eChapters

Design and Construction of a greenhouse involves five distinctly different aspects viz. (a) Basic form or type, (b) structure/designs, (c) covering materials and its fixing, (d) foundation and constructional detail, and (e) crop-support, irrigation and drainage planning.

All the above aspects are interlinked. To have a clear idea, these individual aspects are discussed separately.

4.1. Basic Forms of Greenhouse

Before considering anything about construction, one should finalize the form of construction. There are different forms of greenhouses for different climatic and crop situations. These types of structures are planned according to the requirement of farmer/promoter and obviously according to the purpose. Now we will describe, in brief, some of the important form or type of greenhouses.

4.1.1. Greenhouse covered with transparent and impervious material

These structures are covered with water/rain impermeable transparent materials which allow necessary solar radiation for optimal growth of plants. Simultaneously it protects crops from temperature-fluctuation, rain, wind, and creates a favourable situation in respect of CO₂ and humidity. This covering is also used to prevent the re-radiation of heat energy and conserve the heat generated in daytime to raise night temperature inside.

5.1. Introduction

Back drop: Since the concept of greenhouse technology was introduced, metal and wooden structures were tried in different parts of the world. When greenhouse was brought in the tropical and sub-tropical areas, people tried bamboo as construction material for greenhouse instead of iron or wood. However, due to the non-standard character of bamboo, the standardization of design of bamboo greenhouse, as a model, was not possible. Actually all such designs were very much clumsy and not at all comparable to the well established models of greenhouse having metal or wood frame.

Hence it is an urgent call to establish a standard design of bamboo greenhouse that can efficiently compete with the other common & commercial greenhouses made-up of GI-pipes.

Innovation: This greenhouse is structured by matured, cured & treated bamboo instead of usual structural elements (GI/MS/wood). For that matter (1) innovated design and construction methods and (2) a new curing method has been generated. It is very tough to standardize the design of bamboo greenhouses, specifically due to the non-standardized nature of bamboo. Unlike GI/MS pipe etc, bamboos do not have the same dimensions and uniformity in size & shape (diameter/ width/thickness etc). Thus, in general, bamboo greenhouses are low in height and are of naturally ventilated type. However, there is still huge scope to work on design of bamboo greenhouse for different climatic situation to avail the benefits of its natural advantages and low cost.

The greenhouse technology is all about the controlling of ambient climatic factors to create a favourable ‘micro-climate’ for the crop growth. The magnitude of such control may differ from minimal to maximum. It may control single (like rain) to multiple aspects (like rain, temperature, humidity, sun-light, wind, carbon-di-oxide, etc in combination). It can simply be done by manipulating natural factors using the suitable/appropriate design of the greenhouse or can be done in complex form by using/installing different devices and packages (may be software) with necessary automation in a specifically designed greenhouse.

It is a vast subject and very difficult to have a thumb-rule for such climate control mechanism due to seasonal climatic variations and most importantly due to the inter-relation effect between each and every climatic factors. Thus, it should be given sufficient space to maneuver the mechanism designed for a specific greenhouse targeting a specific crop.

Ways to control these climatic factors in a greenhouse

There are two basic ways to control the climate inside greenhouse.

Primarily, through a suitable design of the greenhouse itself, the inside microclimate can be controlled, obviously up to a certain level. Through manipulation of the design, particularly the naturally ventilated system, the rain water, temperature, humidity, CO_2, wind, etc can be controlled up to a certain level in favour of the crop.

Secondarily, by introducing equipments, tools, devices, etc we can control the micro-climate of a greenhouse. In most cases, it can take care of a number of climatic factors, like temperature and humidity, sun-light and temperature, etc simultaneously to provide a crop-wise micro-climate inside.

Frequently we use both the basic controlling methods, in combination, to achieve the required climate control system in a particular greenhouse.

We have already discussed about the different climatic factors that affect the crop micro-climate. Now we will discuss the basic control mechanism of each and every climatic factors and the related technology that can be utilized for greenhouse.

7.1. Introduction

Cultivation of crop is one of the most important aspects on which the success of a greenhouse depends. Principally it is similar to that of open field cultivation; but it is a completely different proposition in comparison. In greenhouse it needs (1) high precision technology, (2) special management, and (3) high qualityinputs. A special crop husbandry is extremely necessary, integrating all these three aspects, for successful greenhouse cultivation.

Why special crop husbandry? – Ancestors of each and every crop of modern time once grew out of its own in wild, without any human intervention. Gradually it has been domesticated or brought under cultivation by progressive alteration of its natural growing and reproduction process. Even the genetic nature also altered gradually. Till recent past these development of domestication process has been restricted principally on reproduction, planting, nutrient supply, water supply, and plant protection aspects. Interestingly most of these aspects are still very much supplementary in nature, as a good percent of it is still dependent on nature and its growing system.Actually, we cannot confer any significant change, physically or genetically, in their adaptation against the natural elements like rain, sunlight, temperature, humidity, gas supply, etc. However, we try our level best with a compromising note on local climate.

Hence there is ample scope to go for complete alteration of their growing habit/ practices in relation to each and every aspect of the climatic elements. It is a very difficult job, because, for a small change in any individual aspect of plant growth, all the other aspects are affected. Thus, one has to make a proper and holistic balance of alteration of all the growth aspects for each and every individual domesticated plant, we call as crop.

8.1. Vegetables

8.1.1. Tomato (Lycopsarsicon Esculentum)

Temperature: A warm climate crop can tolerate high temperature but cannot withstand frost. Minimum temperature for germination of seed is 8 to 10°C. Night temperature for fruit setting is 12 to 22°C. Critical night temperature for fruit setting is below 12°C. Critical day temperature for fruit setting is above 32°C. If the greenhouse can maintain the temperature as mentioned above then the non-terminal or indeterminate tomato crop can be grown for 10 to 12 month duration.

Variety: Indeterminate (producing flowers and fruits continuously along the stem as it grows) hybrid varieties resistant to nematodes or fusarium or verticilium wilt disease may be selected.

Abstract

India today has 1.30 billion people and would be the world’s most populous country by 2025. The challenge is how to feed India’s growing population with rising income, but limited land and water resources. Whereas area under crop cultivation has come down from 142 million ha to 138 million ha, asking for protecting the arable lands from mass urbanization and more productivity per unit area. The agricultural production systems are still operating at low productivity and high uncertainty in the country. There is little or no alignment between production, the growth of agricultural commodities in the market and the supply of these commodities. All this leading to considerable farm produce wastage, mounting tremendous pressure on natural resources and would pose a challenge to the country in providing food, water, health, shelter, sanitation and jobs to all.

While industry and services have grown, agricultural sector has lagged behind. Information technology sector is growing consistently at 30 per cent every year but agriculture has not even achieved 4 per cent growth. The contribution of agricultural sector to national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has continued to decline over the years; has shrunk from 55 per cent in 1951-52 to 14.6 per cent in 2015-16. Land fragmentation, reducing holding size, obscure marketing prospects, low water and inputs use efficiencies, modest level of mechanization, unorganization, unreliable returns from rainfed areas, inadequate storage infrastructure, weak processing sector and meagre investments continue to leave visible impressions on Indian agriculture. Nonetheless, agriculture remains a major source of employment, absorbing about 52 per cent of the total national workforce. Higher levels of investments in agriculture, both by the public and private sector can yield much better results if the reforms are undertaken to streamline not only the incentive structures for the farmers, but also the institutional framework to address the issues of integration, export orientation, infrastructure development, and information technology and management to achieve the objective of a innovative agricultural sector capable of providing food security to all. Farmer insecurity about crop failure also prevents them from adopting changes. A balance between risk and reward is considered to be an important economic factor for enhancing relationships. Trust among channel partners, power share and interdependence are other important factors for enhancing relationships in the supply chain system.

