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Effect of mini-sprinkler irrigation, tillage and residue on productivity, profitability and resource saving in rice–wheat system in western Indo-Gangetic Plains of India

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Abstract

Conventional rice–wheat system (RWCS) in the western Indo-Gangetic plain (IGP) of India is water and nitrogen intensive. Mini-sprinkler irrigation system (MSIS) is water and nitrogen efficient and helps in achieving higher nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). A comparative evaluation of MSIS versus surface irrigation system (SIS) was made to assess the NUE, water saving and techno-economic feasibility of the MSIS in RWCS. A four-year (2012–16) field experiment was conducted with four treatments namely, (1) SIS in puddled transplanted rice (PTR)—conventional tilled wheat (CTW) (SIS-PTR/CTW), (2) SIS in reduce tilled direct seeded rice (DSR)—zero tilled wheat (ZTW) with 100% rice residue mulch (RM) (SIS-DSR/ZTW + RM), (3) MSIS in DSR and ZTW with 100% RM (MSIS-DSR/ZTW + RM), and (4) MSIS in DSR with 1/3rd wheat residue and ZTW with 100% RM (MSIS-DSR + R/ZTW + RM). MSIS-DSR + R/ZTW + RM produced 5% lower system yield, but saved 49% of the applied irrigation water, resulting in 93% higher irrigation water productivity and 38% higher input water productivity as compared to SIS-PTR/CTW. Additionally, MSIS-DSR + R/ZTW + RM treatment recorded 38% less nitrogen use and 54% higher nitrogen use efficiency. Though the benefit cost (B:C) ratio of MSIS-DSR + R/CTW + RM is lower (1.45) compared to SIS-PTR/CTW (1.80) still it could be a feasible option in the areas having limited/scarce water for irrigation, and can bring more areas under irrigation.

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Acknowledgements

This research was conducted as part of Consortia Research Platform on Conservation Agriculture (CRP on CA) project code (1009267) funded by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi. The authors are grateful to the Prioritization, Monitoring and Evaluation (PME) cell of ICAR-CSSRI, Karnal, for internal review of the manuscript (Research article/150/2020). We are thankful to the Chief Editor and anonymous reviewers for their constructive and insightful comments which improved the quality of the manuscript a lot.

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  1. Ajay Singh

    Present address: Regional Research Station, Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Rohtak, Haryana, 124 001, India

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  1. ICAR-Central Soil Salinity Research Institute, Zarifa Farm, Kachhwa Road, Karnal, Haryana, 132 001, India

    Ranbir Singh, Ajay Singh, Satyendra Kumar, Ram K. Fagodiya, Parvender Sheoran, Arvind Kumar Rai, Sonia Rani & Priyanka Chandra

  2. Department of Soil Science, Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, 125 004, India

    Sonia Rani

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Singh, R., Singh, A., Kumar, S. et al. Effect of mini-sprinkler irrigation, tillage and residue on productivity, profitability and resource saving in rice–wheat system in western Indo-Gangetic Plains of India. Paddy Water Environ 21, 479–495 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10333-023-00942-w

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