Rainfed Agriculture And Watershed Management Notes

1. Lecture No. 3 : Agroclimatic Zones Of India
Preapred By : Dr. Pooja Goswami
Assistant Professor
Department of Agronomy
College of Agriculture, Balaghat

2. The Planning Commission of India , as a
result of the mid-term appraisal of the planning
targets of the Seven five year plan(1988), has
divided the country into fifteen broad agro-
climatic zones
Based on Physiography, Soils, Geological
formation, Climate, Cropping patterns, and
development of irrigation and mineral resources
for broad agricultural planning and developing
future strategies.
Introduction

3. Agro climatic zone is a land unit is terms of major climates suitable
for a certain range of crops and cultivars(FAO,1983)

4. objective
To integrate plans of the agro- climatic
regions with the state and national plans to
enable policy development based on
techno-agro-climatic considerations.
In the agro-climatic regional planning,
further sub-regionalization was possible
based on agro-ecological parameters.

5. 1. Weatern Himalaya Region
This Region covers Jammu and Kashmir,
Himachal Pradesh and the hilly region of U.P.
 Climate is cool and humid.
Annual rainfall- 1650-2000mm.
Soil is predominantly alluvial.
The valley floors grow rice, while the hilly tracts
grow maize in the kharif season.
Winter crops are barley, oats, and wheat.
 The region supports horticultural crops like
apple, peaches, apricot, pears, cherry, almond,
litchis, walnut, etc. Saffron is grown in this region.
Cropping intensity is lowest in J&K and highest
in Himachal pradesh.

6. Major Constraints of this region
The main problems of this region are poor accessibility, soil
erosion, landslides, inclement weather, inadequacy of marketing
and storage facilities.
The population is generally rural-based and poor.
Measures to develop this region:-
Intensify the soil and water conservation planning.
 Land utility planning should be implemented.
Good storage for transportation, marketing & processing.
Irrigation management like water harvesting technique.

7. 2. Eastern Himalaya Region
This region includes Arunachal Pradesh, the hills
of Assam, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur,
Mizoram, Tripura, and the Darjeeling district of
West Bengal.
Climate is humid and sub humid.
Annual rainfall- 1840-3528 mm.
 The main crops are rice, maize, potato, tea.
 Jhuming (shifting cultivation) prevails in the
hilly areas. The major constraint is soil erosion.

8. Measures to develop this region
 Soil and water conservation for each
watershed.
Educate the people about the harmful
effect of land erosion.
 Facilities of good supply of inputs,
marketing, transportation, processing &
storage.
 Adoption of integrated farming system.

9. 3. Lower Gangatic Plains
West Bengal, eastern Bihar and
the Brahmaputra valley lie in this
region.
Climate is moist humid and dry
humid.
Annual rainfall- 1302-1607mm.
Productivity of rice is lower
than national average but
contributes 12% of total rice
production of country.
 Rice is the main crop and
others are jute, rapeseed, wheat.

10. Major Constraints
Lack of good water management.
Use of local variety.
Less use of HYV.
Inadequate supply of inputs.
Poor marketing and processing.
 Dependency on monsoon.
 Uneducated and poor farmers.

11. 4. Middle Gangetic Plain
This region includes eastern parts of Uttar
Pradesh and Bihar.
It is a fertile alluvial plain drained by the
Ganga and its tributaries.
Climate is moist sub humid to dry humid.
Annual rainfall- 1211-1470mm.
40% of total cropped area is irrigated and
cropping intensity is 142%. Main crops-
sugarcane, paddy, maize, wheat.

12. 5. Upper Gangetic Plain
This region includes the central and western
parts of Uttar Pradesh and the Haridwar and
Udham Nagar districts of Uttarakhand.
Climate is dry sub humid to sub dry climate.
 Annual rainfall- 721-979 mm.
Main crops- rice, wheat, maize and sugarcane.
Irrigation intensity is 131% and cropping
intensity is 145%.
Milk production and processing units are being
established.

13. 6. Transgangetic Plain
This region (also called the Satluj-Yamuna Plains)
extends over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi
and the Ganganagar district of Rajasthan.
Semi-arid characteristics prevail in this region.
Annual rainfall- 650-1250 mm.
Cropping intensity is highest.
 Important crops include wheat, sugarcane, cotton,
rice, gram, maize, millets, pulses and oilseeds.

14. Measures to develop this region
Good water management.
Management and reclamation of user soil.
 Proper use of ground water.
 Diversification of crops.
 Proper livestock and pasture management.
 Increasing of area under vegetables, fruits
and pastures.

15. 7. Eastern Plateau and hills
This region includes the Chhotanagpur
Plateau, extending over Jharkhand, Orissa,
Chhattisgarh.
 Climate is moist subhumid to dry
subhumid.
Annual rainfall is 1271-1436mm.
 The region is deficient in water
resources due to plateau structure and non-
perennial streams.
 Important crops are rice, millets, maize,
oilseeds, ragi, gram and potato.
Soils are red and yellow with occasional
patches of laterites and alluvium.

16. 8. Central Plateau and Hills
The region includes 46 districts of
M.P, Chhattisgarh, U.P and
rajasthan.
Undulating soil topography,
ravines are present.
 Climate is semi arid to dry sub
humid.
Annual rainfall is 400-1550mm.
Main crops are Wheat, Gram,
Jowar, Bajra, Paddy, millets,
oilseeds, cotton and sunflower.
Soils are mixed red, yellow and
black. Scarcity of water is major

17. Measures to develop this region
water conservation through water
saving devices like sprinklers and drip
system.
crop diversification.
ground water development.
 reclamation of ravine lands.

