Productivity and Welfare Impacts of Sustainable Intensification in Rice‐Wheat Crop Rotations: Evidence From the Eastern Indo‐Gangetic Plains

Sustainable intensification (SI) has been receiving policy attention for its potential to transform agri‐food systems and improve rural livelihoods. However, little is known about how SI technology bundles influence system productivity, profitability and household welfare in the coupled rice‐wheat crop rotations of the Indo‐Gangetic Plains in South Asia. We investigate the combined impacts of direct seeded rice (mDSR) and zero‐tillage (ZT) wheat on system productivity, profitability and household welfare in the rice‐wheat system of Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, India. Using a multinomial endogenous switching regression model to address selection bias, we find that the joint adoption of mDSR and ZT wheat significantly improves cropping system productivity by 19% (1148 kg per hectare), reduces production costs by 18% (US$ 159 per hectare), increases farm profits by 84% (US$ 502 per hectare) and raises household per capita income by 56%. However, these benefits are unevenly distributed, with poorer farms benefitting less from rice‐wheat farming and more from off‐farm income compared to richer farms. Our findings underscore the need for policy support to promote broader SI adoption and emphasise the importance of fostering off‐farm jobs for equitable development.