DROUGHT MITIGATION THROUGH HYDROGEL APPLICATION IN RICE (Oryza sativa L.) CULTIVATION

Sustainability in irrigation is an essential step towards responsible water consumption. In recent years, many studies have sketched climate-resilient agricultural practices to fight drought and uncertain rainfall patterns. Major rain-fed crops such as paddy and wheat require aid when there are abnormal dry spells. To mitigate the loss of crops from such events, superabsorbent polymers can be used. Soils amended with hydrogel or Superabsorbent polymer (SAP) retain moisture during drought to prevent loss of water through evaporation and percolation. This allows the crop to grow with less shock from drought. This study compares rice (Oryza sativa L.) growth rate under application (treatment groups) and non-application (control groups) of hydrogel, considering their high-water requirement. NDLR07 (recently developed) and BPT5204 (local variety) rice varieties were chosen for the current study. Randomized controlled trials were performed for each variety on a control group (NC & BC) and 3 treatment groups with 20% (NT20 & BT20), 40% (NT40 & BT40), and 60% (NT60 & BT60) deficit water supplies respectively. N, T, C refers to seed type, treatment group, control group respectively. Intermittent drought condition was imposed for 14 days to assess the resilience of crops. The water retention capacity of the sandy loam soil was better for treatment groups by 20% than control groups even at an average temperature of 40 ℃. Treatment groups continued growing through the drought phase and after, while control groups showed stagnation. Among the tested treatment groups, NT20 had the highest growth among all trials. The results of the study suggested that hydrogel application can help to combat droughts and thereby contribute to sustainable agricultural production by restricting the involvement of climate changes