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Adoption and impacts of zero tillage as a resource conserving technology in the irrigated plains of South Asia

Author

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  • Erenstein, O.
  • Farooq, U.
  • Malik, R. K.
  • Sharif, M.

Abstract

The recent stagnation of productivity growth in the irrigated areas of the Indo-Gangetic Plains of South Asia has led to a quest for resource-conserving technologies that can save water, reduce production costs and improve production. The present synthesis of two detailed country studies confirmed widespread adoption of zero tillage (ZT) wheat in the rice-wheat systems of India’s Haryana State (34.5% of surveyed households) and Pakistan’s Punjab province (19%). The combination of a significant “yield effect” and “cost-saving effect” makes adoption worthwhile and is the main driver behind the rapid spread and widespread acceptance of ZT in Haryana, India. In Punjab, Pakistan, adoption is driven by the significant ZT-induced cost savings for wheat cultivation. Thus, the prime driver for ZT adoption is not water savings or natural resource conservation but monetary gain in both sites. Water savings are only a potential added benefit. ZT adoption for wheat has accelerated from insignificant levels from 2000 onwards in both sites. Geographic penetration of ZT is far from uniform, suggesting the potential for further diffusion, particularly in Haryana, India. Diffusion seems to have stagnated in the Punjab study area, and further follow-up studies are needed to confirm this. The study also revealed significant dis-adoption of ZT in the survey year: Punjab, Pakistan 14 percent and Haryana, India 10 percent. Better understanding the rationale for dis-adoption merits further scrutiny. Our findings suggest that there is no clear single overarching constraint but that a combination of factors is at play, including technology performance, technology access, seasonal constraints and, particularly in the case of Punjab, Pakistan, the institutional ZT controversy. In terms of technology performance, the relative ZT yield was particularly influential: dis-adopters of ZT reporting low ZT yields as a major contributor to farmer disillusionment in Punjab, Pakistan and the lack of a s
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Suggested Citation

  • Erenstein, O. & Farooq, U. & Malik, R. K. & Sharif, M., 2007. "Adoption and impacts of zero tillage as a resource conserving technology in the irrigated plains of South Asia," IWMI Research Reports H040663, International Water Management Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:iwt:rerpts:h040663
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    Cited by:

    1. Erenstein, Olaf, 2009. "Comparing water management in rice-wheat production systems in Haryana, India and Punjab, Pakistan," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(12), pages 1799-1806, December.
    2. K.S. Kavi Kumar & Kamal Karunagoda & Enamul Haque & L. Venkatachelam & Girish Nath Bahal, 2012. "Addressing Long-term Challenges to Food Security and Rural Livelihoods in South Asia," Working Papers 2012-075, Madras School of Economics,Chennai,India.
    3. Vijesh Krishna & Prakashan Veettil, 2015. "Productivity and Efficiency Impacts of Zero Tillage Wheat in Northwest Indo-Gangetic Plains," Working Papers id:7716, eSocialSciences.
    4. Ladha, J.K. & Yadvinder-Singh & Erenstein, O. & Hardy, B. (ed.), 2009. "Integrated Crop and Resource Management in the Rice-Wheat System of South Asia," IRRI Books, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), number 164458.
    5. Hazell, Peter B.R., 2009. "The Asian Green Revolution:," IFPRI discussion papers 911, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    6. Thapa, Ganesh & Gaiha, Raghav Gaiha, 2012. "Food Security in Asia and the Pacific: The Role of Smallholders," Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development, Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), vol. 9(1), pages 1-37, June.
    7. Alwin Keil & Alwin D’souza & Andrew McDonald, 2015. "Zero-tillage as a pathway for sustainable wheat intensification in the Eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains: does it work in farmers’ fields?," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 7(5), pages 983-1001, October.
    8. Alwin Keil & Alwin D’Souza & Andrew McDonald, 2016. "Growing the service economy for sustainable wheat intensification in the Eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains: lessons from custom hiring services for zero-tillage," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 8(5), pages 1011-1028, October.

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