Abstract

Indian agriculture witnessed a transformation in early seventies with green revolution in cereals. The Green Revolution resulted in a record grain output of 131 million tons in 1978-79. Yield per unit of farmland improved by more than 30 per cent between 1947 and 1979. This was because of introduction of high yielding varieties and use of agro-chemicals, particularly synthetic fertilizers. Farmers realized 3-4 times increment in their profit when high yielding varieties and chemical fertilizers were used in integration. Agriculture is the primary source of livelihood for about 58 per cent of India’s population. Gross Value Added by agriculture, forestry and fishing is estimated at Rs 17.67 trillion (US$ 274.23 billion) in FY18. The Indian food industry is poised for huge growth, increasing its contribution to world food trade every year due to its immense potential for value addition, particularly within the food processing industry. Food & Grocery retail market in India was worth US$ 380 billion in 2017, is the world’s sixth largest, with retail contributing 70 per cent of the sales. The Indian food processing industry accounts for 32 per cent of the country’s total food market, one of the largest industries in India and is ranked fifth in terms of production, consumption, export and expected growth. It contributes around 8.80 and 8.39 per cent of Gross Value Added (GVA) in Manufacturing and Agriculture respectively, 13 per cent of India’s exports and six per cent of total industrial investment. During 2017-18, food grain production is estimated at 279.51 million tons, with rice and wheat production in the country at 111.52 MT and 98.61 MT, respectively in the same period. Milk production stands at 165.4 million tons during FY17, while meat production is 7.4 million tons. India is the second largest fruit producer in the world. Production of horticulture crops is estimated at record 307.16 million tons (mt) in 2017-18 as per second advance estimates. Total agricultural exports from India grew at a CAGR of 16.45 per cent over FY10-18 to reach US$ 38.21 billion in FY18. In April-May 2018 agriculture exports were US$ 6.43 billion. India is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of spices and spice products. Spice exports from India reached US$ 3.1 billion in 2017-18. Tea exports from India reached a 36 year high of 240.68 million kgs in CY 2017 while coffee exports reached record 395,000 tons in 2017-18.

Abstract

With its core intention to raise economic status of farmers, Govt of India vows for transformation in agriculture and sets goal to double farmers’ income by 2022. Nonetheless, net income increase at the farm is amalgamation of technologies, tactics and government policies. Farmers realized 3-4 times increment in their profit during era of green revolution when high yielding varieties and chemical fertilizers were introduced in early seventies. Subsequently income enhancement of the farmers continued through raising of farm productivity per unit area and entrepreneurship. Thus Indian agriculture experienced transformation through chemical fertilizers, high yielding varieties, synthetic pesticides, off-season cultivation, high yielding breeds, export orientation and entrepreneurship development in food processing, mushroom production, dairying and poultry. With the result, India emerged as top producer of milk, millets, pomegranate, banana, mango, jute, pulses, okra, safflower etc and second top producer of wheat, rice, tea, tomato, potato, onion etc and third in egg production and fourth in poultry meat. Consequence was evolution of commercial farming from subsistence farming. In era of globalization and increased purchase power of consumers, profitability at the farm has become subject of competitiveness, quality and consumer preference. Price shoot-up and market crashing of commodities in the country has made agriculture, a profession of risk, uncertainties and unpredictability. It has thus, lost creditability of socioeconomic security. To make it remunerative and attractive, a combo plan of transformational technologies that has the competence to break production and productivity barriers and can also address market needs as well as consumer preferences is highly wanted. There is urgent need to infuse characteristic of market orientation in agriculture through marketing information system and promoting demand driven production system with focus on zonalization of crops taking advantage of niche area or geographical indications. Commodity supply must remain high through promotion of climate resilient varieties or breeds, mechanization, adoption of hi-tech crop and livestock management practices. All this has to be made sustainable by way of produce and product diversification through integrated farming system, organic agriculture and secondary agriculture. Considering future vision, research initiatives must continue on noble areas like vertical farming and in vitro farming. Information and communication technologies will open avenue for assured marketing by linking production to consumption system via proper marketing and distribution leading to increased farm profitability. This as a whole will make transformation in agriculture a reality.

Abstract

Indian agriculture is undergoing rapid transformation and agricultural-based food industry in India requires timely and adequate supply of good quality raw material for processing, value addition and export. The recent growth and diversification of consumer demand and the expansion of organized agricultural processing and marketing ventures in India has the potential to boost the market opportunities, productivity, and incomes of farmers, including that of marginal and small holders. However, achieving these goals will likely require creation of new institutions and innovations to develop supply chains and facilitate linkages between farmers, wholesalers, processors, and retailers. Among these institutions and innovations are various models of contract farming, including those led by cooperatives, by farmer groups, and by various types of private sector resource intermediation that develop backward linkages to growers. Contract farming is a system where agricultural production is carried out according to an agreement between a buyer and farmers, which establishes conditions for the production and marketing of a farm product or products. In other words Contract Farming is a system of production and supply of agricultural/horticultural produce under forward contracts between producers/ suppliers and buyers. The essence of such an arrangement is the commitment of the producer to provide an agricultural commodity of a certain type, at a time and a price, and in a quantity required by a known and committed buyer. Well-managed contract farming is an effective approach to help solve many of the market linkage and access problems of small and marginal farmers which constitute 86% of the farming households in India. This chapter examines growth and status including the performance of different models of contract farming based on empirical studies. It concludes that by entering into the contractual arrangement, the income level of the farmer and employment level in the rural economy has increased despite certain problems faced by the farmers like delayed payment, delay in procurement and low supply of agricultural inputs to them.

Abstract

The global economic burden due to zoonotic diseases is very high. According to a recent World Bank estimate, the economic burden due to six of the zoonotic diseases that have occurred in specific countries between 1997 and 2009 is estimated to be US$80 billion. In a worst-case scenario, potential losses from a pandemic influenza outbreak could be US$3 trillion, which is equivalent to 5% of the global GDP. Zoonotic diseases continue to represent an important health hazard in most parts of the world. More than 200 zoonotic diseases have been described, caused by bacteria, parasites, viruses, fungi and unconventional agents (e.g. prions). About 75 percent of the new diseases that have affected humans over the past ten years are caused by pathogens originating from animals or from products of animal origin. Many of these diseases have the potential to spread by various means over long distances and to become global problems. India contributes to substantial portion of the global burden of endemic zoonoses and is one of the several ‘EID hotspots’. The quality and safety of food supplies are put at risk by demands for more, cheaper food, driven by growing population and increasing urbanization, combined with a lack of resources to deal with issues related to food safety and lower or less rigorously enforced regulatory standards add to spread of zoonotic diseases. Human and financial resources that are dedicated by national authorities to the support of regulatory and non-regulatory food safety programs generally fall well short of needs. Commonly, many of the resources available are used for quality control of food for export, rather than products for domestic consumption, leaving the domestic market more vulnerable to unacceptable levels of food safety hazards, thus adding to the problem. In many developing countries, there is a substantial informal market that generally escapes any food safety controls. The successful control of zoonoses is possible if acceptable standards of life and social welfare are observed in developing country like India. Close cooperation and interaction between veterinarians, health physicians and public health operators, agriculturists and ecologists is thus necessary via one health approach strategy facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations and communications in all aspects of health care for humans, animals and the environment.

Abstract

ICT is contributing in every sphere of human society and agriculture cannot be an exception. It can bring revolutionary changes in farmers’ life by improving accessibility to information and knowledge. Farmers certainly feel empowered and with confidence can opt for innovative approaches in business farming. Nearly 70 percent of the bottom fifth of the population in developing countries own a mobile phone. The number of internet users has more than tripled in a decade, from 1 billion in 2005 to an estimated 3.2 billion at the end of 2015. Thus, ICTs provide faster and newer ways of delivering and accessing information to many and are potential tools for poverty alleviation, health, education, judiciary, agricultural marketing and sustainable development. As per an ICAR report 80 per cent of the technologies generated by the researchers in agricultural sector are either not transferred to the ultimate users or they do not find applicability in the farmer’s field. Out of the remaining 20 per cent of the technologies, around 50 per cent do not impress the farmers due to mainly its ineffective technology transfer that range from language to effective demonstration using the available tools. Information and communication technology revolution is the latest milestone in Indian agriculture that can usher an era of knowledge flow from institution to farmers field in much systematic and organized way and eliminate hurdles in technology transfer and adoption. From the perspective of agricultural knowledge and information systems (AKIS), ICTs can be seen as useful in improving linkages between the research, extension and the market sub systems. Real-time information and customized knowledge provided by ‘eChoupal’ enhance the ability of farmers to take decisions and align their farm output with market demand and secure quality and productivity. The eKrishi project, Market driven Agricultural Initiative through IT enabled Agri-business Centres in Kerala, addresses the existing gap in agriculture information flow and transaction management. The touch screen kiosk with information on cattle health was tried and tested under a United Kingdom Department of International Development (DFID) – Animal Health Program (AHP) supported project on dissemination of animal health knowledge for development of landless dairy cattle owners in the peri-urban regions of Pondicherry. Being a global resource, and with billions of users, the Internet requires some degree of international cooperation on technical matters as well as on standards and norms that can ensure that it remains a global public good, facilitating information flows and contributing towards sustainable development.

