1. PROMOTING SYSTEM OF RICE INTENSIFICATION (SRI) AMONG MARGINAL FARMERS OF UTTARAKHAND AND HIMACHAL PRADESH DEBASHISH SEN, S.P. CHATURVEDI, HIRALAL BHARTI, AND RAJENDRA BANSAL

2. Paddy – A Mountain Farmers’ Crop S. No. ParticularsUttarakhandHimachal Pradesh Total 1Total geographical area (in lakh ha) 53.4955.67109.16 2Average rainfall (mm)1800 3Net sown area (in lakh ha) 5.785.5811.36 4Irrigated area (as % of net sown area) 193527 5Area under paddy (in lakh ha) 2.990.773.76 6Total paddy production (000 M. tons) 613120733 7Average yield of paddy (t/ha)2.051.561.95 Paddy yields in H.P. & Uttarakhand range from 1.5 to 2.0 t/ha Paddy yields in H.P. & Uttarakhand range from 1.5 to 2.0 t/ha

3. PSI’s Intervention (Kharif 2006) S. No. Name of Watershed, DistrictAltitude (m) No. of villages No. of farmers covered Area covered (ha) AUttarakhand 1Bhanaj Gad, Rudraprayag2000-2200280.08 2Hilai Gad, Rudraprayag1900-2000230.04 3Sem Gadera, Tehri Garhwal2100-2400550.19 4Niranjanpur & Vikasnagar, Dehradun 600-750460.17 BHimachal Pradesh 1Bhagan Khadd, Kangra880-10209120.33 2Nakehad Khadd, Kangra800-1000120.07 3Silh Nala, Bilaspur650-750120.03 4Chalara Khas, Chamba800-1000120.04 TOTAL600-240025400.95

4. Orientation workshops – briefing for mobilisation, nursery & seed sowing Training and demonstration programmes - preparation of field, transplanting, weeding and organic composting Field support at transplanting, tillering & milking stages Experience-sharing workshops - 128 farmers, 21 NGOs, and 28 government officials Our Approach

5. Methodology Adopted Nursery Transplanting (25cm x 25 cm) Repeated use of single-row Mandava weeder Application of organic compost (Panchgavya, Amritjal, Matka Khad) Alternative wetting and drying Draining the field 25 days before harvesting

6. Comparison of results for SRI and conventional methods of paddy for farmers’ plots (1m x 1m) at Kangra, H.P. S. No. ParticularsTilak Raj (conventional) Tilak Raj (SRI) Dharam Chand (conventional) Dharam Chand (SRI) 1VarietyChina-4 Parmal 2No. of hills29163416 3No. of total tillers247352204320 4No. of grains/panicle105161120155 5Total weight (grain+straw) in kg 8.416.511.514.5 6Total weight of grain (kg) 3.58.04.57.5 7Net weight of grain (kg) 3.0 (3.0 t/ha) 7.5 (7.5 t/ha) 4.0 (4.0 t/ha) 7.0 (7.0 t/ha) 8Weight of chaff (kg)5.48.57.07.3 9Height of chaff (cm)8411880 While SRI estimates stood close to 70-75 quintals per hectares, non-SRI yields were projected at a dismal 30-40 quintals per hectare.

7. S.No.ParticularsGroup 1Group 2 Group 3Group 4 1Variety Type-3 (conventional) Type-3 (SRI) Pusa Sugandh (conventional) Pusa Sugandh (SRI) 2No. of hills26162316 3No. of total tillers156189158210 4No. of grains/panicle829396193 5Total weight (grain + straw) (in grams) 1250180020003500 6Total weight of grain (g per m 2 ) 270430390720 7Net weight of grain (g) 250 (2.5 T/ha) 390 (3.9T/ha) 380 (3.8T/ha) 650 (6.5T/ha) 8Weight of chaff (g)980137016102780 9Height of chaff (cm)105130120140 Comparison of results for SRI and conventional methods of paddy for PSI plots (1m x 1m) at Dehradun While Type-3 SRI paddy showed a yield increment of 56%, the Pusa Sugandh SRI paddy showed a yield increment of 71%.

8. Comparison of results for SRI and conventional methods of paddy at Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand S. No.ParticularsHimachal PradeshUttarakhand ConventionalSRIConventionalSRI 1No. of Farmers18 22 2Area (sq. m.)-5,800-3,580 3No. of total tillers (min-max)2-88-511-145-35 4Plant height (cm)869399119 5Panicles/plant (min-max)2-138-401-145-26 6Panicle length (cm)19221721 7Average no. of grains/panicle97148100161 8Yield (Q/ha)32503155 While non-SRI yields stood close to 30 quintals per ha, the SRI yields were around 50-55 quintals per ha, an average increase of 66%.

