

1.7

T9

619

841

223

1.4

T10

609

983

375

1.6

LSD0.05

5

137

137

0.2

T1: 50% basal N through prilled urea (PU) + 50% N through 6 foliar applications with PU (one at active tillering (AT), four during panicle primordial initiation to booting and one at flowering stage), T2: 50% basal N through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T3: 50% N one week after transplanting (1 WAT) through PU + 50% N through foliar application as in T1, T4: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + 50% N through foliar application as T1, T5: 50% basal N through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through 3 foliar applications (one each at panicle initiation (PI), booting and flowering), T6: 51

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” 50% basal N through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T7: 50% N at 1 WAT through PU + top dressing of 25% N through PU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as in T5, T8: 50% N at 1 WAT through NCU + top dressing of 25% N through NCU at AT + 25% N through foliar application as T5, T9: Recommended dose of N in coastal lowland through PU (50% basal, 25% at AT and 25% at PI), T10: Recommended dose of N through NCU (Splitting as in T9); a

BCR, Benefit/cost ratio.

Table 22: Growth and yield contributing characters of rainfed lowland rice varieties as influenced by N fertilizer source and time of application in on-farm trials conducted at Sundarbans region, West Bengal, India during wet season of 2015. Treatments

Panicles no. hill-1

Plant height (cm)

Grains no. panicle-1

1000-grain weight (g)

FRVa+PUb

146.3

8

99

26.7

FRV+NCUc

146.9

8

105

26.5

STRVd+PU

153.5

9

113

30.0

STRV+NCU 154.6

9

122

30.0

LSD0.05

0.6

5.6

1.0

a

3.2

FRV: Farmer’s rice variety (Patnai 23, Varshadhan, Sabita, CR 1001, Dudheswar and

GobindaBhog); b

PU: Prilled Urea;

c

NCU: Neem coated urea;

d

STRV: Stress-tolerant rice variety (Amal-Mana and Swarna-Sub1).

On-farm experiment Plant height, panicle number, and grain weight were higher in STRVs compared to the FRVs, however, the source of N fertilizer did not have a significant effect on these yield attributes. STRV were about 8 cm taller than the FRV. NCU influenced higher grain number per panicle by 6 and 8% in FRVs and STRV, respectively (Table 22). NCU significantly produced higher grain yield over PU, irrespective of the varieties, but did not show any effect on straw yields (Fig. 7). Combining of STRVs with 52


improved N management involving NCU resulted in significantly higher grain yield as compared to the use of same varieties with PU, and/or FRVs with either PU or NCU. Correlation and regression analysis (Fig. 8) of mean field water depth (mfwd) with the yield of STRVs and FRVs showed significant negative relation (r= -0.72*, R2= -0.52*) between FRVs and conventional N management with mfwd. Whereas, STRVs and improved N management (50% basal application with NCU at 1 WAT) become independent of mfwd (r=0.51, R2=0.26). There was 13-15% yield increase due to the application of NCU over PU, depending on the varietal response. Since the prevailing market prices of PU and NCU are almost the same (about US$ 147 - 150 t1

) and the dose of application of N is same (50 kg ha-1) in all the treatments, the

amount of increase in grain yield due to NCU application amounts to additional benefit to the farmer.

Prilled urea

Neem coated urea

Grain yield (t ha-1)

5 4

b

c

a

b

3 2 1 0 FRV

STRV

53


Prilled urea

a

b

b

7

Neem coated urea

a

Straw Yield (t ha-1)

