Gujarat

Gujarat
The state characterized by hot semi-arid conditions has 49% of the total geographical area as cultivated lands (9.6 million ha). The irrigated area is only 32% of the total cultivated area. Rest of the area faces large water deficit. The groundwaters are of poor quality. The alluvial soils are alkaline/saline and deficient in nitrogen, phosphorus and zinc. The cropping intensity is low at 118%. The total foodgrains production of the state is 5.26 million tonnes. The important crops are groundnut, cotton, pearlmillet, maize, sorghum, castor, gram and mustard. Suggested interventions for natural resource management for agriculture in the state are as follows:

� Site-specific nutrient management with yield advantage of 0.9 tonnes/ha to be adopted on 0.2 

  million ha to enhance production by 0.18 million tonnes/annum

� Amelioration of sodic soils through addition of gypsum and introduction of salt tolerant crop 

  varieties to enhance production

Pigeonpea

The crop has witnessed positive growth in area, production and yield during the past three decades. While area under the crop has increased from 1.02 lakh ha in 1975�76 to 2.85 lakh ha in 2005�06, the productivity has almost doubled from 466 to 1,098 kg/ha, resulting in a total production of 3.13 lakh tonnes. Traditionally, medium duration varieties are grown in rainfed areas and short duration varieties have gained popularity in irrigated areas. The major constraints to productivity of pigeonpea are wilt and sterility mosaic disease, pod borer complex (Helicoverpa armigera, Maruca and pod fly), and terminal drought. Suitable interventions are:

� Cultivation of the first CMS based short duration hybrid GTH 1; high-yielding varieties GT 100, GT

   101 and GAUT 001E under double cropping system; and medium duration varieties BDN 2, BSMR

   736 and BSMR 853 under rainfed condition

� Pigeonpea+groundnut intercropping in Saurashtra region

� Bio-intensive IPM modules against pod borer complex

� Integrated nutrient management including soil application of 20 kg sulphur/ha

Groundnut

Gujarat cultivates groundnut in about 2 million ha with an annual production of 4.5 million tonnes and productivity of 2,235 kg/ha. Inadequate availability of quality seeds of high-yielding varieties, terminal drought due to early cessation of monsoon and susceptibility to stem and collar rot are the major constraints limiting the productivity gains of groundnut in the state. With high-yielding varieties and good crop management, yield levels could further be enhanced through the following interventions: