Dibyendu Chatterjee

Weed management practices in upland direct seeded jhum rice under the Eastern Himalayas

In upland direct seeded jhum rice, weed infestation is a serious problem, which results in drastically reduced the crop yield. Average yield of rice crop in North-Eastern Hilly region including the Nagaland is very low due to non-availability of adequate and suitable crop production technology. Among them, the principal factor associated with low yield in jhum rice is severe weed competition. Jhum farmers of this region traditionally apply common salt (NaCl) in upland rice as a post-emergence to manage broad leaf weeds. Keeping the above facts in view, an efforts have been made to study the validation of indigenous technical knowledge for weed management in upland jhum rice to evolve a feasible weed management practices for tribal community of the region. Therefore, a replicated field experiment with rice cv. Bhalum-3 was conducted during kharif seasons of 2013 and 2014 at farmers’ field in Medziphema village of Dimapur district in Nagaland. The following 12 treatments of common salt (2–20% or 20–200 kg/ha) including control and weed free check were imposed in completely randomized block design and replicated thrice. The common salt was applied as foliar spray through flat fan nozzle using water as a carrier @ 500–600 l/ha at 20 and 40 DAS to the rice. Results revealed that altogether 17 weed species were identified in upland jhum rice, among them the broad-leaved weeds viz. Borreria hispida, Urena lobota, Eupotorium odoratum and Biden pilosa noted the prominent weed flora. Application of increasing levels of common salt i.e. 2 to 20% NaCl increased weed control efficiency (WCE%) but highest values were recorded with application of 20% common salt at 20 DAS as compared to salt applied at 40 DAS. Among the levels of common salt, application of 10% NaCl gave significantly higher grain yield (2315.6 kg/ha) as compared to their preceding levels except weed free check (2517.7 kg/ha).

Towards the Natural Resource Management for Resilient Shifting Cultivation System in Eastern Himalayas

Eastern Himalayan states in general and Nagaland in particular are known for their diversified cultural heritage and jhum cultivation as mainstay of livelihood. Inhabitants in this region are otherwise non-vegetarian and rice is the staple food. Traditional jhum cultivation is not subsistent to fulfil the requirement of the increasing population in the hilly states. Reduced jhum cycle (3–5 years), widespread water scarcity during the post-monsoon seasons, subsistence agriculture practice, lack of awareness about improved agriculture technologies, poor credit and marketing facilities, lack of infrastructures, pitiable socio-economic status of the people, etc. are the major issues confronted by the tribal people in the eastern Himalayan region. In this perspective, holistic approaches with modern agro-based interventions for augmenting production, productivity, income and employment generation in a sustainable manner are the need of the hour. This document depicts the agricultural scenario in several cluster villages in different districts particularly Mon, Wokha, Longleng, Peren, Kohima and Dimapur in Nagaland. The introduction and popularization of scientific intervention in agriculture and allied sector have changed the mindset of many tribal poors in adopted villages and became instrumental in the transformation of traditional jhum cultivation into a profitable agricultural enterprise. Moreover, the farmers have accepted the modern agro-techniques and high-yielding varieties (HYVs) of crops and livestock, cultivation practices, soil and water conservation measures and integration of livestock components in traditional agriculture. Increasing cropping intensity, productivity, gross returns from unit area and several-fold increase in employment generation were among the few several achievements following the implementation of agro-based intervention.