6 5 4 3 2 1 0 FRV

STRV

Fig. 7. Mean grain and straw yields of rice varieties as influenced by N fertilizer source and time of application in on-farm experimentatSundarbansregion, West Bengal, India during 2015 wet season. FRV represents farmers’ varieties (Patnai 23, Varshadhan, Sabita, CR 1001, Dudheswar and GobindaBhog); STRV represents Stress tolerant rice variety (Amal-Mana and Swarna-Sub1); N sources (PU, prilleduera;NCU, Neem coated urea). Vertical bars show standard errors and different letters (a,b, c) indicate significant differences among treatments (P 1800 mm per annum) are common.Management of nitrogen in lowland rice fields is challenging and requirean integrated fertilizer management approach starting from nursery to the main field to harness maximum efficiency of the applied N fertilizer.Using slow release N fertilizer sources such as NCUas well as efficient application methods involving foliar application can fetch maximum use out of applied N in water logged coastalareas.Our studies over two consecutive wet season on-station experiments and one on-farm experiment replicated in 8 locations using STRVs Amal-Mana and Swarna-Sub1 revealed that at least 10-15% increase in rainfed lowland rice yields could be achieved through better nitrogen management involving slow release coated urea and application methods best suited to soil conditions. Nitrogen application should be avoided as basal before transplanting in the flood- prone rainfed lowlands and the dose should be optimum as per the varietal requirement.The dose should be split into three with 50% applied one week after transplanting depending on the rainfall situation, 25% applied at tillering stage and rest 25% may be applied as foliar or through soil during the reproductive stage. Application of NCU in rainfed lowland rice producedhigher net return and BCR. Foliar spray of 25% N during reproductive stage was at par with soil application in terms of BCR and increasing the foliar spray to more than 25% resulted in lower BCR. This study has a critical importance especially in view of a recent notification by Government of India making it mandatory for urea production units to produce 100% NCU. To our knowledge, few such studies to develop good management practices using slow release NCU and improved application methods for new STRVs were undertaken in coastal areas. In addition to West Bengal, these results can be 64


applied in coastal stagnant flood-prone rainfed lowlands of other Indian states, Bangladesh and Myanmar. The popularization of these technologies in stress-prone coastal areas in South Asia and South East Asia may help stabilise the rice yield thus ensuring the food security to vulnerable small holder farming communities.

For successful cultivation of dry season rice drum seeding is a viable technology. Use of drum seeder also facilitates early establishment of dry season rice crop immediately after harvesting of wet season rice, thereby efficient utilization of carry over soil moisture, less development of salinity and earlier maturity. Highest grain yield of dry season rice (7.2 t/ha) recorded with variety WGL 20471 treated with seed treating chemical and sown with 2/3rd filled drum seeder. Seed treatment of dry season rice seeds result in about 11% increase in grain yield over control (without seed treatment). Average grain yield of dry season rice increased by about 10% when 2/3rd seed rate is used in drum seeder than full rate. In the on-farm trial sowing of pregerminated and treated rice seeds with drum seeder resulted in about 20% higher yield over farmers existing practice of transplanting without seed treatment. Sowing of boro rice within 26th November resulted in about 25% higher grain yield over late sowing in the month of December. Moisture conservation with hydrogen resulted in about 4-5% increase in grain yield and saving of irrigation water.

In the inland sodic soils CSR 43 gave economic yield up to pH 9.0 and beyond that the yield was not economical. Transplanting of CSR 43 in the first week of July gave maximum yield and suitable to fit for rice based crop diversification options. With the introduction short duration variety CSR 43, we can increase cropping intensity of partially reclaimed salt affected soils to 300% with the introduction of one short duration crop like spinach, cabbage and beet root in between rice and wheat crops which can be grown successfully without significant loss in wheat yield and may fetch higher return per unit area and enhanced the income of the farmers. Earlier maturation 65


of variety CSR 43 is thought to be helpful in saving approximately three irrigations in rice per season saving the farmers significant costs. In addition, economic benefits of its early maturity yield a, Rs. 6000 ha-1 savings through irrigation water reduction. Therefore it is recommended that cultivation of CSR 43 may open window for other rice based crop diversification options for partially reclaimed sodic soils to fetch higher returns.

