Not Available

Not AvailableThe maize (Zea mays L.)-wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cropping system (MWCS) could be better alternative to rice-wheat cropping system (RWCS), due to its lower water requirement, methane (CH4) emission and soil degradation. However, the global warming potential (GWP), greenhouse gas intensity (GHGi) and benefit cost ratio (BCR) of the MWCS need to be quantified in order to propose management practices for GWP mitigation. To achieve the objective of the study a field experiment was conducted at the ICAR-IARI, New Delhi during 2012-14. The experiment consisted of six treatments, viz. N0 (control), Urea, Urea+FYM, FYM, Urea+NI (nitrification inhibitor) and NOCU (neem oil coated urea). Two-year average results showed that as compared to urea treatment, GWP of MWCS lowered by 6, 16, 31 and 62% in urea+NI, NOCU, Urea+FYM and FYM, respectively. GHGi lowered by 6, 6, 24 and 46% in urea+NI, NOCU, Urea+FYM and FYM, respectively. The BCR was higher in NOCU and Urea+NI as compared to urea treatment; however, it was lower in FYM and urea+FYM. Thus, NOCU is capable for mitigating GWP and lowering GHGi with higher BCR from MWCS.Not Availabl

Not Available

This is Biennial Report (2014-16) for AlCRP on management of salt affected soils and use of saline water in agriculture.In India, 6.73 million ha (M ha) area has been characterized as salt affected, out of which 3.77 M ha is sodic and the remaining 2.96 M ha is saline. Besides, use of poor quality water in different states varies from 32- 84%. These soils and waters threaten the livelihood security of farming community. Uttar Pradesh has the largest sodic area 1.35 M ha with 35.75% of total sodicity affected area. Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Haryana and Punjab are having about 80% of the total sodic lands. Similarly, salinity is a serious problem across 13 states of the country with Gujarat having largest area of 1.68 M ha. Gujarat, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Maharashtra are severely affected states. As per estimates of ICARCSSRI, India loses 11.18 million tonnes (M t) of cereals, oilseeds, pulses and cash crops from 3.77 M ha sodicity affected area every year; which is equivalent to the monetary loss of Rs. 1,50,000 million (Rs. 15,000 Crores). Also crop production loss due to salinity at the national level is 5.66 million tonnes (M t), accounting for the annual monetary loss of Rs. 80,000 million (Rs. 8,000 Crores), at prevailing Minimum Support Prices (MSP) of different crops during 2015. It is matter of pleasure that over the past few decades, chemical amelioration of sodic soils in Indo-Gangetic plains of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh has been well standardized. With the support of World Bank, European Union and other developmental agencies, India has reclaimed 1.95 M ha of sodic lands in various states with signicant contribution to Indian food basket. Use of salt tolerant varieties of rice, wheat, mustard and other crops has played important role in enhancing productivity under such situations. Implementation of large-scale subsurface drainage projects under schemes like CADA, RKVY, etc. has picked up reclaiming about 66500 ha waterlogged saline soils. Reclamation and management of sodic and saline soils, use of tolerant crop varieties and strategies for management of poor quality ground waters in India have made positive impact on increasing cropping intensity, crop yields, improving the socioeconomic status of farmers and ensuring livelihood security. The twelve centres of AICRP located in various agro-ecological regions work to nd solutions to location specic water and salt problems and to provide technologies suiting to those environments. It is satisfying that soil and ground water characterization studies are being undertaken in different states and results are compiled to produce soil and ground water quality maps and to provide guidelines for their use. Several technologies notably chemical amendments and organic manures for reclamation of black sodic soils, cost effective agronomical/irrigation management interventions to use saline/sodic waters in alluvial soils, resource conservation technologies in sodic soils in Gangetic plains, subsurface drainage with controlled option for waterlogged saline Vertisols in southern peninsular India, groundwater recharge in poor quality areas, use of drip/ sprinkler for vegetables in coastal region as well as for eld crops in arid region, use of protected structures for growing vegetables with poor quality waters, land shaping and integrated farming system models in coastal lands are being tested and successfully demonstrated through eld trials and operational research programmes. I believe that the site-specic technologies developed at coordinating unit and cooperating centres have the potential of application not only within limits of state of jurisdiction but beyond the state. This biennial report contains the research results for 2014-16 at 12 research centres including 4 volunteer centres covering arid, semiarid, irrigated, rainfed and coastal eco-systems.Not Availabl