Abstract

Climate change is well acknowledged fact globally and in India has been witnessed with more frequent cloud bursts, highly variable frequency and distribution of rainfall, high seasonal thermal variations, receding glaciers and unstable agricultural production. Likely impact of climate change is expected to reduce agricultural productivity, production stability and incomes in some areas that already have high levels of food insecurity. However, Agriculture has the potential to retard the pace of climate change by capturing a significant part of the excess atmospheric carbon in the soil and plants in the form of organic matter and also competent to reduce emissions of nitrous oxide and methane if practiced in smart ways so developing climate-smart agriculture is thus crucial in achieving future food security and climate change goals. Transformations are needed in both commercial and subsistence agricultural systems, but with significant differences in priorities and capacity. Several climate smart agriculture practices such as cropping system improvement (e. g. crop rotation, diversification, improved varieties and integration of legumes), integrated nutrient management (e.g. green manure, compost and site specific nutrient management), resource conservation (e.g. minimum/zero tillage, keeping the land consistently covered with crop residues), precision water management (e.g. planting crops in bed, laser land leveling, mulching with crop residues) and agro-forestry have been proposed for adaptation to climate change and variability. However, their adoption decisions by the farmers are largely dependent on economic benefits associated with the interventions. It should be clearly understood that climate smart agriculture does not make use of different practices but certainly it uses them differently.

Abstract

Parasitic diseases are of great economic importance in livestock farming and are major obstacle in the health and productivity of animals. These may be due to endo-parasites that live inside the body or ecto-parasites such as ticks, mites, flies, fleas, midges, etc., which attack the body surface. Among ecto-parasites, ticks and mites are very important and harmful blood sucking external parasites of mammals. Blood sucking by large numbers of ticks causes reduction in body weight and anemia among domestic animals, while their bites also reduce the quality of hides. More than 250 species of mites can cause problems for humans and domestic animals because of their being vector for zoonotic diseases. Their attack may lead to problems of temporary irritation of the skin due to bites, persistent dermatitis due to mites invading skin or hair follicles, mite-induced allergies, transmission of pathogenic microbial agents, intermediate host of tapeworms, invading respiratory passages, ear canals and internal organs, fear of mites called acarophobia The economic or medical importance of the Acari increases with their ability to be vector for viruses, rickettsiae, spirochaetes, phytoplasmas, mycoplasmas and protozoa, or to harbor and transport nematodes, bacteria and fungi pathogens that affect plants, domestic and wild animals and humans. Ectoparasites were not considered serious problem till the introduction of exotic animals or exotic semen in India as the indigenous breeds were considered resistant to parasites and the damages occurred by them were totally ignored. Much awareness was not there about the diseases caused by ectoparasites like anaplasmosis therefore dairy producers had to bear losses both, in milk production and proper animal growth. Ectoparasites may be causing death of animals in certain cases. Losses in dairy, poultry, goatry and other livestock farming can be considerably reduced through strategic management of parasites. This needs timely detection, identification and development of effective control measures. 10-30% production losses are estimated by parasitic infestation. If profitability is the goal in livestock entrepreneurship then target has to be the animal health, productivity and quality produce through strategic management and awareness campaign on economic importance of parasites.

Abstract

Doubling the farmers’ income”, implies a 100 per cent growth of the current level of income of the farmers within a specific time frame, through multifaceted efforts of technological advancements in agriculture, policy formulation/ implementation, and efficient market system. The idea of doubling the farmers’ income during seven year period has by many experts been deemed impractical owing to the fact that a consistent annual growth rate of 14.86 per cent would be required in agricultural sector to double its GDP which has never had any history in the Indian agriculture. Some experts point out the possibility of success through appropriate technological intervention and viable government policies specific for each of the agro ecological zones of the nation. Increase in the farmer’s income doesn’t imply increase in nominal income through excessive production, but increase in real income, taking inflation into account. Production technologies, their use and impact are important factors to focus on doubling the farmers’ income. These technologies are already available across all the regions of the country but their adoption remains a problem to discuss always and partial adoption of the technological package can never be expected to get the desired results on ground. The results are suggestive of the pent up need to focus on the extension support on end-to-end approach from production to marketing with appropriate facilitation for inputs, insurance, credit, storage, marketing facilities etc. However, it would need involvement of all the stakeholders to come up on board to pursue this goal.

Abstract

Seed priming is the innovative way of ensuring optimum germination and plant stand under moisture deficit situations. It enables the seed to tide over initial stress from biotic and abiotic factors. Higher yield with better quality seed are reported. The seeds of agronomic and horticultural crops are significantly affected by ageing and deterioration. Reversal or rejuvenation of aged seeds is therefore of primary interest. Experiments related to reversal of seed deterioration effects due to ageing relying heavily on accelerated ageing (AA) of seeds and their priming using various priming agents especially osmotic substances. Repair during germination is a hypothetical event supported by some investigators and questioned by others. Repair includes the spontaneous reorganization of plasma membrane phospholipids, which occurs during seed hydration. Alternatively or additionally, metabolic repair might occur. Experimental evidence for repair in imbibed seeds has been elusive. Priming reduced electrolyte leakage as well as lipid peroxidation in seeds implying the activation of membrane repair processes. Priming was also associated with increased levels of antioxidants like ascorbic acid and tocopherols particularly the latter and the activities of enzymes SOD, CAT POX involved in the mitigation of oxidative damage. In comparison with the priming of unaged seeds, the aged seeds experienced a diminution of response in terms of changes in the levels of antioxidants and scavenging enzymes. Thus, seed priming technique under climate extremities seems the best and economical means to sustain higher crop yields. The technique needs to be popularized among the farmers practicing agriculture and horticulture under rainfed situation so as to sustain production under climatic adversaries and enhance livelihood security and more profitability at the farm.

Abstract

Worldwide trend in fruit crops has shifted to high density or meadow orcharding to manage tree size for desired architecture to allow better light interception and easy in operations such as pruning, pest control and harvesting. The meadow orcharding facilitates increase production as well as quality of fruits. High density planting (HDP) is one of the recent and novel concepts of increasing the productivity without affecting the quality of fruits. The HDP has been successfully demonstrated in fruit crops such as apple, mango, citrus, banana, pineapple and guava. However, for more location specific benefit research must continue on appropriate plant canopy, integrated nutrient management suitable varieties, ageing of orchard and tree replacement. HDP accommodates more number of trees per unit area ranging from 500-10,000 plants/ha depending on the type of fruit crop and the level of density such as medium high density 500-1500 plants/ha, optimum high density 1,500-10,000 plants/ha ultra-high density 10,000-1,00,000 plants/ha. High density orcharding is a highly technical entrepreneurship where nutrient management, irrigation and canopy management practices widely vary from traditional orchards hence growers must have full execution knowledge of this technology in present as well as future perspective. Post harvest, storage and marketing are closely associated with the success of HDP technology. Fruit yield increases 2 to 4 times vertically enhancing income of fruit growers.

Abstract

The J&K state, like other Himalayan states, is endowed with varied climates and agro-climatic situations and has the potential for improvement in a horticulture sector. Focus on selective issues based on the niches of the areas , strengthening the on-going programs of different developmental departments, site specific issues, backed up with latest technologies need to be identified which can have tangible and immediate impact on the farm economy. The horticulture section is doing well in Jammu and Kashmir state when compared with others food crops, since it fetches good price because of its nature of seasonality. The estimation of the potential profits can be drawn by the fact that a farmer producing wheat of 1 kg gets 10 times higher prices for the same produce in horticulture section. Considering this high potential, the concept of doubling farmer’s income can work magically with horticultural crops. There is a need of shift from traditional crops and cropping patterns. Technological interventions are required to strengthen the conditions of cold storage, adoption of farming system approach, instead of cropping system approach, incorporating element of diversification, promotion of cultivation of high value crops, efficient post-harvest management, value addition etc. popularization of technologies and schemes to achieve targeted growth in horticulture. Strengthening water resources through rainwater harvesting, soil moisture conservation and efficient utilization of stored/conserved rain water (micro-irrigation, fertigation). Promotion of niche commodities based on agro-ecological situations will benefit promotional efforts in horticulture development with increased benefit cost ratio.