66


References Bandyopadhyay, B. K. and Maji, B. (1995) Nature of acid soils of Sundarbans delta and suitability of classifying them as acid sulphate or potential acid sulphate soils. J. Indian Soc. Soil Sci. 43 (2), 251-255. Cassman, K.G., Dobermann, A., Walters, D.T. (2002). Agroecosystems, nitrogen-use efficiency, and nitrogen management. Ambio 31, 132-140. Chaudhary, D.R., Ghosh, A., Boricha, G.N. (2008). Characterization and classification of coastal saline soils of Paradip, Orissa. Agropedology 18(2): 129-133. Devakumar C, Goswami B.K. (1992), Nematicidal principles from Neem-isolated and bioassay of some melicians. Pestic. Res. J., 4(2):79–84. Dobermann, A., Fairhurst, T.H. (2000). Rice: nutrient disorders and nutrient management. Potash and Phosphate Institute (PPI), Potash and Phosphate Institute of Canada (PPIC) and International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), 191 p. Gomez, K.A., Gomez, A.A. (1984). Statistical Procedures for Agricultural Research. John Wiley and Sons, New York. Heffer, P. (2013). Assessment of fertilizer use by crop at the global level 20102010/11[Online].http://www.fertilizer.org/En/Statistics/Agriculture_Committee_D atabases.aspx. International Fertilizer Industry Association, Paris, France. Jaworski, E.G. (1971). Nitrate reductase assay in intact tissues. Biochem. Biophy. Res. Comm. 43, 1274-1279. Kant, S., Bi Yong-Mei, Rothstein Steven, J. (2011). Understanding plant response to nitrogen limitation for the improvement of crop nitrogen use efficiency. J. Exp. Bot. 62(4): 1499-1509. DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erq297. Katyal, J.C. (2016). Fertiliser nitrogen in Indian Agriculture – retrospective and prospective. Indian J.Fert. 12(4): 16-33. 67


Ladha, J.K., Pathak, H., Krupnik, T., Six, J., van Kessel, C. (2005). Efficiency of fertilizer nitrogen in cereal production: retrospects and prospects. Adv. Agron. 87, 85-156. Lokanadhan, S., Muthukrishnan, P., Jeyaraman, S. (2012). Neem products and their agricultural applications. J. Biopest., 5(Supplementary): 72-76. Maji, B. and Bandyopadhyay, B. K. (1995) Characterization and classification of coastal soils of various pH groups in Sundarbans, West Bengal. J. Indian Soc. Soil Sci. 43 (1), 103-107. Maji, B., Chatterji, S. and Bandyopadhyay, B. K. (1993) Available iron, manganese, zinc and copper in coastal soils of Sundarbans, West Bengal in relation to soil characteristics. J. Indian Soc. Soil Sci. 41 (3), 468-471. Moya, P.F., Dawe, D., Pabale, D., Tiongco, M., Chien, N.V., Devarajan, S., Djatiharti, A., Lai, N.X., Niyomvit, L., Ping, H.X., Redondo, G., Wardana, P. (2004). The economics of intensively irrigated rice in Asia, pp. 29-58. In Dobermann, A., Witt, C., Dawe, D. (eds.). Increasing productivity of intensive rice systems through site-specific nutrient management. Science Publishers, Inc., Enfield, N.H., USA and International Rice Research Institute, Los Baños, Philippines. Pampolino, M.F., Manguiat, I.J., Ramanathan, S., Gines, H.C., Tan, P.S., Chi, T.T.N., Rajendran, R., Buresh, R.J. (2007). Environmental impact and economic benefits of site-specific nutrient management (SSNM) in irrigated rice systems. Agric. Syst. 93: 1-24. Pani, D.R., Sarangi, S.K., Subudhi, H.N., Misra, R.C. and Bhandari, D.C. (2012). Exploration, evaluation and conservation of salt tolerant rice genetic resources from Sundarbans region of West Bengal. Journal of the Indian Society of Coastal Agricultural Research, 30(1): 45-53. Reddy, K. R. (1982). Nitrogen cycling in a flooded-soil ecosystem planted to rice (Oryza sativa L.). Plant and soil, 67(1): 209-220. 68


