- Vol 107, No 9 (2014)
- Pages: 1519-1536
- Published: 2014-11-10
- https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv107%2Fi9%2F1519-1536
Open Access
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Revisiting Agro-Ecological Sub-Regions of India - A Case Study of Two Major Food Production Zones
C. Mandal
1,
D. K. Mandal
1,
T. Bhattacharyya
2,
D. Sarkar
2,
D. K. Pal
2,
Jagdish Prasad
2,
G. S. Sidhu
3,
K. M. Nair
4,
A. K. Sahoo
5,
T. H. Das
6,
R. S. Singh
7,
R. Srivastava
2,
T. K. Sen
2,
S. Chatterji
2,
P. Chandran
2,
S. K. Ray
2,
N. G. Patil
2,
G. P. Obireddy
2,
S. K. Mahapatra
6,
K. S. Anil Kumar
4,
K. Das
6,
A. K. Singh
7,
S. K. Reza
8,
D. Dutta
6,
S. Srinivas
4,
P. Tiwary
2,
K. Karthikeyan
2,
M. V. Venugopalan
9,
A. Srivastava
10,
Mausumi Raychaudhuri
11,
D. K. Kundu
11,
K. G. Mandal
11,
G. Kar
11,
S. L. Durge
2,
G. K. Kamble
2,
M. S. Gaikwad
2,
A. M. Nimkar
2,
S. V. Bobade
2,
S. G. Anantwar
2,
S. Patil
2,
K. M. Gaikwad
2,
A. M. Nimkar
2,
S. V. Bobade
2,
S. G. Anantwar
2,
S. Patil
2,
K. M. Gaikwad
2,
V. T. Sahu
2,
H. Bhondwe
2,
S. S. Dohtre
2,
S. Gharami
2,
S. G. Khapekar
2,
A. Koyal
4,
Sujatha
4,
B. M. N. Reddy
4,
P. Sreekumar
4,
D. P. Dutta
8,
L. Gogoi
12,
V. N. Parhad
2,
A. S. Halder
6,
R. Basu
6,
R. Singh
7,
B. L. Jat
13,
D. L. Oad
7,
N. R. Ola
7,
K. Wadhai
2,
M. Lokhande
2,
V. T. Dongare
2,
A. Hukare
2,
N. Bansod
2,
A. Kolhe
2,
J. Khuspure
2,
H. Kuchankar
2,
D. Balbuddhe
2,
S. Sheikh
2,
B. P. Sunitha
4,
B. Mohanty
3,
D. Hazarika
8,
S. Majumdar
6,
R. S. Garhwal
7,
A. Sahu
9,
S. Mahapatra
11,
S. Puspamitra
11,
A. Kumar
10,
N. Gautam
2,
B. A. Telpande
2,
A. M. Nimje
2,
C. Likhar
2,
S. Thakre
2
Affiliations
1 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 03, India
2 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
3 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, New Delhi 110 012, India
4 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
5 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091
6 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
7 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
8 National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
9 Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur 440 010, India
10 National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms, Mau 275 101, India
11 Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
12 National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004
13 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001
1 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 03, India
2 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
3 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, New Delhi 110 012, India
4 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
5 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091
6 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
7 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
8 National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
9 Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur 440 010, India
10 National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms, Mau 275 101, India
11 Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
12 National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004
13 Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001
The sustenance of food and nutritional security are the major challenges of the 21st century. The domestic food production needs to increase per annum at the rate of 2% for cereals and 0.6% for oilseeds and pulses to meet the demand by 2030. The Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) and the black soil regions (BSR) are the two major food production zones of the country. Since irrigation potential is limited and expansion of irrigated area is tardy, rainfed agriculture holds promise to satisfy future food needs. Frontline demonstrations of these two regions have shown that there is a large gap at the farmers' and achievable levels of yields. This gap can be filled by adopting scientific approach of managing the natural resources. There is tremendous pressure of biotic and abiotic stresses hindering the crop production and that warrants for a systematic appraisal of natural resources. The National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP) under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) divided the country into 60 agro-ecological sub-regions (AESRs) in 1994 by superimposing maps on natural resources like soils, climate and length of growing period (LGP) for crops and other associated parameters. With the passage of nearly two decades and the advent of modern facilities of database management and improved knowledge base on natural resources, a need was felt to revise the existing AESR map to reach near the ground reality of crop performance. The new database stored in soil and terrain digital database (SOTER) has helped in modifying the AESR delineations of the BSR (76.4 m ha) and the IGP (52.01 m ha). The estimated available water content, saturated hydraulic conductivity and use of pedo-transfer functions in assessing the drainage conditions and soil quality have helped in computing with improved precision the LGP, and revise the earlier AESRs in BSR and IGP areas. This innovative exercise will be useful for the future AESR-based agricultural land use planning.
Keywords
Agro-Ecological Sub-Regions, Food Production Zones, Land-Use Planning, Length of Growing Period.