Abstract

Biochar is the product of thermal degradation of organic materials in the absence of air (pyrolysis), and is distinguished from charcoal by its use as a soil amendment. Biochar is generally alkaline in pH and may increase soil pH with greater increase observed in sandy and loamy soils than in clayey soils. Biochar addition can increase cation exchange capacity, base saturation, exchangeable bases and organic carbon content as well as decreases in Al saturation in acid soils. Biochar enhances soil productivity by improving the physical, chemical and biological soil conditions. Improvement in soil structure increase soil water retention. A comparative study of soil fertility and leaching losses of nutrients between an Anthrosol and an adjacent unamended Ferralsols revealed that the Anthrasol had significantly higher P, Ca, Mn and Zn availability than the Ferralsol, and an increased biomass of both cowpea and rice by 38–45% without fertilization. More experimentation is needed to substantiate multiple benefits of biochar application in relevant soil-environment-climate-management factors and minimize any possible drawbacks in Indian perspective. Efficient use of biochar in agricultural system is one viable option that can enhance natural rates of carbon sequestration in the soil, reduce farm waste, enhance crop yield with concomitant improvement in soil quality.

Abstract

Organic farming has proved to be effective technology for socio-economic empowerment of Indian farmers as it imposes positive changes in social factors in the local communities. There is tremendous scope of export, entrepreneurship and employment opportunities in organic farming in India. Local, regional, national and global markets are developing sinks for organic products. Organic crop production is sustainable and has positive impact on the ecology and socio-economic status of the peoples. Various socio-economic factors influence the farmers’ choice to adopt organic cultivation. Several threats and weaknesses exist. Hence, there is a need to address the weaknesses of the organic system by integrating it with innovative tools of marketing and ICTs so that there is alignment in demand- production-supply so concerted efforts are needed to establish production-consumption linkages through PPP mode. It will offset threats of organic farming thereby making it more remunerative and promising. The existing evidences suggest greater research efforts in this area are required. There is need to identify the gaps between the adoption of techniques of organic farming and remove them by strengthening production-consumption and marketing linkages. Moreover, it is important to assess and analyze the status of organic farming and feasibility to different sustainable practices in different production systems and farming situations across the country for promotion of this value added entrepreneurship.

Keywords: organic farming, status, constraints, entrepreneurship and socio-economic dynamics

Abstract

Over the years, India has emerged as one of the world’s biggest producers of milk, with the total milk production rising from 122 Million Metric Tons in 2010 to 171 Million Metric Tons in 2017 with dairy market in India touching a value of INR 7,916 Billion. An average livestock contributes about 12 % of farmer’s income and the same for small and marginal farmers and landless laborers’ is 36 %. While farmer’s income in agriculture is growing at 3.5 % annually, income from livestock is growing at about 14.5 %. Despite this, the majority of the dairy industry in India is still highly unorganized and dominated by small and marginal dairy farmers. Of all the major rural enterprises, dairy is an important profession of economic and social transformation to supplement the income and employment to the rural sector in general and rural women in particular. The process of dairy development would be incomplete and lop sided, unless farm women are fully involved in it. Indian dairy industry also offers good opportunities to both domestic and foreign investors for entry and expansion. Low yielding breeds, costly animal feeds, inadequate market linkage and predominance of handling dairy through indigenous technologies mar the Indian dairy industry. It is imperative to develop proper production, processing and marketing infrastructure if India has to emerge as an exporting country which is capable of meeting international quality requirements. It is anticipated that milk production in India will further grow at a CAGR of around 15% between 2018 and 2023. A comprehensive plan for producing quality and safe dairy products should be formulated with suitable legal backup. Dairy products’ consumption has been growing exponentially in the country owing to their rich nutritional qualities. Thus, it has enormous scope for women empowerment and socio-economic transformation of rural India and must rank top in our developmental agenda.

ABSTRACT

Losses and benefits in agricultural production are associated with various weather parameters. So prediction of weather systems in different spatial and temporal scale over the Indian region therefore assumes considerable socio-economic importance. Meteorological information also plays an important role in the following operations in agriculture. The meteorological services can help the farmers & the planners exploit the potential of good weather and minimize the impact of bad weather as there exist tremendous opportunities for applications of meteorology in both day to day and long term planning in agriculture and such applications could contribute substantially to promote sustainable agriculture and poverty alleviation and the management of agrometeorological data is the key to these applications. Therefore, the area and input intensive agriculture is leading us into an era of unsustainable agricultural growth as the crucial components of sustainable agricultural production and distribution system such as integration of natural biological cycles and controls; protection and renewal of soil fertility and the natural resource base; optimization of the use of nonrenewable resources and of on-farm & off- farm inputs; ensuring dependable farm income. Hence, the meteorological information may help the farmer make the most efficient use of natural resources, with the aim of improving agricultural production both in quantity and quality. It becomes more and more important to supply meteorological information blended with weather sensitive management operations before the start of cropping season in order to adapt the agricultural system to increased weather variability. Subsequent to this, weather forecast based Agro-meteorological advisories become vital to stabilize their yields through management of agro-climatic resources as well as other inputs such as irrigation, fertilizer and pesticides. The main emphasis of the existing AAS system is to collect and organize climate/weather, soil and crop information, and to amalgamate them with weather forecast to assist farmers in taking management decisions. This has helped to develop and apply operational tools to manage weather related uncertainties through agro-meteorological applications for efficient agriculture in rapidly changing environments. Hence, weather information and advisories have assumed greater significance under the increased variability in the changing climate. Thus, Weather forecasting and advisory has become an indispensable aid for sustainable agro-transformation

Abstract

Agriculture is at a cross-road in J&K wherein the small holdings, profitability, livelihood security and sustainability issues are the factors adding to the existing agrarian crisis in the state in particular and the country in general. This requires a decisive direction shift at the policy level towards adoption of integrated farming system. There is a need of fundamental change from the unilateral, top-down, prescriptive “knowledge generation and transmission” models of agriculture development adopted in the country so far, which have in fact resulted in an ecological, economic and social crisis in the farming sector of the state during 40 years of adoption and that climate change is one more imperative for drastic change to address the situation. Climate change is already a reality for farming community and that conventional models of agricultural research and extension have failed to address the need of the hour unless some fundamental recasting in the form of diversified farming system is adopted. The immediate need for interventional action precludes traditional models of research and support systems and requires alternative but urgent programmatic interventions, led by farmers’ institutions and their local resources, knowledge and innovations. Existing mainstream models of farming are GHG-inducing and are not conducive to adoption either given their high external-input dependency-models which increases the risk of vulnerable farmers. Integrated farming system a key to sustainable agriculture, on the other hand, holds immense mitigation and adaptation potential, specifically in the context of climate change even as it improves rural livelihoods and addresses the ecological crisis in farming of today under various climatic regions of Jammu in particular and state in general. Jammu region of the J&K state is bestowed with varying climate zones i.e. subtropical, intermediate and temperate zones, which is best suited for diversified farming,as the promotion of single enterprise is neither beneficial from economy point of view nor is sustainable under the given climate change crisis. The integration of Crops, Horticulture, Animal ,Fish cum Poultry, Mushroom, Vermicompost, Apairy, Biogas and Boundary plantation enterprises in Jammu region under integrating farming system is having the potential to improve the farm income to three folds besides will address the sustainability issues in the long run.

Abstract

Remote sensing has wider applications in agriculture right from landscape mapping, soil moisture, planting dates, cropping systems to climate change effects. Growing uncertainties of weather and climate change pose a major threat to food security of the country and thus warrant for farmers empowerment of informed decision in agricultural risk management. The technology is competent to monitor crop growth, predict crop yield in terms of quantity and quality, assists in estimating crop acreage, its condition, disease and pest status. Over the last two decades, the development of space technology has led to a substantial increase in satellite earth observation systems. Simultaneously, the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) revolution has rendered increasingly effective the processing of data for specific uses and their instantaneous distribution on the World Wide Web (WWW). Satellite data provide better coverage in time and in area extent than any other alternative. It is important to make maximum use of this information to monitor our environment. Access to these Satellite data and products is only the beginning. In addition, the ability to interpret, combine, and make maximum use of this information is an integral part of weather and climate management at the national level. Production estimates, post harvest and quantity available for market enable the farmers and policy makers to chalk out sustainable strategy to match supply with market demand.