9. S. No. MethodConventionalSRI Total expen- diture (Rs./ha) Gross income (Rs./ha) Net profit (Rs./ha) B:C ratio Total expen- diture (Rs./ha) Gross income (Rs./ha) Net profit (Rs./ha) B:C ratio 1Direct dry seed sowing 10,53012,6002,0701.2:113,91520,3006,3851.5:1 2Germinated seed sowing 11,08021,0009,9201.9:1---- 3Trans- planting 14,06526,62012,5551.9:118,62543,75025,1252.4:1 4Trans- planting (Basmati- Type-3) 16,00041,00025,0002.6:120,000101,72081,7205:1 Comparison of cultivation costs for SRI and conventional methods of paddy cultivation Organic Basmati Type 3 variety is most profitable for mountain regions having altitude less than 1500m.

10. Lessons & Recommendations for SRI Paddy for Mountainous Regions Seed Sowing Time for Nursery (i)High Altitude (>1500m) :1-7 June (ii)Medium Altitude (1000-1500m):10-20 June (iii) Low Altitude (<1000m) :25June-5 July Transplanting Time (i) 10-15 days -Yield 70-75Q/Ha (ii) 16-23 days -Yield 55-60 Q/Ha (iii) > 23 days – 40-45 Q/HaWeeding (i) Three Times - Yield 70-75Q/Ha (ii) Two Times - Yield 60-65 Q/Ha (iii) One Time -Yield 50-55 Q/Ha

11. Comparison of results for SWI and conventional method of HD-2329 wheat variety at Dehradun S. No. ParticularsSWIConventional Row-to-row spacing (cm)20 X 2015 x 1510 x 1015 x 15Broadcasting Plant-to-plant spacing (cm)20 X 2015 x 1510 x 10 1Area (sq.m)69727872164182 2Ave. no. of tillers (range)16 (8-23) 20 (8-36) 20 (8-32) 23 (9-39) 5 (2-9) 5 (2-9) 3Ave. plant height (cm)909284 71 4Ave. no. of panicles per plant1615 44 5Ave. panicle length (cm)1210111076 6Ave. no. of grains/panicle664953493837 7Grain yield (Q/Ha)2120 231816 8Straw yield (Q/Ha)748574807264 The highest SWI yield was obtained with spacing: 15 cm x 15 cm row-to-row and 15 cm x 15 cm plant-to-plant

12. S. No. ParticularsSWIConventional Row-to-row spacing (cm)20 X 2015 x 1510 x 1015 x 15Broadcasting Plant-to-plant spacing (cm)20 X 2015 x 1510 x 10 1Area (sq.m)71788070170160 2Ave. no. of tillers (range)17 (10-27) 15 (7-22) 17 (7-36) 11 (6-16) 4 (2-8) 5 (2-9) 3Ave. plant height (cm)8480 7471 4Ave. no. of panicles per plant1210 1454 5Ave. panicle length (cm)141211 776 6Ave. no. of grains/panicle516756553628 7Grain yield (Q/ha)252321221514 8Straw yield (Q/ha)787472766664 Comparison of results for SWI and conventional method of PBW - 396 wheat variety at Dehradun Highest SWI yields with this variety were obtained at spacing: 20 cm x 20 cm row-to-row and 20 cm x 20 cm plant-to-plant

13. Optimum row to row and plant to plant spacing is 15 cms x 15 cms and 20 cms x 20 cms SWI is too labour-intensive Need to design a seed drill for sowing at fixed spacing. Weeder/hoe needs to be designed for intercultural operations Organic composting required for higher yields Lessons & Recommendations for SWI for Mountainous Regions

14. SRI: Perceived benefits & constraints A.BENEFITS Less seed requirement Saving in water Decreased workload Promotes equity Early maturity Higher grain yields Increased biomass Improves soil fertility B.CONSTRAINTS Time-bound operations Labour-intensive Accessibility to weeders and markers Design modifications required in the Mandava weeder for small terraces Availability of water under rainfed conditions needed, especially after milking stage Strategy required for popularising and promoting SRI

15. Kharif 2007 30 capacity building workshops organised covering about 1000 farmers More than 600 farmers have adopted SRI in about 40 ha of paddy lands Application of SRI method for cultivation of finger millets (mandwa) and pulses (rajma) in 100 mountain farms Moving ahead

16. SRI: A boon for mountain farmers Small farmholding, about 0.4 ha (1 acre) per family SRI POTENTIAL TO ADDRESS THE FOOD SECURITY AND LIVELIHOOD NEEDS OF SMALL AND MARGINAL FARMERS Rice is the staple food of the residing populace Higher stalk volume means more fodder for the cattle More farmyard manure and possibly increased milk yields Promotes a sustainable and more equitable mode of paddy cultivation

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