Sarangi, S. K. (2008). Effects of variety and integrated nutrient management practices on yield and productivity of rice (Oryza sativa L.)- rapeseed (Brassica campestris L.) cropping sequence. Oryza, 45 (1): 40-43. Sarangi, S. K., Saikia, U. S. and Lama, T. D. (2010). Effect of rice (Oryza sativa) straw mulching on the performance of rapeseed (Brassica campestris) varieties in rice-rapeseed cropping system. Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 80 (7): 603-605. Sarangi, S. K., Mahanta, K. K., Mandal, S. and Maji, B., (2012). Characterization of soils and cropping pattern of coastal areas of Haldia, Pradeep and Visakhapatnam ports. J.Indian Soc. Coastal Agril. Res., 30 (2): 12-18. Sarangi, S. K. and Lama, T. D. (2013). Straw composting using earthworm (Eudrilus eugeniae) and fungal inoculant (Trichoderma viridae) and its utilization in rice (Oryza sativa)- groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) cropping system. Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 83(4): 420-425. Sarangi, S.K., Maji, B., Singh, S., Sharma, D.K., Burman, D., Mandal, S., Ismail, A.M. and Haefele, S.M. (2014a). Crop establishment and nutrient management for dry season (boro) rice in coastal areas. Agronomy Journal, 106(6): 2013-2023. doi: 10.2134/agronj14.0182. Sarangi, S. K., Maji, B., Sharma, D. K., Burman, D. and Mandal, S. (2014b). Improved crop management options for new rice variety Amal-Mana in coastal rainfed lowlands. Salinity News, 20 (2): 3-4. Sarangi, S. K., Burman, D., Mandal, S., Maji, B., Humphreys, E., Tuong, T.P., Bandyopadhyay, B.K., and Sharma, D.K. (2015a). Promising rice genotypes for the wet and dry seasons in coastal West Bengal, pp.304-319. In: Humphreys, E., T.P. Tuong, M.C. Buisson, I. Pukinskis and M. Phillips. 2015. Revitalizing the Ganges Costal Zone: Turning Science into Policy and Practices Conference

69


Proceedings. Colombo, Sri Lanka: CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF). 600P. Sarangi, S. K., Burman, D., Mandal, S., Maji, B., Tuong, T.P., Humphreys, E., Bandyopadhyay, B.K., and Sharma, D.K. (2015b). Reducing irrigation water requirement of dry season rice (boro) in coastal areas using timely seeding and short duration varieties, pp.68-79. In: Humphreys, E., T.P. Tuong, M.C. Buisson, I. Pukinskis and M. Phillips. 2015. Revitalizing the Ganges Costal Zone: Turning Science into Policy and Practices Conference Proceedings. Colombo, Sri Lanka: CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF). 600P. Sarangi, S. K., Maji, B., Sharma, D. K., Burman, D. and Mandal, S. (2015c). Integrated nutrient management for dry season rice in coastal areas. Salinity News, 21(1): 2. Sarangi, S.K., Maji, B., Singh, S., Burman, D., Mandal, S., Sharma, D.K., Singh, U.S., Ismail, A.M. and Haefele, S.M. (2015d). Improved nursery management further enhances the productivity of stress-tolerant rice varieties in coastal rainfed lowlands.

Field

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Research

174

(2015):

61-70

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2015.01.011. Sarangi, S.K., Maji, B., Singh, S., Sharma, D.K., Burman, D., Mandal, S., Singh, U.S., Ismail, A.M. and Haefele, S.M. (2016). Using improved variety and management enhances rice productivity in stagnant flood-affected coastal zones. Field Crops Res. 190:70-81, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2015.10.024. Suganya, S., Appavu, K. and Vadivel, A. (2009). Mineralization pattern of neem coated urea products in different soils. Int. J. Agril. Sci., 5 (1), 175-179R. Tewatia, R. K., Biswas, B.C., and Jat, G. (2012). Status of integrated nutrient supply system in India. Indian J. Fert. 8(11): 24-39.

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Tubana, B. S., Harrell, D., Walker, T., Phillips, S. (2011). Midseason nitrogen fertilization rate decision tool for rice using remote sensing technology. Better crops, 95(1): 22-24. Vijayalakshmi, P., Vishnu Kiran, T., Venkateswara Rao, Y., Srikanth, B., Subhakara Rao, I., Sailaja, B., Surekha, K., Raghuveer Rao, P., Subrahmanyam, D., Neeraja, C.N., Voleti, S.R. (2013). Physiological approaches for increasing nitrogen use efficiency in rice. Ind. J. Plant Physiol. 18 (3): 208-222. DOI: 10.1007/s40502013-0042-y. Yadav. J. S.P., Sen, H. S., Bandyopadhyay, B.K. (2009). Coastal soils management for higher agricultural productivity and livelihood security with special reference to India. J. Soil Sal. Water Qual. 1(1-2): 1-13. Yoshida, S., Forno, D.A., Cock, D.H., Gomez, K.A. (1976). Laboratory manual for physiological studies of rice, 3rd Edition. International Rice Research Institute, Los Baños, Philippines, 83p.

