Acta Horticulturae

HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE NEWS
Diversifying the Intensive Cereal
Cropping Systems of the Indo-Ganges
through Horticulture
M.L. Jat, Raj K. Gupta, Olaf Erenstein and Rodomiro Ortiz
Intensive cereal-based cropping systems are
central to food security and reducing poverty
in Asia, which still has the largest number
of poor people in the world. Yet these irrigated
and highly productive systems are subject
to significant and increasing forces of
change. On the supply side they face serious
natural resource management problems,
including the unsustainable exploitation of
water and soils, inefficient use of chemical
inputs, and emerging or worsening disease
and pest problems. On the demand side
they are being transformed by market forces
and changing consumer demands. Both
thrusts imply an increasing role for horticulture
and the present paper explores some of
the implications based on on-going work in
the Indo-Gangetic plains of South Asia.
The “Green Revolution” has boosted cereal
productivity in South Asia, especially for rice
and wheat. This contributed to a 170% increase
in cereal production over the last 40
years, whereas cereal area increased with only
10% (Table 1). Production of horticultural crops
increased even more significantly (on a percentage),
albeit from a lower base. The horticultu-
ral increase was however primarily through area
increase (Table 1). Another important difference
is the driving force behind the increase in production.
The increase in cereal crops was largely
needed to feed a rapidly growing population,
with per capita intake only increasing 10% over
40 years (Table 2). The increase in horticultural
crops was largely due to changing diets,
implying significant increases in per capita consumption
of roots and tubers (namely potato),
vegetables and fruits (Table 2).
Among the major farming systems of South
Asia are those based on rice-wheat cropping
(19% of arable land in the region). The ricewheat
farming system is characterized by a
summer (monsoon) paddy rice crop followed by
an irrigated wheat crop in the dry winter, and
sometimes a short spring vegetable crop. These
intensive cereal-based systems typically also
include vegetables (including potatoes) and livestock
(especially for dairy). This cropping system
comprises the Indus plains in Pakistan and
North-Western India, and the Gangetic Plains in
Northern India, Nepal’s terrai and the northeast
of Bangladesh (Fig. 1).
The rice-wheat cropping pattern has been practiced
by farmers in Asia for more than 1,000
years. Today the rice-wheat cropping systems in
Figure 1. The intensive rice-wheat cropping
systems in the Indo-Ganges (South Asia).
Pakistan
Rice-wheat
zones
India
Nepal
Bangladesh
the Indo-Ganges cover about 14 million ha, of
which in excess of 3/4 are under irrigation. The
Indo-Gangetic Plain is a relatively homogenous
ecological region in terms of vegetation. While
in the western part wheat is the dominating
crop, rice is the dominant crop in the eastern
part. A third of the total South Asian population
lives in this sub-region, making it one of
the most densely populated areas of the world
(see Table 3 for India). More than half the population
is engaged in agriculture. With 2/5 of the
cultivated land of South Asia, this sub-region
provides the bulk of food grains to the population.
Table 1. Area, yield, production, and aggregate change over time by type of food crop in South Asia in early 1960s and early 21st century. Source:
FAO. South Asia comprises Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives Islands, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Group
Aggregate 40 year change
Early 1960s 1 Early 21st Century 2 (% over 1960)
Area Yield Production Area Yield Production Area Yield Production
(million ha) (t/ha) (million t) (million ha) (t/ha) (million t) (million ha) (t/ha) (million t)
Cereals 112.5 1.02 114.3 123.8 2.48 306.5 10.0 143.8 168.2
Pulses 26.5 0.50 13.3 24.4 0.60 14.7 -8.1 19.6 10.0
Oilseeds 27.4 0.14 3.9 38.6 0.25 9.6 40.9 75.5 148.1
Vegetables & melons 3.3 6.46 21.3 7.6 11.37 86.0 129.8 76.0 303.7
Fruits 2.2 7.44 16.5 5.1 10.82 54.9 128.5 45.4 232.4
Roots & tubers 1.0 7.11 7.2 2.3 17.53 40.6 129.3 146.4 464.4
Nuts 0.2 0.54 0.1 0.8 0.68 0.6 254.1 26.0 346.2
1
3-year average: 1961-1963
2
3-year average: 2002-2004
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 46 • NUMBER 3 • 2006 • 27