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- Revisiting Agro-Ecological Sub-Regions of India - A Case Study of Two Major Food Production Zones
Abstract Views: 317 |
PDF Views: 178
The sustenance of food and nutritional security are the major challenges of the 21st century. The domestic food production needs to increase per annum at the rate of 2% for cereals and 0.6% for oilseeds and pulses to meet the demand by 2030. The Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) and the black soil regions (BSR) are the two major food production zones of the country. Since irrigation potential is limited and expansion of irrigated area is tardy, rainfed agriculture holds promise to satisfy future food needs. Frontline demonstrations of these two regions have shown that there is a large gap at the farmers' and achievable levels of yields. This gap can be filled by adopting scientific approach of managing the natural resources. There is tremendous pressure of biotic and abiotic stresses hindering the crop production and that warrants for a systematic appraisal of natural resources. The National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP) under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) divided the country into 60 agro-ecological sub-regions (AESRs) in 1994 by superimposing maps on natural resources like soils, climate and length of growing period (LGP) for crops and other associated parameters. With the passage of nearly two decades and the advent of modern facilities of database management and improved knowledge base on natural resources, a need was felt to revise the existing AESR map to reach near the ground reality of crop performance. The new database stored in soil and terrain digital database (SOTER) has helped in modifying the AESR delineations of the BSR (76.4 m ha) and the IGP (52.01 m ha). The estimated available water content, saturated hydraulic conductivity and use of pedo-transfer functions in assessing the drainage conditions and soil quality have helped in computing with improved precision the LGP, and revise the earlier AESRs in BSR and IGP areas. This innovative exercise will be useful for the future AESR-based agricultural land use planning.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv107%2Fi9%2F1519-1536
Authors
C. Mandal
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 03, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 03, India
D. K. Mandal
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 03, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 03, India
T. Bhattacharyya
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
D. Sarkar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
D. K. Pal
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Jagdish Prasad
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
G. S. Sidhu
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, New Delhi 110 012, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, New Delhi 110 012, India
K. M. Nair
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
A. K. Sahoo
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091
T. H. Das
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
R. S. Singh
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
R. Srivastava
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
T. K. Sen
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. Chatterji
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
P. Chandran
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. K. Ray
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
N. G. Patil
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
G. P. Obireddy
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. K. Mahapatra
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
K. S. Anil Kumar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
K. Das
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
A. K. Singh
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
S. K. Reza
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
D. Dutta
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
S. Srinivas
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
P. Tiwary
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
K. Karthikeyan
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
M. V. Venugopalan
Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur 440 010, India
Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur 440 010, India
A. Srivastava
National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms, Mau 275 101, India
National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms, Mau 275 101, India
Mausumi Raychaudhuri
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
D. K. Kundu
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
K. G. Mandal
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
G. Kar
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
S. L. Durge
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
G. K. Kamble
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
M. S. Gaikwad
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. M. Nimkar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. V. Bobade
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. G. Anantwar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. Patil
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
K. M. Gaikwad
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. M. Nimkar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. V. Bobade
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. G. Anantwar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. Patil
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
K. M. Gaikwad
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
V. T. Sahu
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
H. Bhondwe
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. S. Dohtre
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. Gharami
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. G. Khapekar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. Koyal
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Sujatha
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
B. M. N. Reddy
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
P. Sreekumar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
D. P. Dutta
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
L. Gogoi
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004
V. N. Parhad
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. S. Halder
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
R. Basu
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
R. Singh
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
B. L. Jat
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001
D. L. Oad
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
N. R. Ola
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
K. Wadhai
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
M. Lokhande
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
V. T. Dongare
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. Hukare
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
N. Bansod
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. Kolhe
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
J. Khuspure
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
H. Kuchankar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
D. Balbuddhe
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. Sheikh
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
B. P. Sunitha
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Bangalore 560 024, India
B. Mohanty
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, New Delhi 110 012, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, New Delhi 110 012, India
D. Hazarika
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre, Jorhat 785 004, India
S. Majumdar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Kolkata 700 091, India
R. S. Garhwal
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Udaipur 313 001, India
A. Sahu
Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur 440 010, India
Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur 440 010, India
S. Mahapatra
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
S. Puspamitra
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
Directorate of Water Management, Bhubaneswar 751 023, India
A. Kumar
National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms, Mau 275 101, India
National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms, Mau 275 101, India
N. Gautam
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
B. A. Telpande
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
A. M. Nimje
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
C. Likhar
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
S. Thakre
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Regional Centre, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Nagpur 440 033, India
Abstract
The sustenance of food and nutritional security are the major challenges of the 21st century. The domestic food production needs to increase per annum at the rate of 2% for cereals and 0.6% for oilseeds and pulses to meet the demand by 2030. The Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) and the black soil regions (BSR) are the two major food production zones of the country. Since irrigation potential is limited and expansion of irrigated area is tardy, rainfed agriculture holds promise to satisfy future food needs. Frontline demonstrations of these two regions have shown that there is a large gap at the farmers' and achievable levels of yields. This gap can be filled by adopting scientific approach of managing the natural resources. There is tremendous pressure of biotic and abiotic stresses hindering the crop production and that warrants for a systematic appraisal of natural resources. The National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP) under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) divided the country into 60 agro-ecological sub-regions (AESRs) in 1994 by superimposing maps on natural resources like soils, climate and length of growing period (LGP) for crops and other associated parameters. With the passage of nearly two decades and the advent of modern facilities of database management and improved knowledge base on natural resources, a need was felt to revise the existing AESR map to reach near the ground reality of crop performance. The new database stored in soil and terrain digital database (SOTER) has helped in modifying the AESR delineations of the BSR (76.4 m ha) and the IGP (52.01 m ha). The estimated available water content, saturated hydraulic conductivity and use of pedo-transfer functions in assessing the drainage conditions and soil quality have helped in computing with improved precision the LGP, and revise the earlier AESRs in BSR and IGP areas. This innovative exercise will be useful for the future AESR-based agricultural land use planning.
Keywords
Agro-Ecological Sub-Regions, Food Production Zones, Land-Use Planning, Length of Growing Period.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv107%2Fi9%2F1519-1536