Sundargarh sets target to replace paddy with resilient crops in upland
ROURKELA: The rain-fed Sundargarh district has set a target to reduce paddy farming in the upland by 17,000 hectare (ha) and replace with more resilient crops like pulses and oilseeds in next two years.
At 1.63 lakh ha, Sundargarh’s upland accounts for around 52 per cent of the district’s total cultivable land of 3.09 lakh ha of which 76,000 ha is used to grow water-intensive paddy crop during the kharif season. Currently, the total paddy area stands at 2.04 lakh ha.
Chief district agriculture officer (CDAO) Birendra Behera said the traditional practice of paddy cultivation on the upland is proving to be risky with monsoon often playing truant. Both the Central and State governments insist on shifting to non-paddy crops on highland. The district aims to reduce paddy cultivation area on highland by 17,000 ha in two years. Farmers would be encouraged to grow pulses and oilseeds on the 17,000 ha as these crops are more resilient and capable of surviving on soil moisture.
The CDAO further informed that pulses including arhar, biri and moong have been grown over 31,944 ha in the ongoing kharif season. Similarly, oilseeds including sesame, til and groundnut have been cultivated on 11,688 ha. In majority of the blocks, the climatic and soil conditions are ideal for pulses and oilseeds. Only Bonai and Hemgir blocks have red and laterite soil with high acidic condition in most of the areas and hence, have no scope for expansion of oilseeds and pulses.
The average production of pulses in Sundargarh is around 6.2 quintal per ha and oilseeds like sesame, til and mustard fetch an average of seven quintal per ha. The average production of groundnut is around 15 quintal. “Sundargarh’s average yield of pulses and oilseeds except groundnut is below the national and State average. But it can easily go up with intensive cultivation. Even with the low yield, farmers are not discouraged as cultivation of these crops costs less,” Behera added.
Meanwhile, a Central team under the National Food Security Mission led by agriculture expert Dr Arbind Kumar wrapped up its two-day visit to Sundargarh on Thursday. The team visited Subdega, Balishankara, Kutra and Kuanrmunda blocks to monitor and assess implementation of Central assistance on carrying out demonstration programmes for cultivation of paddy, moong, biri, arhar and groundnut over 1,584 ha.