Not Available

Not AvailableIrrigation with saline water results in the build-up of soil salinity and reduces crop yield. Irrigation method influences amount of salt added to soil through irrigation. In this study, salt additions to crop root zone by both surface and drip method were computed and leaching requirement (LR) in both cases were estimated. The data of cauliflower experiment conducted at Hisar in Haryana where crop was grown with 0.4, 2.5, 5.0 and 7.5 dS m-1 levels of irrigation water salinities (ECiw) under surface and drip irrigation used in this study. As experimental results cauliflower tolerated 3.2 and 5.9 ECiw (dS m-1) under surface and drip irrigation, respectively. Overall, cauliflower yield was 13.64-42.86% higher in drip irrigation as compared to surface irrigation. However, the salt accumulation was 22-23% lower, and LR was 38-42% lower in drip irrigation than the surface irrigation. It was observed that cauliflower tolerated higher level of ECiw, with lower salt accumulation and LR as compared to surface irrigation system. The results would be helpful in convincing vegetables growers to use drip in case of saline water irrigation as it would give more yield per drop of water while using higher saline water at lower level of salinization.Not Availabl

Not Available

Not AvailableA field experiment was conducted to study the impact of different nitrogen (N) management options on the nutrient uptake, biomass carbon sequestration and yield of maize-wheat system in reclaimed sodic soil of the Trans-Gangetic Plains of India. Seven N management treatments – T1 [100% recommended dose of N (RDN) + 10 t ha−1 farm yard manure (FYM)]; T2 (100% RDN); T3 (75% RDN + 25% N through FYM); T4 (50% RDN + 50% N through FYM), T5 (25% N through FYM); T6 (50% N through FYM) and T7 (control; No N) were tested. Maximum nutrient uptake, biomass carbon sequestration and yield of maize-wheat system were reported in 100% RDN + FYM treatment. Total biomass carbon sequestration and yield were significantly higher by 47.8% and 30.4%, respectively in 100% RDN + FYM as compared to control treatment. However, 100% RDN + FYM was statistically at par with the 100% RDN, 75% RDN + 25% N through FYM, and 50% RDN + 50% N through FYM treatments for both these variables. Nutrient uptake, total carbon sequestration and yield in 50% N through FYM and 25% N through FYM were insignificantly higher as compared to control, but significantly lower than the 100% RDN treatment. Results indicated that the addition of FYM with RDN increased the nutrient uptake, biomass carbon sequestration and yield of maize-wheat system. Higher biomass carbon sequestration and sustainability to maize and wheat cropping system is need of the hour in the study area.Not Availabl

Not Available

Not AvailableConventional rice-wheat cropping system (RWCS) in western Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) is carbon and energy intensive. A field experiment was conducted to evaluate energy budgeting, carbon footprints (CF) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from RWCS under long-term tillage and residue management practices. Experiment consisted six treatment combination of tillage [conventional tillage (CT), reduced tillage (RT) and zero tillage (ZT)] and residue [with residue (+R) and without residue (–R)] namely (i) CT-R (conventional farmers’ practice), (ii) CT + R, (iii) RT-R, (iv) RT + R, (v) ZT-R and (vi) ZT + R. Energy consumption ranged from 51.87 GJ ha−1 (ZT-R) to 64.91 GJ ha−1 (CT + R) and irrigation water was major energy intensive input (41–44%) followed by chemical fertilizer (32–40%). Compared to CT-R, energy use efficiency (EUE) increased by 8.7–22.4%, CF lowered by 77.9–34.3%, and GHG emission lowered by 12.8–16.3% in different treatments. Residue addition enhanced the soil carbon accumulation in ZT + R (1213 kg C ha−1 yr−1) and RT + R (987 kg C ha−1 yr−1). Overall, switching from CT–R to ZT + R lowered energy consumption (19%), GHG emission (16%) and CF (78%), making it best-bet option for climate change mitigation and global warming related environmental protection in western IGP and similar agro–ecologies.Not Availabl