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Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” List of visitors to the ICAR W3 Project sites (i)

Visitors to ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Canning Town

Name of Scientist

Designation

Organization

Date of visit

Dr. Sudhanshu Singh

Rainfed Lowland

IRRI, India

19 September

and

Agronomist& IRRI

2014

CSISA Coordinator, South Asia Dr. Yoichiro Kato

Scientist-II, Rainfed

IRRI, Philippines

Lowland Agronomy (Southeast Asia), Coordinator of IFADDrought (CUREDrought) Project, Crop and Environmental Sciences Division Dr. D. K. Sharma

Director

ICAR-CSSRI, Karnal

21- 22 November 2014

Dr. D. K. Sharma

Director

ICAR-CSSRI, Karnal

29 December 2014

Farmers and farm women

48 nos.

Faculty Members

Officials of Administrative district/extension training Training Institute, centres of Panchayat and Rural Development Government of West Department Bengal

26 February

Assistant Scientist-

19 May 2015

Dr. Ashish Srivastava

Canning II block

26-27 February 2015

IRRI, India

2015

Physiologist

72

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” Dr. Sudhanshu Singh

Rainfed Lowland

IRRI, India

26 June 2015

IRRI, India

19 September

Agronomist Dr. Ashish Srivastava

Assistant ScientistPhysiologist

Dr. Abdelbagi M. Ismail

Principal Scientist and

2015 IRRI, Philippines

05 October 2015

ICAR-CSSRI

01 February

Coordinator, STRASA Dr. D. K. Sharma

Director

2016 Dr. Ashish Srivastava

Assistant Scientist-

IRRI, India

10 March 2016

Physiologist

73

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” (ii)

Visitor’s at Shivri farm, ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow from 14 June 2014 to March 2016

Date 27/09/2014

04/12/2014 31/03/2015 30/09/2015 20/10/2015 28/10/2015

15/01/2016

02/04/2016

Name Dr. A. S. Hari Prasad, Principal Scientist Dr. Krishna G Vani, Principal Scientist Dr. Brajendra, Sr. Scientist Dr. N. P. Mandal, Principal Scientist Sudhanshu Singh, Scientist Bravesh Kumar Mathew Morell Abdelbagi M. Ismail Arvind Kumar Prof. (Dr.) V. K. Yadav Dr. Mangal Deep Tuti, Scientist Dr. Sushil K. Sharma, Director (Acting) Uday B. Singh, ARS Scientist Dr. P. K. Varshney, Principal Scientist Dr. Rahul Kumar M & I

Address DRR, Hydrabad

CRURRS, Hazaribagh IRRI Agriclinic and Agribusiness IRRI, La Banos IRRI, Philppines IRRI, Philippines CSAUA and T, Kanpur ICAR-IIRR, Hydrabad ICAR-NBAIM, Mau ICAR-NBAIM, Maunath Bhanjan NBFGR

74


Publications 1. Sarangi, S. K., Maji, B., Singh, S., Srivastava, A. K., Singh, U.S. and Sharma, D.K. (2016). Nitrogen management through neem coated urea and application method further improve rice productivity in coastal flood-prone rainfed lowland. Extended Summaries Vol. 2 (Precision Nutrient Management): 4th International Agronomy Congress, Nov. 22-26, 2016, New Delhi, India, pp. 931-932. 2. Maji, B., Singh, Y. P., Sarangi, S. K., Mandal, Subhasis, Burman, D., Singh, Sudhanshu and Ismail, Abdelbagi M. (2014). Enhancing rice productivity of salt-affected areas through better varieties and management systems. Invited paper presented in Climate-ready Rice Symposium of 4th International Rice Congress held at Bangkok, Thailand during 27 October – 01 November, 2014 organised by International Rice Research Institute, Philippines. 3. Annual Report, 2014-15, ICAR-CSSRI, Karnal, pp. 132. 4. Annual Report, 2015-16, ICAR-CSSRI, Karnal, pp. 168-169. 5. Production Technology of CSR 43: A short duration salt tolerant variety. 6. Kam Avadhi Wali Dhan Ki Lavan Sahansheel Kishm ‘CSR 43 Ki Utpadan Taknik. (Hindi)