Abstract

A Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) is synonymous to farm science center with responsibilities of on- farm technological assessment, front line demonstrations, capacity building, advisory services and mulit-sector support to various private and public initiatives. The KVKs work under the ambit of ICAR, New Delhi with administrative support from local institutions or State Agricultural Universities. There were about 695 KVKs operational in India till October 2018. All KVKs fall under the jurisdiction of one of the 11 Agricultural Technology Application Research Institutes (ATARIs) spread throughout India. 21 KVKs are functioning in Jammu and Kashmir with seven of them in Jammu province namely KVK Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Reasi, Rajouri, Doda and Poonchh. The major thrust areas of hilly district Jammu and Kashmir are as integrated nutrient/pest/weed management in different crops, water management, promoting organic farming, protected cultivation of high value and low volume crops, promotion of aromatic and medicinal plants, increase in the productivity of livestock, drudgery reduction for farm women, promotion of loose flower cultivation, promotion of new single cross hybrids in maize, value addition of agricultural products and promotion of farming system approach. KVK Reasi has been able to motivate farmers of the district to adopt and practice organic farming, floriculture, backyard poultry farming and mushroom production at the commercial level.

Abstract

India with population of 1.30 billion in which 47 per cent is engaged in agriculture earnestly needs efficiently use of biotechnology and genetic engineering for transforming agriculture sector. Biotechnological tools offer great opportunities for increasing agricultural production and can play an important role towards the attainment of production sustainability of crops. Biotechnological tools have the potential to release burgeoning pressure on agriculture and allied sectors; ecology and environment; plant, animal and microbial biodiversity; and allied resources such as land and water with improved and sustainable agricultural productivity which enhances food security. Agricultural biotechnology, including tissue culture, DNA-marker-assisted breeding and genetic engineering (GE) technology have potential to increase stress tolerant, selection efficiency, crop adaptation, crop productivity and food security in more efficiently manner through the development of improved varieties with increased yields, nutritional content and storage characteristics. Genetic engineering tools should continue to build capacity in this technology, giving priority to traits and crops that are of economic importance such as drought tolerance in maize, rice, beans; cold tolerance in rice; increased nutritional value and improved shelf life in fruits and vegetables. Crop varieties and livestock with improved characteristics have been developed using tools such as marker-assisted breeding and genetic engineering. Molecular pharming is one of the applications of genetically modified crops and livestock for the production of pharmaceutical proteins. Reproductive technologies are alternative ways for genetic improvement of livestock. The development of molecular diagnostics and vaccine technology as a tool improved the ability to detect and treat several diseases of livestock. The advancements in biotechnological tools such as protein engineering and metabolic engineering play a significant role in production of a large number of valuable and high quality industrial products.

Abstract

Climate models predict a global average increase of air temperatures in the range of 14^°C by 2100 (IPCC 2014) - a pace exceeding that of past climatic modifications. Change in temperature is expected to influence species occurrence and distribution with up to 37% of all extant species “committed to extinction” due to climate change. These predictions, however, do not include species interactions and evolutionary change which will significantly alter the fate of species. It is therefore important to improve our understanding of host-parasite interactions and subsequent evolution in response to environmental changes in general and temperature changes in particular. Globally livestock production systems are estimated to account for around 18% of emissions. The need of hour is to draw on recent advances in climatology and epidemiology of various parasitic diseases to consider how environmental changes linked with urbanization and climate change can alter the biology of hosts, pathogens and vectors. Climate change is leading to unusual flare-up of diseases, outbreak recurrences, range expansions, or invasion into novel territories and ecosystems, concomitantly with vector or host range shifts. Higher temperatures increase the invertebrate metabolic rate, egg production amount, and feeding frequency, reducing the duration of the development periods and impacting on the number of generations per year and population abundance effecting livestock and human health and socio-economic transformation

Abstract

The future food grain demand in India is projected to increase beyond 300 million tons by 2025. There are only two ways to meet the increasing food and other agricultural demands of the country’s rising population either expanding the net area under cultivation or intensifying cropping over the existing area. The net sown area of the country has risen by about 20 per cent since independence and has reached a point where it is not possible to make any appreciable increase. The option left is go for high cropping intensity for ahead of present of 137%. A major share of this increase is likely to come from increasing the number of crops produced per year on a given land using improved crop cultivars. Research indicates that maximum intensity of 400-500% is possible provided situation fulfills the requisite factors such as irrigation facilities, short duration varieties, mechanization and agrochemicals are available. The objective of increasing the cropping intensity will be achieved only by the inclusion of short duration varieties of cereals, identification of pulses and oilseed crops that can fit well in the cropping systems of different agro-ecologies that will ultimately improve crop productivity per unit of land making the efficient utilization of resources and will meet the objectives of crop diversification leading to food and economic security of the nation.

Abstract

Women empowerment is a buzz word of every platform starting from household issues to national politics. The best way to empower women is to make them economically self-reliant through entrepreneurial activities. In India agriculture is mainstay of the country and 70 percent women are farmers, so the best measure to empower them is through entrepreneurship in agriculture and allied sectors particularly organic agriculture as India currently holds a prominent position among 172 countries that actively practice it. At present, the country is home to more than 8, 50,000 organic producers, 699 processors, 669 exporters, and 7, 20,000 hectares under cultivation. Merely with 0.4 per cent of total agricultural land area under organic cultivation, India has attained global standing which infers that this industry still has a long way to go in terms of growth and opportunities for socio-economic development. Organic Food industry has been experiencing steadfast growth in past few years in India in spite of several challenges at producer, processor and consumer levels. With its annual turnover of Rs 4000 crore and annual growth rate of 25%, the country’s budding organic food market is transforming into world’s fastest growing organic food market with expected turnover of 10,000 crore by 2020. There is drastic change in consumer behavior and spending patterns in the country which has opened avenues for organic food industry at the national level besides export. This highscale opportunity is driven by the fact that organic food consumption is not even 0.1 percent of India’s $300 billion annual food consumption. Likewise, India’s share in the $100 billion global organic food market is less than 0.2 percent. Further, the scope of the opportunity is also driven by the increasing variety of organic foods hitting the market and the emergence of e-commerce as a channel in which to sell the product. India today is on the threshold of organic revolution where women participation will act as booster but need to be supported by Govts and technical institutions. Barriers to improving women’s agency include widespread deficiencies in policy support to women, and in fact to the organic farming sector as a whole. It is necessary to increase women’s research presence in organic research institutions (including at the higher levels). To enable women to conduct research in the field, it is important to allow women to set research agendas, and to work with their research needs and priorities. Food security as a priority for organic agriculture involves women’s empowerment since they hold a central role in providing nutrition for the household.

1.0 Overview

Natural resources sustain life and are critical for economic development of nations. In developing countries like India where more than half the population is rural, economic development is inextricably linked with agricultural development. In these countries, the food and livelihoods security of the poor are critically associated with access to the services provided by the natural resources - land, soil, water, biodiversity and climate resources. The natural resources are finite, and with increasing population, economic growth, urbanization, and demands for food and other agricultural commodities, these are being increasingly strained. As a result, the productive capacity of the natural resource base is shrinking and deteriorating. Sustaining the productive capacity of natural resources for future generations, while meeting the food and other demands of the growing populations, is the major development challenge of the twenty first century.

In India, during the last forty years the net sown area under agriculture has remained nearly constant at 141 million ha. In the same period, the population has more than doubled (from 541 million in 1970 to 1186 million in 2010) and per capita income grew by more than 3.5 times (from Rs 14824 in 1970 to Rs 53331 in 2010). As available land resources for agriculture are finite, increases in agricultural production to meet the growing demands of the population have to come from intensification of agriculture on the same lands. As a result, the quality of soils on these lands is gradually deteriorating both at the farm and ecosystem levels. The major threats to soil quality come from loss of organic carbon, erosion, nutrient imbalance, compaction, salinization, water-logging, decline in soil bio-diversity, urbanization, and contamination with heavy metals. More than 100 million ha of the total cultivated land of 141 million ha is stated to be under some form of soil degradation.

Similarly, utilizable fresh water resources of India are finite at about 1123 billion cubic meters (BSM), of which about 690 BCM are from surface water resources and 433 BCM are from groundwater. This supply is shared among multiple uses: human and animal consumption, agriculture, urban uses, industry and for provision of environmental services. The total water demand in 2010 is estimated at 710 BCM and is projected to increase to 1180 BCM by 2050. Several parts of India are already facing severe water shortages as a result of the growing demand for water. The quality of water resources is also impacted by agricultural intensification and development, and is increasingly a matter of concern. By the year 2050, when population is expected to stabilize, the shortages will only intensify. The country as whole can be on the verge of becoming a water scarce country, with nearly all the presently estimated utilizable water resources being put to use.

