Punjab

Of the total geographical area of 5.04 million ha, 4.2 million ha is cultivated and about 96% area is irrigated. Under intensive agriculture, the alluvial soils are showing multi-nutrient deficiencies and low organic carbon levels. The declining soil health is causing reduction in factor productivity and stagnation in crop productivity. The central part of the state (3.16 million ha) under rice-wheat system is facing problem of falling water table due to overdraw of groundwater. The south-western part (1.41 million ha) is underlained with poor quality groundwater on one hand and, is threatened on the other hand by waterlogging and secondary salinity with the introduction of canal irrigation and cultivation of rice in place of cotton. Suggested interventions for natural resource management for agriculture in the state are as follows:

� Site-specific nutrient management on 0.5 million ha of rice-wheat promises additional 0.5 million

  tonnes of foodgrains

� Providing 1,000 units of happy seeder/turbo seeder on custom hire basis to increase wheat yields by

  about 0.4 million tonnes/annum besides improvement in soil health

� Adopting zero tillage on 1 million ha to increase wheat yields by about 0.2 million tonnes/annum

� Introducing summer legumes after wheat in rice-wheat rotation on 0.2 million ha to increase pulse

  production by 0.2 million tonnes /annum besides improving soil health

Rice

The state has 2.6 million ha under rice cultivation, which is almost exclusively irrigated area. The state average productivity is about 3.9 tonnes/ha. The constraints in production are shortage of water due to early summer transplanting, unsustainable intensive rice-wheat production systems, soil salinity/alkalinity and deficiency of micro elements, decreasing organic carbon content in soils, imbalanced fertilizer use and bacterial leaf blight. The technological interventions are:

� Growing PR116, PR 118, (non-aromatic), Basmati 386, Basmati 370, Pusa Basmati 2,

   Pusa Sugandh 2, Pusa Sugandh 3 (aromatic rice) and hybrids Pusa RH 10  

� Use of improved Pusa Basmati 1 for bacterial blight tolerance

� Discouraging summer rice cultivation

� Integrated nutrient management involving organic and inorganic sources and related micronutrients

� Promoting conservation agriculture practices like direct seeding of rice

Wheat

The area under wheat cultivation is 3.4 million ha with a production of 14.9 million