75


Participation in conferences/ seminars/ symposia/ workshops Name

Title

Period

Dr. B. Maji

4th International Rice Congress (as Invited Speaker in Climate-Ready Rice Symposium) All India Seminar on ‘Appropriate Technologies of Farm Mechanization for Marginal and Small Farmers’ held at Kolkata The annual review and planning workshop of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funded project “Stress Tolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia (STRASA)” and IRRI-EC-IFAD project at National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), NASC Complex, New Delhi

27 October – 01 November, 2014 August 08-09, 2014

Dr. S. K. Sarangi Dr. B. Maji Dr. S. K. Sarangi

19-22 April 2015

76


On-farm Demonstrations 1. Neem Coated Urea for Wet Season Rice S. K. Sarangi and B. Maji Farmers in the Sundarbans region use prilled urea (PU) as a source of nitrogen for growing wet season rice. This prilled urea is mostly used before transplanting or at the time of transplanting, which results in loss of N before the crop is capable of taking it. Under this situation use of Neem Coated Urea (NCU) with appropriate time of application was found to be better than use of PU in the on-station trial. The results of this study were taken to farmers fields during wet seasons of 2015. NCU along with improved rice varieties were given to the farmers.

Neem coated urea was introduced in the Sundarbans region through IRRI-ICAR W3 Project

77


On-farm demonstration plot with Swarna-Sub 1 and Neem Coated Urea

On-farm demonstration plot with Amal-Mana and Neem Coated Urea

There was 13-15% yield increase due to the application of NCU over PU, depending on the varietal response.

78


2. Drum Seeded Rabi Rice with Improved Variety resulted Higher Profit S. K. Sarangi and B. Maji Direct wet seeding of rice using a drum seeder is effective and could enhance yield and net returns for farmers in coastal areas. The eight-row drum seeder is 1.8 m wide, the diameter and length of each drum are 0.18 m and 0.25 m, respectively. Distance between rows 0.20 m. Each drum has a capacity of 2 kg of pre-germinated seeds, however, the drums should not be filled completely and about 1/3rd of each drum should be kept empty for easy flow of seeds through the perforated holes. The seeds are soaked in water for a day and then incubated for another 24 hours for sprouting. To prevent sprouts intermingling with each other, sprout length should not be more than 7-8 mm. The sprouted seeds are air-dried in the shade for about 10-15 minutes before sowing to facilitate proper dropping of seeds. The land is puddled as usual, leveled carefully and excess water is drained out. Drum seeder is drawn manually over the puddle soil with triangle marks on the drums pointed towards the pulling direction. The field is not irrigated for 2-3 days after sowing to allow roots to anchor and then the depth of water is increased gradually as the seedlings grow. Drum seeding of pregerminated seeds saved about 10-18% variable costs compared with transplanting, mainly because the latter had higher requirements of labour and inputs to raise seedlings in a nursery, pull up seedlings, transport and transplant them. Benefit cost ratio was significantly higher in drum seeding (1.94) in comparison to transplanting (1.27) during dry season. Drum seeding of pre-germinated salt tolerant rice seeds treated with seed treating chemicals, line transplanting and farmer’s practice (random transplanting) were evaluated at two sites (Table ) in two villages of South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal during boro season of 2015-16. Demonstration and description of drum seeder machine was given to the farmers (Photo 3) during this period.

79


Mr. Asit Jana produced about 13% higher grain yield (5.5 t ha-1) of rice var. WGL 20471 due to the new technology over his current practice. Similarly Mr. Mukunda Haldar received 19% higher grain yield of rice var. Bidhan 2 over his traditional practice.