Biodiversity natural resources refer to the abundance of different species and ecosystems in nature. These resources are the primary sources of present and future productive agriculture and human well being, as they provide the basic resources for use in breeding crops and livestock, soil formation and structure, soil fertility, nutrient cycling and the provision of water services. India is among the 12 mega diversity regions of the world. It is known to have more than 18,000 species of higher plants including, 160 major and minor crop species and 325 of their wild relatives. Increasing pressure from human population growth, agricultural intensification, urbanization, pollution and degradation of land, soil and water resources are having a negative impact on the plant, animal and microbial biodiversity resources of the country and their productivity.

Abstract

The ever increasing population in India and the world, impeding threats from the climate change scenario and the increasing demand for land resources from the industrial sector calls for improved resource efficiency. The production strategies are changing from input intensive to integrated resource management strategies. The shift is towards adopting the precision farming technologies like addressing the site specific variability and crop needs. Remote sensing technology coupled with GIS has been recognized as reliable tool in agriculture to guide application of fertilizer, pesticides and other farm inputs. With precision farming, technologies such as grid soil sampling, remote sensing, on- the-go sensing, and electronic yield monitoring help farmers gather very detailed information about the heterogeneous makeup of a farm field. Site specific applications means application of required input only where it is required rather than entire fields or adjusting application rates accordingly. This chapter discussed the input management based on the time of intervention - Input management prior to crop sowing, in season crop management and end of the season.

Keywords : Management zones, soil variability and Remote Sensing

Abstract

Soil Resource Appraisal helps in characterizing the existing land resources, assessing their suitability for various land uses and then helping the user to prepare a rational land use plan suitable for the integrated development of the area. Application of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) helps not only in the characterization of the resource base, but also in the generation of various thematic maps and preparation of land use and action plans for effective implementation of various developmental plans at farm level.

Keywords : Soil Resource Appraisal, Land Use Plan, Farm level Developmental Plans

1.0 Introduction

A thorough knowledge and understanding of soils is basic to the development and management of agricultural resources. About 100 years ago, man began systematic study of soils in the field and tried to separate, classify and map their geographic distri­bution. Today we have sufficient knowledge about soils; however the characterisation, classification and mapping of soils is still tedious, time consuming and costly affair. Therefore the need for adopting new and more rapid and accurate methods of mapping soils has resulted in the use of satellite images with image interpretation techniques for soil survey and map­ping.

In India for the country as a whole, soil and other land resources information is available at 1:1 M scale, which was generated from the state level mapping done at 1:250,000 scale under the Soil Resources Mapping Project of India during the period from 1986 to 1995. This information is of general nature and useful for planning on a wide canvas and not particularly useful for farm or watershed level planning in the country. For site-specific needs and for developmental works at watershed level, we need detailed farm level database at 1:10,000 scale. Once this type of information is generated at village/watershed level, this will be useful for identifying site specific constraints, generation of area and site specific agro technologies, land-use options based on soil site suitability assessment, wasteland identification, identification of prime farm lands and farm clusters for zoning and Strategic planning, preparation of farm level development plans by line departments and proactive advice and technology transfer to farmers.

Abstract

Food security to the increasing population on one side and the increasing export of food grains on the other side has lead to the immediate attention on to raise the food production in our country. The decreasing land availability for agriculture due to the increased degraded lands and use of agricultural lands for non agricultural purposes has still worsened the situation. In order to match with the food requirement from decreasing agricultural lands, Indian agriculture has been pushed towards indiscriminate use of farm inputs exploiting the non renewable natural resources without any concern to the environmental ill effects leading to further degrading of the situation. Even though the concept of sustainability is age old, the importance is felt recently. Sustainable use of resources at farm level can magnify the effect of conserving non renewable resources and reducing ill effects on the environment at state level and to the country. Sustained farm production is a key to manage our resources and environment. Adoption of new information technologies with the conventional agronomic practices to increase farm production is made inevitable due to our past experience. The advancement in the technology tools like Remote Sensing, Geographic Information System, Global Positioning System and Decision Support Systems have paved way for better and effective management of crop production at farm level. 46 Geospatial Technologies for Natural Resources Management

A systematic approach of management involving advanced technologies and conventional agronomic practices through understanding the factors like soil variability, weather parameters and crops that contribute for the sustainable farm production is need of the hour. The spatial and temporal variability of the farm production parameters are to be studied and mapped in relation to historical data of the farm for successful site specific management. Site specific management tools may improve decisions related to site conditions, thereby reducing the aspect of uncertainty in the management system. This approach of farm management using advanced technologies viz., Remote Sensing, Geographic Information System, Global Positioning System, Variable rate technology, crop production modeling and Decision Support System can enable sustainable farm production with beneficial effect on the environment in future.

Keywords : Remote sensing, GIS, Sustainable Farm production, Site Specific Management

Abstract

The present study discusses the cropping pattern changes in Andhra Pradesh agriculture will leads to crop diversification and crop concentration using with Geographical Information System (GIS). Crop data were compiled for the triennium ending period 1980-81, 1990-91, 2000-01 and 2004-05 from various statistical abstracts of Andhra Pradesh. For measuring the crop diversification indices, we have used the Herfindahle index and for crop specialization is measured by using the Location quotient method. The level of crop diversification in the some districts of the state in the eighties is very high. However with the advent of green revolution, there had been a moderate crop unification or crop concentration in the eighties. This trend of crop unification is found to be reversed after 1990-91, though the magnitude of the change is not very striking. The crop diversification is observed to differ across the districts. The level of crop diversification is high in the agricultural backward regions of Rayalaseema and Telangana districts and low in the agriculturally progressive Coastal Andhra districts. During the period 1990-91 to 2004-05, the major trends in crop concentration are increase in the concentration of rice in the districts where it is popularly grown and decline in the concentration of coarse cereal crops, pulses and oilseeds. The concentration of spice crops and fruits and vegetables are also on an increasing trend, which they are popularly grown in their respective districts.

Keywords : Cropping Pattern, Diversification, Location Quotient, Andhra Pradesh, GIS

Abstract

Remote sensing is the art and science of obtaining information about an object or phenomenon without having any contact with the object concerned. Geographical information system is a tool to create, manage, retrieve and query spatial databases. Remote sensing in conjunction with Geographical Information System (GIS) has wide applications in all spheres of life and especially in agriculture. Specifically, this paper reveals some of the applications of remote sensing and GIS in the field of crop condition assessment viz., crop type classification, crop stress detection, crop yield estimation and pest and disease monitoring.

Keywords : Remote Sensing, GIS, Yield Forecasting, Crop Stress, Pest and Disease Monitoring

1.0 Introduction

Remote sensing is the art and science of obtaining information about an object or phenomenon without there being any physical contact. The information is so collected using a device called a sensor. The sensors are mounted on a platform at an advantageous position. Accordingly the remote sensing is called ground based (sensor is hand held or mounted on mast), air borne (sensor is on a balloon or aero plane) or space borne (sensor is mounted on a satellite). The basic principle in remote sensing is that each and every object has unique reflecting property like human thumb impression and when the solar energy is falling on an object a part of it gets reflected, which carries the information about the object. The reflected light is converted in to reflection percentage of incoming solar radiation. This percentage of reflection can be used to work out the vegetation indices which are surrogate measure of crop condition.

Geographical Information System (GIS) is software system which enable Collection of large volume of data with spatial relation Integration of data from different source is possible Analyze such data for our requirement Present the data in different formats (maps, table and reports)

Abstract

Carrying out effective and sustainable agriculture has become an important issue in recent years. A key to this is the usage of modern technologies for precision agriculture. Recent technological developments allowed envisioning sensor devices with distributed ambient sensory network, which could be a potential technology for monitoring various natural phenomena (weather parameters, soil moisture, etc.) at micro level. As more and more agricultural data are virtually being harvested along with the crops and are being collected/ stored in databases, the same can be used in productive decision making if appropriate data mining techniques are developed/applied. As a case study for this, an experiment was conducted with four consecutive agricultural (Kharif and Rabi) seasons in a semi-arid region of India to understand the crop-weather-environment-pest/diseases relations using wireless sensory and field-level surveillance data on closely related and interdependent pest/disease dynamics of groundnut crop. Association rule and multivariate regression mining techniques/algorithms were propose developed /tailor-made to turn the data into useful information/ knowledge/relations/trends to know crop-weather- environment-pest/disease continuum. These findings have been used for development of prediction models (cumulative and non-cumulative) followed by a web based pest/disease decision support system.