18. 9. Western Plateau and Hills
This region includes Malwa plateau and Deccan plateau
(Maharashtra), some parts of M.P and Rajasthan.
 It covers maximum parts of peninsular area.
This is a region of the regur (black) soil.
Climate is semi-arid.
 Annual rainfall- 602-1040 mm.
 Net sown area-65%, forest area-11%, irrigated area-
12.4%.
Major crops- jowar, bajra, cotton and wheat.
 Irrigation is mainly done by canals.
This region provides 50% jowar of our country and best
quality of orange, grape and banana.

19. Measures to develop this region
Increasing water efficiency by popularizing
water saving devices like sprinklers and drip
system.
The lower value crops of jowar, bajra and
rainfed wheat should give way to high value
oilseeds.
Improvement of milk production of cattle and
buffalo through cross-breeding along with poultry
development should be encouraged.

20. 10. Southern Plateau and Hills
About 35 district of Karnataka,
Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu
include in this region
It is an area of Semi arid zone
agriculture.
Annual rainfall- 677-1000mm.
 81% dry land farming and 111%
cropping intensity.
 Major crops-Coffee, tea, cardamom
and spices.
Proper utilization of dry land
technology in water shed area.
Increase fertilizer use efficiency.
Minor irrigation use programme.

21. 11. East Coast Plain
This region includes east coast of Tamil
Nadu, A.P and Orissa.
Climate is semi arid and dry sub humid.
 Annual rainfall- 780-1287 mm.
 Soils are mainly alluvial and coastal
sands and are troubled by the problem of
alkalinity.
 Irrigation through canals and tanks.
 Major crops- Rice, Ragi, Jowar & Bajra.
 This region contributes 20.3% in total
rice production and 17.5% in groundnut
production.
75% area is rainfed.

22. Measures to develop this region
Main agricultural strategies include improvement
in the cultivation of spices (pepper and cardamom)
and development of fisheries.
 Discouraging growing of rice on marginal lands
and bringing such lands under alternate crops like
oilseeds and pulses.
Diversifying cropping and avoiding mono-
cropping.
 Developing horticulture in upland areas.
Social forestry and dairy-farming.

23. 12. West Coast Plains and Ghats
This region includes west coast of
Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka,
Maharashtra & Goa.
 Climate is dry sub humid to
humid.
Annual rainfall- 2226-3640mm.
The soils are laterite and coastal
alluvial.
Main occupation is cultivation of
spices and plantation crops which
are raised along the hill slopes of
the Western Ghats.
 Major crops- Rice, Ragi,
Groundnut, Tapioca.

24. Measures to develop this region
Storage of rain water.
 Proper use of ground water.
Raising of high value crops (pulses,
spices, and coconut).
 Development of infra- structural
facilities
Promotion to prawn culture in brackish
water.

25. 13.Gujrat Plains and Hills
This region includes 19 districts of Gujarat.
It is an arid and semi-arid region.
 Annual rainfall- 340-1793 mm.
 32.5% land is irrigated through wells and tube wells.
 Main crops- maize, Wheat, Groundnut, Tobacco, Cotton, Jowar, Bajra.
 This zone is famous for oilseed crop hence known as oilseed region.
 Cropping intensity is 114%
About 60% area is drought prone.
78% area is rainfed.
 Soils are regur in the plateau region, alluvium in
the coastal plains, and red and yellow soils in
Jamnagar area.

26. Measures to develop this region
Rain water harvesting and its
management.
Dryland farming and management
of canal and ground water.
 Development of agro-forestry and
arid-horticulture.

27. 14. Western Dry Region
This region includes 9 districts of Rajasthan.
 This region has an erratic rainfall of an annual average
of 95mm.
The desert climate further causes high evaporation.
This region has scanty vegetation and no perennial
rivers.
 Main crops- bajra, gram, wheat, rapeseed.
 This region has 1.2% forest area,
4.5% pasture area, 6.3% irrigated area.
Cropping intensity is 105%.
Drought occurs frequently.

28. Measures to develop this regions
 Rainwater harvesting.
 Increasing yield level of horticultural
crops like water melon, guava and date
palm.
Adopting high quality germ-plasm in
cattle to improve their breed.
 Adopting silvi-pastoral system over
wastelands.

29. 15. Island Regions
This region includes Andaman &
Nicobar and Lakshwadeep.
Climate is humid.
Annual rainfall is 300mm spread
over 8-9 months.
 Largely forest zone with
undulating land.
 Main crops are rice, maize,
millets, pulses, arecanut, turmeric
and cassava.
 Nearly half of the cropped area is
under coconut.

30. Measures to develop this regions
Crop improvement.
Water management and fisheries.
Improved variety of rice seeds should
be popularised so as to enable farmers to
take two crops of rice in place of one.
Brackish water prawn culture should
be promoted in the coastal areas.

31. References
1. Agronomy : Basic and Applied Gajendra Singh
Tomar., Agroclimatic Zones and crop
Classification PP 40-47.
2. Fundamentals of Agriculture, vol.1- Arun
Katyayan. Crop ecology- Agroclimatic regional
planning: 34-39. 3. 3.Principles of Agronomy- T.
Yellamanda Reddy, G.H. Sankara Reddy.
4. PowerPoint Presentation uploaded in Slide
Share by Swarupa Kumari, Agroclimatic Zones
of India. Pp 1-33.