List of farmer co-operators (Block: Basanti, Dist. South 24 Parganas) involved under ICAR W3 project during boro season 2015-16 Co-operator

Village

Latitude

Longitude

Variety

Plot size (m2)*

Mukunda

Modgoran

220 10ʹ11ʺ N

880 44ʹ28ʺ E

Bidhan 2

1500

Dakshin

220 10ʹ23ʺ N

880 44ʹ38ʺ E

WGL 20471

1300

Haldar Asit Jana

Mokamberia *Plot size of whole trial

Demonstration of drum seeder to the farmers 80


Drum seeded Rabi Rice at Vegetative Stage (Farmer: Mr. Mukunda Haldar)

Drum seeded Rabi Rice at Harvesting (Farmer: Mr. Asit Jana) 81


3. On-farm demonstration and Adoption of short duration rice variety CSR 43 Y.P. Singh and V. K. Mishra Based on feedback from the survey conducted in sodic village farmers, the farmers choice for a variety Suitability or adaptability to their production system (sodic soils) – duration, grain quality height and yield are important  Easy to thresh  Responsive to low external input conditions  Should fit into their cropping/farming systems and livelihood  Easy marketability  Provide good returns  Keeping these points in mind CSR 43 was developed in 2011 and notified in 2013.  Based on the performance of this variety, it occupied about 57000 ha salt affected area in 11 districts of Uttar Pradesh  With the introduction short duration variety CSR 43, cropping intensity of partially reclaimed salt affected soils can be increased to 300%.  Earlier maturation of variety CSR 43 is helpful in saving of about two irrigations per season which saved Rs. 6000 ha-1.  Maximum rice equivalent yield was recorded with Rice-beetroot-wheat cropping system.

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Seed Production of CSR 43 at ICAR-CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow

CSR 43 at a glance Rice is one of the most important crops in the world and is the primary staple food for over two billion people. With rapid growth in population consuming rice, increasing area under biotic and abiotic stresses, and deteriorating soil and water quality around the globe, there is urgent need to understand the response of this important crop towards these environmental abuses. Salt affected soil is one of the major abiotic stress in India having 6.73 million ha land affected with this problem. Farmer’s in this ecosystem are generally poor so they cannot afford higher investment on agro inputs. Central Soil Salinity Research Institute, Karnal has developed various salt tolerance varieties which have made good impact in salt affected areas of country. Most of the salt tolerant varieties are long duration (130-150 days), required more nutrients and one or two additional irrigations even after receding the monsoon. Keeping in view the present climate change scenario and less availability of irrigation water, CSR-43 a short duration (110 days) salt tolerant variety was developed for salt affected area of Uttar Pradesh. CSR43 performed better than other salt tolerant rice varieties. CSR43 83


is early in maturity than CSR13, CSR23 and CSR 36 which enables it to fit in suitably in crop rotation for higher benefits and less water consumption. It has better grain quality of long slender and attractive grains. On overall, it has distinct and consistent advantage of about 16-26% over traditional varieties. It has also outperformed over traditional varieties like Indrasan, Narendra 359 and Ganga Kaveri etc. It matures about 15-20 days earlier than Indrasan and Narendra 359 and 20-25 days to Sambha mahsoori. It is resistant to lodging. It saves about 2 irrigation costing about Rs. 4600/ha and the main feature is that field is vacated timely for sowing of wheat. The variety is in great demand by farmers in partially reclaimed sodic areas of Uttar Pradesh and is spreading very fast. This variety has already spread in large area in salt affected soils of Unnao, Pratapgarh, Kaushambi, Raebareli, Mau and Gazipur district of U.P. through CSSRI, IRRI,KVKs and NGOs under NFSM and seed dissemination programmes. Moreover, this is the most preferred rice variety among the farmers for the puffed rice because of its grain quality and it is the only variety comes in market well before Diwali (for puffed rice). It is resistant to moderate resistant to major diseases: neck blast, sheath rot & brown spot diseases under field conditions. There is no shattering even if there is a delay in harvest for 10 days. It is responsive to fertilizer. Recommended dose of fertilizer is required to get economic yield. It is suitable for early (June end) as well as late planting (July end) conditions. It can withstand sodicity tolerance upto pH2 > 9.5 and gives higher grain yield performance in sodic soil. Based on the experiments conducted at CSSRI, RRS, Lucknow it is found that due to its early maturity an additional short duration crop like Spinach or Toria can be introduced in between Rice-wheat cropping system and enhanced cropping intensity to 300%.