Keywords : Data Mining, Pest/Disease Management, Precession Protection, Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract

The rapid development and integration of spatial technologies viz., Geographical Information System (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS) along with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) provide functional alternatives to revolutionize the conventional entomological approaches like surveillance, spatial/temporal distribution of insect populations, pest distribution mapping and predictive modeling. Application of these technologies for insect problems is well established in the fields of forest, range land, medical and agricultural entomology elsewhere. Nevertheless, in India its field relevance in agricultural entomology is still limited owing to lack of proven field prototype studies and collaborative efforts among stakeholders. It’s time to gain real momentum to integrate these progressive technologies to formulate sustainable integrated pest management programs.

Key words: GIS, Remote Sensing, Insect Populations, Field Applications

Abstract

Conventional wisdom holds that variability in rainfall represents a significant variability of agriculture production. But urbanization of the cities on one hand and climate change on theother hand areaffecting the agriculture. Surprisingly, there have been very few analyses exploring the link between rainfall variability and urbanization on agriculture production. Therefore an attempt is made in this paper to know the affect of rainfall variability and urbanisation on the cropping area. For this purposeNDVI analysis is carried out in the catchments of Osmansagar and Himayathsagar Reservoirs by using the medium to high spatial resolution multi spectral data provided by remote sensing satellites, such as Landsat TM, IRS-1C/1D LISS-III and IRS-P6 LISS-III has been used for the years1989, 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2008 for Kharif season, 1975, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2003 and 2008 for rabi season which is collected from NRSC (National Remote Sensing Centre). From this analysis it is found that the increment is more in rabi season compared to kharif season due to the increment of non-monsoon rainfall intensities and ground water withdrawal structures. The increased utilization of the groundwater is causing the reduction of inflows to the reservoirs in the recent years because whatever the rainfall that occurs in the catchment, first utilised for meeting the depleted soil moisture and ground water consequently reducing the surface runoff.

Keywords : Climate change, Urbanisation, Inflows, Cropping area, NDVI

Abstract

Land development in urbanized watersheds poses a potential of increasing storm runoff rates, and therefore increasing the risk of flooding in the downstream areas of a watershed. To investigate the impact of change in land use practices on the watershed hydrology, an hydrological analysis was conducted on Little Kitten Creek watershed located near Manhattan city of Riley county, Kansas, USA. Prior to development, land use types in the watershed included woodland, pasture, and fallow land. However, rapid development has occurred in the watershed in the last ten years. Post development land use practices include commercial development, residential housing, and conservation (woodland and grasslands). Data collected and analyzed included digital elevation model (DEM) of study site, stream network and soil data using ArcGIS (ESRI, 2006) and Arc-Hydro Software (Maidment, 2000). Watershed characteristics such as slopes, channel length, circularity ratios, and drainage density were also computed. The delineated watershed boundary, stream segments and soil data layers were over laid to produce soil maps. Time of concentration (Tc) was determined for the pre and post development conditions in the watershed using seven different methods. The time of concentration values computed using Kerby, Federal Aviation Agency, Kinematic Wave and NRCS (SCS) methods found more reasonable compared to the remaining three methods used.

These computed time of concentration values were observed to be shorter for the post-development condition when compared to the pre-development condition of the watershed. The reduced time of concentration in the post development condition is attributed to increase in percentage of impervious areas due to increased residential development in the watershed; therefore increased rates of runoff in the watershed are expected.

Keywords: Rezoning, Time of Concentration, DEM, Kinematic Wave, Drainage density, Circularity ratio.

Abstract

In the present study an integrated remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) based methodology is adopted for demarcating the groundwater prospective zones and identification of artificial recharge sites in the Peddavanka watershed, Andhra Pradesh. In this study Shuttle Radar Topograhic Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model (DEM) with spatial resolution of 90 m and Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-1A), Linear Imaging Self Scanner (LISS- III) satellite data along with other field and collateral data on geology and well inventory have been utilized to generating the Drainage, Slope, Lineaments and Hydro geomorphology of the study area, which are an essential prerequisites for demarcating water resources and identification of recharge sites. Spatial data integration and analyses are carried out in GIS environment.

Keywords : DEM, Drainage, Hydrogeomorphology, Groundwater prospective zones, Remote sensing, GIS

1.0 Introduction

Groundwater is an important natural resource in arid and semi- arid regions, because most of the places surface water resources are scarce and some places it’s totally absent particularly in hard rock areas. Because in hard rock terrains availability of groundwater is of limited extent and its occurrence is essentially confined to fractured and weathered zones (Saraf and choudhury 1998, Sankar 2002). In these areas groundwater recharge depends on rainfall only. For understanding rainfall recharge mechanism and groundwater management in the watersheds level, first we have to understand the morphometric parameters in the watershed level.

Abstract

Traditionally remote sensing technology has been widely used in the mapping and change detection of vegetation features. Of late research has shown that remote sensing technology can be successfully employed for retrieval of biophysical parameters of vegetation, either by statistical techniques or by employing radiative transfer models (RTMs). This paper gives an introduction to leaf and canopy RTMs, especially about PROSAIL, which is the most commonly used model. It reviews different techniques for inverting RTM models, their merits and performance comparison. The main techniques briefly described are iterative optimization, look-up table, artificial neural network, genetic algorithm and support vector machine. At the end, it gives examples of applications which use canopy biophysical parameters retrieved by inverting RTM.

Keywords: Radiative transfer, PROSAIL, Inversion, Vegetation

1.0 Introduction

Accurate quantitative estimation of vegetation biophysical variables is useful for a large variety of agricultural, ecological, and meteorological applications (Houborg et al., 2007). The spatial and temporal distribution of these variables are important inputs into models quantifying the exchange of energy and matter between the land surface and the atmosphere, developing better yield prediction models and detecting abiotic stresses at regional scales. Among the many vegetation characteristics leaf area index, leaf chlorophyll content and leaf water content are of prime importance (Bacour et al., 2006; Houborg et al., 2007).

Abstract

Any country’s socio-economic development essentially depends on land and water resources. Resource depletion takes place when there is an overstretching due the exploding population, calling for prudent management of the resources. Application of remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) tools in the management of natural resources at different levels including watersheds is quite well known. In addition, applied geoinformatics are also used in research on management of these delicate resources also besides characterization. There is a continuous advent in technology in both hardware and software necessitating updation of application scientist/manager. Once an exclusive tool of elite institutions and government agencies, GISnow became an indispensible part of our day-to-day life. As the urge for information intensifies, new applications of GIS continue to evolve. A concerted effort is needed to develop an information system when vast expanses of natural resources are to be managed and a combination of information tools like remote sensing, global positioning system and GIS always updates the database effectively. However, the cost factor should not hinder the applications at micro level. This necessity calls for attention to popularize free and open sources of software (FOSS) and data (particularly digital elevation models (DEM) and satellite imagery) to put the techniques into use by enthusiasts at village level such that a database at a regional level can be built through participatory GIS. It is in this direc tion the av ailab le li terat ure on appl ied geoinformatics coupled with use of FOSS is reviewed and presented in this article to give an idea as to how an open ended information system could be developed to help the management.

Keywords: Natural resources, management, Remote sensing, GIS, FOSS, DEM

Abstract

Remotely sensed data have become the primary realistic source for natural resources and biomass estimation, since last 30 decades. A summary of earlier research on remote sensing and GIS based biomass estimation approaches and a discussion of existing issues prompting biomass estimation are very valuable for further improving biomass estimation performance with the integration of geographical information systems. This paper discusses the recently most accurately alternative research methods to integration of remote sensing and GIS applications for identification, characterization and analysis of biophysical characters. The remote sensed data and geographical information systems using the accurate assessment of natural resource and management for the enhancement of biomass production and estimation. There is not any other option for the perfectly biophysical and natural resources estimation in small to large area. The earlier research has demonstrated that biomass estimation remains a challenging task, especially in those study areas with complex forest and mixed traditional cropping systems and environmental conditions. Either optical sensor data or radar data are more suitable for forest sites with relatively simple forest stand structure than the sites with complex biophysical environments. A combination of spectral responses and image textures improves biomass estimation performance. More research expertise is needed to focus on the integration of remote sensing, GIS& GPS, the use of multisource data, and the selection of suitable variables and algorithms for biomass estimation at different scales. Understanding and identifying major uncertainties caused by different stages of the biomass estimation technique and applying strength of mind to reduce these uncertainties are critical.

