25 Jun Integrated Farming System for Higher Income, Security and Optimum Resource Utilization in Arid Regions
शुष्क क्षेत्र में उच्च आय, सुरक्षा और उपयुक्त संसाधन उपयोग के लिए एकीकृत खेती प्रणाली The Indian hot arid zone occupies over 31.7 m ha area of which 81.0% lies in two states i.e. Rajasthan and Gujarat. The characteristic features of this region are low and erratic rainfall (100 -420 mm/year), extreme temperatures (-5.7 to 50.0°C), long sunshine duration (6.6-10 hours), low relative humidity (30%-80%) high wind velocity (9-13 kmph) and high evapotranspiration (1500-2000 mm). The soils are poor in nutrients, wind erosion occurs on a mammoth scale and paucity of water is a perennial bottleneck. Dry land farming in farming system mode is the main occupation of the people . The crop yields are meager and unstable and consequently the income from the existing cropping alone is hardly sufficient to sustain the farm family. The local inhabitants have evolved suitable land use and management systems of farming, pastoralism and animal husbandry. However, these local survival systems have now become inadequate to fulfill the needs of ever increasing population. Over the years, economic considerations have overtaken the sustainability issues. This has resulted in over-exploitation of the resources causing rapid and widespread land degradation and decline in productivity. Integrated farming system (IFS) approach has been widely advocated as a means to harmonize use of...