Agro-morphological and grain quality features of CSR43 S.No. 1 2 3

Character Plant height (cm) Seedling vigour Lodging resistance

4

Plant type

Feature/value 96 Vigorous Lodging tolerant due to short stature Medium 84

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Leaf sheath colour Tillering ability Position of flag leaf Photosensitivity Panicle length (cm) Threshability Apiculus color Maturity in days No of grains/ panicle 1000 grain weight (g) Kernel shape Length (mm) Breadth (mm) L/B ratio Kernel translucent Abdominal white Hulling (%) Milling (%) Head Rice Recovery (%) Alkali spreading value Cooking quality

Green Moderate (9-10 effective tillers) Erect Photo insensitive 21 Easy Green 130 82 26 Long slender 7.1 2.0 3.43 Translucent Absent 82 69 59 4.5 Good

Details of farmers and soil pH for demonstration of CSR 43 Demonstrations 2015

Sr. No.

Name of farmers

Father’s name

Soil pH

Village Sakara 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Becha lal Ram Pal Sunil Ayodhya Megha Roshan Chandra pal Bishnu Lal Becha lal Raj Kishor Mahesh

Gunnu Dhanna Rajeshwari Buddha Bipat Bipat Kamal Chhota Khilari Manohar lal Jangali

9.00 9.20 9.00 9.00 9.30 9.60 9.30 9.00 8.80 9.20 9.40 85

Final Report of IRRI-ICAR W3 Project on “Future Rainfed Lowland Rice Systems in Eastern India” 12 Mahadev 13 Shanti

Babu Raghuvar Prashad

9.40 9.50

14 Gomti Prasad

Raghuvar Prasad

9.20

15 Rajjan lal 16 Ramswaroop 17 Chandra Shekhar

Lallu Bipat Shakatu

9.00 9.40 9.60

18 Shiv Kumar

Narpat Singh

9.20

19 Banshi lal 20 Ram Vilash

Ramcharan Khilarhi

9.60 9.00

Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Village Patwakhera Name of farmers Father’s name Sahaj ram Baiju Nankau Bihari Pramod Narayan Ram sajivan Nanhe Ram Sajivan Gokul Bhagwandeen Maiku Ram sankar Sohan Chhanga lal Sohan lal Bahadur Jodha Angnu Bharoshe Nankau Manna Mathura Shahb deen Umesh Ram Naresh Gayadeen Manna Ramswaroop Kallu Jagdev Ram Chandra Gokaran hanuman Mayaram Raghunath Ram Naresh Raghunath Paragi lal Lala

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Grain yield (t/ha)

CSR 43

Farmers variety

5 4 3 2 1 0 8.8

9

9.2

9.3

9.4

9.5

9.6

9.8

Soil pH

Grain yield of rice variety CSR 43 and farmer’s variety in on farm demonstrations under different soil pH levels

IRRI scientist visiting the experimental plots at Lucknow

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Short duration rice variety CSR 43

Stress tolerant rice variety CSR 43 88


Early maturity of rice variety CSR 43

Demonstration of short duration and tolerant rice varieties 89


Rice variety CSR 43 with and without green manuring

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Distinguished scientists visiting the experimental sites at Canning Town and nearby on-farm sites during the reported period:

Dr. Sudhanshu Singh from IRRI, India and Dr. Yoichiro Kato from IRRI, Philippines visited experimental sites at Canning on 19th September 2014

Dr. Sudhanshu Singh and Dr. Ashish Srivasta visited the experimental sites on 26.06.2015 and 19.05.2015 respectively

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Dr. Ashish Srivastava visited the on-farm sites on 19.09.2015

Dr. Abdelbagi M. Ismail and Dr. Ashish Srivastava visited the experimental sites on 05.10.2015

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Dr. D. K. Sharma, Director ICAR-CSSRI, Karnal at the on-station trial on drum seeding on 01.02.2016

Dr. Ashish Srivastava at the on-station and on-farm trials on 10.03.2016 93


Distinguished scientists visiting the experimental sites at Lucknow during the reported period:

A team of DRR scientists visited experiment

Team from National Rice Research Institute visited experiment on 17.09.2015 94


IRRI Scientist Dr. Sudhanshu Singh visited the experiment

Director General IRRI visited the experiment on 30.09.2015

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Published Reports

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