Keywords : Integrating, Remote Sensing, Bio-physical, Resources, Environment

Abstract

Runoff from rainfall is an important component of the hydrological cycle. Estimation of runoff is critical for the design of hydrological structures and drainage systems in watersheds. Different soils, land use, and water management practices affect runoff differently. In real watersheds, land use, soils and weather conditions vary spatially over the geographical area of the watershed leading to spatial variations in runoff. Also, most watersheds form a part of larger drainage basin or a large watershed consisting of several such subwatersheds. Each subwatershed is hydrologically connected to the other subwatersheds of the basin. A comprehensive GIS based decision support system (DSS) for estimation of runoff that includes the spatial variations in rainfall and natural resources is presented. The DSS is developed as a deployable application by integrating independent GIS layers of watershed features created in ArcGIS with MapObjects in VB, for a case study watershed - the KK3 watershed in Mahbubnagar district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The DSS generates thematic maps of spatial variations in runoff on individual rainy days for the subwatersheds.

Keywords : GIS, GUI, Land use, Rainfall, Remote Sensing, Runoff, Soil, Sub-watershed, Watershed 228 Geospatial Technologies for Natural Resources Management

Abstract

Soil quality assessment has been recognized as an important step towards understanding the long term effects of land management practices within agricultural watersheds. Potential soil quality issues include continued high rates of erosion, losses of organic matter, reductions in soil fertility and productivity, as well as chemical and heavy metal contamination. This case study addressed the spatial variability of soil properties and its quality at the watershed level using geostatistical methods. Soil samples from the 0- to 20-cm depth were collected on a 100- by 100-m grid across an 88-ha watershed at Sakaliseripalli village in the Nalgonda District in Andhra Pradesh State, India. Geostatistical analysis showed that most of the soil parameters were moderately spatially dependent. An assessment framework, that included a minimum data set, linear scoring technique, and additive indices, was used to evaluate the soil quality index (SQI). Through principal component analysis, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable Na percentage, DTPA-extractable Zn, available P, available water, and dehydrogenase activity have been emerged as the most important indicators for evaluating soil quality. A kriged map of SQI was prepared for the watershed. The SQI was found to be higher in irrigated systems than under rainfed conditions. In the study, potential soil loss calculated using the Universal Soil Loss Equation and crop yield were identified as the quantifiable management goals; the results indicated that soils having higher soil quality indices were more productive and less erosion prone.

Keyword : Principal Component analysis, SQI, Watershed, Geostatistics, Potential soil loss

Abstract

Remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) are integrated system in providing precise information on nature, extent and spatial distribution of land resources to assess their potential and limitations for planning, monitoring and management towards sustainable development. The use of remote sensing and GIS provide immense opportunities in the field of large-scale mapping, generate and update of existing geographical databases for decision making in site- specific management and development of land resources. Integration of remote sensing and GIS includes the use of each technology to benefit the other, as well as the application of both the technologies for geospatial modelling and decision support. Remote sensing and GIS integration has clearly benefited from advances in computing and Global Positioning System (GPS) technologies, including innovations in use of decision tree algorithms and neural networks. The generated precise spatial database in GIS on land resources, socio-economic and contemporary technologies could be effectively used to develop GIS based Spatial Decision Support Systems (SDSS) for sustainable management of land resources. In this article an attempt has been made to provide an overview on the remote sensing and GIS technologies as a special decision support tools in inventory, characterization and management of land resources particularly in digital terrain analysis, geomorphological mapping, hydrological applications, soil resource inventory, assessment of soil loss, land degradation and soil fertility, soil-site suitability and watershed prioritization.

Abstract

Agroforestry is an ancient practice that farmers have adopted throughout the world. There are innumerable examples of traditional land use practices combining production of trees and agriculture crops on the same piece of land. In India, the organized agroforestry research began in 1979 when a Seminar on Agroforestry was organized at Imphal by the ICAR, New Delhi. As a follow up to this, ICAR launched an All India Co-ordinated Research Project on Agroforestry (AICRPAF) was started in 1983. The diagnostic survey and appraisal revealed that there are enumerable agroforestry practices prevalent in different agro- ecological zones of India occupying sizeable areas. However, spatial technologies like Geographical Information System (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Positioning System (GPS) have yet to be implemented extensively in this field in India. The spatial technologies have shown great potential in natural resource management through out the world, especially in developed countries in the fields like forest cover mapping, agricultural planning, watershed management, land use planning, etc. In India the agroforestry land use occupy large areas but use of these technologies to estimate area has been initiated in year 2007 with DST sponsored project entitled ‘Spatial and Temporal analysis of agroforestry interventions in North-western India using GIS and Remote Sensing’ The area under agroforestry systems has been estimated/ mapped in two districts viz., Yamunanagar (Haryana) and Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh), where intensive commercial agroforestry was predominant. Besides, the methodology developed as an out come of this study may be replicated for agroforestry systems existing in other parts of the country.

Keywords: Agroforestry, Geo-spatial, Mapping, Natural Resources, Remote Sensing.

Abstract

Agroforestry is an integrated self-sustainable land use management system that is not only capable of producing food from marginal agricultural land but also capable of maintaining and improving the quality of environment. It plays a vital role in achieving integrated rural and urban development. But reliable data on number of trees and area under agroforestry is not available as methodology for estimation of even area under agroforestry is not yet standardized. In this paper, a methodology for estimation of number of trees under agroforestry using high resolution satellite data has been proposed and estimation of number of trees as well as area under agroforestry in Ludhiana district of Punjab State has been done using the proposed methodology. Land use/land cover map of the district has also been generated using ERDAS IMAGINE software. It has been observed from the accuracy assessment that the estimates of number of trees as well as area under agroforestry obtained using the proposed methodology under this study are very reliable. Therefore, the proposed methodology may be replicated for estimating number of trees as well as area under agroforestry in other parts of the country.

Keywords: Agroforestry; Estimation of number of trees, Area estimation; Remote Sensing; GIS

Abstract

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) application in plant genetic resource management allow capture, manipulate, process and display of georeferenced data integrated with genetic resource database for operations such as query and statistical analysis, visualization and geographic representation. GIS based several spatial tools have been developed that model species’ ecological niches finding a relationship between crop or variety with a set of environmental parameters and useful for planning exploration, evaluation trials, in situ and ex situ conservation sites. GIS technologies have direct practical application in elucidation of genetic, ecological and geographic patterns in the distribution of crops and wild relatives; mapping of richness, diversity, distribution of useful traits and, location of areas with complementary diversity; gene bank information management and strategies for future explorations and gap analysis; selection of suitable accessions/sites for ex situ evaluation; searching germplasm for abiotic stress tolerance and developing core collections. With the increasing availability of high- speed computers and software development in the area of GIS tools specific to PGR management increasing trend in application of these is expected. Apart from ecogeographic survey for locating diversity and germplasm collection and design, management and monitoring of in situ reserves, introduction of new varieties, and development of core collection, locating gene donors for biotic and abiotic stresses are the areas to be benefited with the GIS application.

Keywords: GIS, genetic resource, distribution, diversity, core collection, gap analysis, mapping

Abstract

The sustainable management of plant genetic resources is of great concern as increasing population and rapid technological strides are putting enormous pressure on this country’s nutritional and food security. Management of plant genetic resources at national level generates and uses enormous data and analysis of these data is crucial to the effectiveness of PGR management process and can add significantly to the value of genetic resources. A GIS is a database management system that can simultaneously handle data representing spatial objects and their attribute data. GIS allows us to view, understand, question, interpret, and visualize data in many ways that reveal relationships, patterns, and trends in the form of maps, globes, reports, and charts. It can play an important role in the management of large and complex PGR datasets. The article analyses the potential uses of GIS in plant genetic resources management in India covering various activities such as germplasm exploration and collection, characterization and evaluation, plant health management, documentation and conservation.

Key words : plant genetic resources, germplasm, conservation, documentation, DIVA-GIS,

Abstract

This study was conducted at Directorate of Cashew Research (DCR) Puttur, D.K., Karnataka during 2007-12. In this study, a methodology was standardized to find the area under cashew, barren areas and other areas for expanding cashew cultivation with remote sensing. It was found that the images pertaining to the month of November was best for classifying cashew since the colour of cashew leaves changes during that period. Also, the LISS III images were found to be good for identifying cashew. It was not possible to differentiate between cashew seedling area and cashew graft area using LISS III or LISS IV images. A spatial database of soil moisture was prepared for the irrigation scheduling in cashew and a spatial database of major nutrients was prepared for the site specific nutrient management in cashew gardens. A spatial database of land slope and stream orders was prepared using GIS and suitable soil and water conservation interventions were suggested for the selected area.

Keywords: Cashew, GIS, remote sensing