Crop establishment and diversification strategies for intensification of rice-based cropping systems in rice-fallow areas in Odisha

CONTEXT OR PROBLEM: In the Indian state of Odisha, rice-based system productivity is poor due to: (i) low rice yield in the monsoon (wet) season (2–4 t ha(−1) compared to 6–8 t ha(−1) in Punjab or Haryana); and (ii) limited cropping during the post-monsoon (dry) season (59% of the wet season rice area is left fallow in the dry season). OBJECTIVE: Our study identifies strategies for increasing rice-based system productivity through: (i) alternative crop establishment methods in the wet season (Dry-Direct Seeded Rice or DSR, and mechanical puddled transplanted rice or PTR-M) to traditional methods such as broadcasting followed by post-emergence tillage (locally known as beushening) and manual random puddled transplanted rice (PTR-R); (ii) to identify rice-fallow areas suitable for pulse and oilseed cultivation in the dry season; and (iii) to evaluate the performance of short-duration pulses (green gram, Vigna radiata; black gram, Vigna mungo), and oilseeds (Brassica rapa var. toria, Helianthus annuus) in rice-fallow areas in the dry season. METHODS: On-farm experiments were conducted between 2017 and 2019 in three districts of Odisha (Bhadrak, Cuttack and Mayurbhanj) to evaluate DSR compared to beushening and PTR-R; and PTR-M compared to PTR-R and manual line puddled transplanted rice (PTR-L) in the wet season. The data from Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Sentinel-1satellite sensors was used to identify rice-fallow areas, and the daily SMAP (Soil Moisture Active Passive) L-band soil moisture was used for mapping suitable rice-fallow areas for growing pulses and oilseeds. Short duration crops were evaluated in suitable rice-fallow areas. RESULTS: In the wet season, DSR (range −4 to + 53%) had a significant effect on rice yield over beushening. Similarly, PTR-M consistently increased rice yield by 16–26% over PTR-R, and by 5–23% over PTR-L. In the dry season, pulse crops (green gram and black gram) performed well compared to Indian mustard under rainfed cultivation. However, under irrigated conditions, dry-season rice yield was more productive than the rice equivalent yield of green gram, black gram and sunflower. We found that 1.03 M ha (i.e., ∼50%) of total rice-fallow areas of 2.1 M ha were suitable for growing short duration green gram and black gram in the dry season. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that system productivity and cropping intensity can be increased by adoption of DSR and PTR-M in the wet season, and growing of green gram and black gram in the dry season. IMPLICATIONS: Odisha state can potentially produce an additional 0.67 million tonnes pulses if suitable rice-fallow areas are brought under green gram and black gram cultivation in the dry the season.