Not Available

Not AvailableGlobal warming, management of soil health, remediation of contaminated wastewater,and sustainable alternate source of energy are the major challenges of the 21st century. Biochar has an enormous potential in addressing these global issues and can act as a catalyst in achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). Biochar produced from waste biomass (crop residues, algal biomass, municipal waste, etc.) has dual advantages of waste management along with its application in different sectors. The mineral contents and buffering capacity of biochar make it an ultimate catalyst for anaerobic digestion which significantly enhances bioenergy production. Supplementing anaerobic digestion with biochar can increase biogas and biological hydrogen production up to 57% and 118% respectively, over control. Biochar addition to soil improves soil health, porosity and aeration which mitigates greenhouse gas emission from soil. Addition of biochar at the optimum level in rice can reduce cumulative methane emission up to 60%. In this manuscript, the potential of biochar for bioenergy production (biogas and biological hydrogen production), greenhouse gases mitigation, carbon sequestration in soils, and wastewater remediation is discussed in detail along with the challenges and future prospects of biochar. This review identifies the key issues which need to be addressed for sustainable utilization of biochar.Not Availabl

Not Available

Not AvailableFood safety has gained increasing importance over the years due to its impact on the health of consumers and the growth in the domestic and global trade in food products. Production of safe food is essential for protecting consumers from the hazards of food borne illnesses. Further, food safety is an integral part of food security and also contributes towards increasing competitiveness in export markets. Food safety hazards may occur at different stages of the food chain starting right from primary production and extending to secondary and tertiary processing, storage and distribution, and packaging. It is therefore very important to address food safety starting from the field level. Implementing good practices during on-farm production and post-production processes is of immense importance for assuring a safe food supply. Many importing countries as well as domestic buyers, especially organized retailers, are now requiring producers to implement Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) as a prerequisite for procurement to ensure the quality and safety of their produce. Restoration of soil quality for the required crop production or to limit and/or slowing down the further deterioration is a pre-requisite for safe and quality food. Thus, preventing productive lands to turn in to saline lands would be the key to sustain agriculture growth and productivity in the country. Non-sustainability of agricultural systems evolves around three principal indicators; soil erosion, soil organic matter decline and salinization. Therefore, there is a urgent need to eliminate the unsafe and unceasing components of traditional agriculture to result into quality farm produce. The purpose of this Bulletin is to spread the basic concepts of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) amongst all the stakeholders in order to promote sustainable agriculture and contributes to meeting national, environmental and social developmental objectives under salt affected regions.Not Availabl

Role of Biochar in Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation

Not AvailableGlobal warming and associated climate change are becoming a threat to almost all the ecosystems on the earth. According to the intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) special report 2019, the global mean surface (land and ocean) temperature has been increased by 0.87 °C while mean of land surface air temperature has increased by 1.53 °C since 1850–2015. Climate change is affecting food security and human life due to warming, changing precipitation patterns, and the greater frequency of some extreme events. The main cause of global warming is the continuous increase in the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) like CO2, CH4, N2O and fluorinated gases due to several anthropogenic activities. Therefore, reducing the increasing concentration of GHG is necessary to slow down global warming and climate change. Among several options of greenhouse mitigation, application of biochar into the soil is gaining popularity due to several advantages over other options. Biochar is a highly stable form of carbon derived from pyrolysis of biomass at relatively low temperatures. Application of biochar into the soil has been reported to provide multiple benefits like increase in crop yield, nutrient and water use efficiency and several environmental benefits. Recalcitrant nature, relatively higher carbon content and easily available feedstock make biochar a highly sustainable and quick option for carbon sequestration into the soil. Biochar application into the soil not only helps in carbon sequestration but also provides a better option for managing agricultural residues. The application of biochar has also reported for reducing a considerable amount of methane and nitrous oxide emission from the agricultural field due to its priming effect on the soil. Biochar yield, physical properties, and carbon content varies with the type of feedstock and pyrolysis condition. Therefore, the rate of carbon sequestration and mitigation of greenhouse gas is also highly variable, however, the biochar application ultimately leads to a positive contribution towards climate change mitigation. However, most of the reported benefits are confined to laboratory and field trial at institute level, widespread adoption of biochar on farmer’s field is still lacking. In the present chapter, all the aspects of biochar towards carbon sequestration and greenhouse mitigation have been well discussed.Not Availabl