Impact evaluation on productivity and profitability of rapeseed-mustard under cluster front line demonstration in Chandel district, Manipur

Introduction

Rapeseed-mustard is world's third most important source of edible oil after soybean and oil palm. After China and Canada, India is the third-largest producer of rapeseed mustard, accounting for about 11% of global production. One of the most significant oilseed crops and the second-largest in India is rapeseed-mustard. In India, rapeseed-mustard crops are grown in a variety of agroclimatic situations, including saline soils, timely/late sowing, rainfed, irrigated, and mixed cropping, from the northeastern to northwestern hills and down south. Approximately 80% of all the hectares planted to these crops in India are used for Indian mustard. In India, the average yield of rapeseed and mustard is approximately 1499 kg/ha, whereas the average output of all oilseed crops is 1265 kg/ha (2018-19). In addition to boosting the quality of the food, the introduction of high-yielding rapeseed-mustard types, hybrids, and the development of better production and protection technologies have greatly increased the production and productivity of rapeseed-mustard in India. The primary source of income, particularly for marginal and small farmers in rainfed areas, is rapeseed and mustard. These crops are mostly grown in the country's rain-fed and resource-poor regions, therefore they play a significant role in the livelihood security of small and marginal farmers therein. It is possible to achieve significant import substitution by enhancing home production. The rainfed cropping strategy is a good fit for rapeseed-mustard crops because of their low water requirements (80-240 mm). Rainfed farming accounts for around 30.7% of the rapeseed mustard area. Under the National Mission for Oilseeds and Oil Palm Production (NMOOP), the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, launched a nationwide cluster frontline demonstration (CFLD) initiative on oilseeds to address the issue of significance. The CFLD program based on Rapeseed-mustard has been undertaken by the ICAR-Krishi Vigyan Kendra Chandel, Manipur to increase oilseed productivity and production using improved variety and location-specific technology. Despite nonetheless, there is a lot of room and potential for oilseed cultivation in the Chandel district in ricefallow areas to boost output, productivity, and cropping intensity. Numerous complex and interconnected factors, ranging from soil and climate-related limitations to technological and extension-oriented challenges, contribute to the poor growth rate. In addition, the main obstacles are declining land holdings, rising population pressure, rising food demand, and poor soil condition. The CFLD was carried out at farmers' fields from 2019 to 2023 in order to investigate the effects of rapeseed-mustard on output and profitability. ICAR-KVK Chandel has worked hard to demonstrate new varieties, provide training on scientific cultivation, and implement other interventions. The study's objectives were to evaluate the effects of CFLDs on grain yield, economic gains, extension, and technological gaps in the rapeseed-mustard crop in various Chandel district villages. It also aimed at informing farmers of the scientific and technical fact that, with the right package and practices, the crop's yield can easily double from its current level. The Cluster Front Line Demonstration (CFLD) is a crucial tool for providing farmers with the most recent set of practices in their entirety. Additionally, these demonstrations are thoughtfully planned, with plans in place to quickly disseminate the technology being shown to the agricultural community through the planning of other extension activities that support it, such farmers conventions and field days. Meena and Dudi, (2018) [8] .

Materials and Methods

From Rabi 2019 to 2023, the study was conducted in the Chandel district, Manipur. 200 demonstrations were held in 80 hectares of farmers' fields. The demonstrations used a combination of improved technologies, including seed treatment, nutrient management, plant population maintenance, and the entire package. Farmers used the local variety Yella and the Rapeseed-mustard variety NRCHB-101 was used as demonstrations. Clay loam soils with medium to low fertility status were prevalent in the study area. Rapeseed-mustard seeds were planted on rice fallows, and weeding and thinning were always done 30 to 35 days after the seeds were sown. This was done to ensure that the plants were distributed evenly within a row, as an excessive number of them can adversely affect crop growth and yield. With a seed rate of 10 kg/ha, the seeds were sown during the first week of November. Data on plant characteristics, economic yield, and economic returns from CFLD plots and fields from local practices adopted by the farmers were collected and evaluated. Utilising techniques created by Samui et al. (2000) [11] and Meena and Dudi (2018) [8] , the yield data from the farmers' practice and the demonstration were documented, and their yield gap (technological gap, extension gap) and technology index were calculated as follows:

Results and Discussion Demonstration technology and farmers' practice

The comparison between farmers' practices and the Cluster Front Line Demonstration (CFLD) is shown in Table 1. Plant protection measures, integrated crop management techniques, and seed treatment were not used in the farmers' practice, but they were implemented in the CFLD demonstration plot.

Yield

Based on the data in Table 2, the CFLDs demonstrated plots recorded a maximum yield of 10.15 q/ha in 2023 and a minimum yield of 8.95 q/ha in 2019. The mean seed yield for the five consecutive years under the demonstrated plots was 9.54 q/ha, which was higher than the farmers' tradition yields of 7.25 q/ha. Under CFLDs, yield increased by an average of 23.96% in comparison to farmer practice. The findings are consistent with those of previous researchers Mandira et al. (2022) and Chongloi and Singh (2021) [2] .

Economics

The cost of cultivation, gross return, net return, and benefit cost ratio were calculated using the input and output prices of the commodities that were most prevalent during each demonstration year (Table 3). Year-by-year net returns for CFLD practices varied from Rs 17150 to Rs 29650, with an average net return of Rs 22349. During the years of experimentation, net returns for farmers' practices ranged from Rs 10100 to Rs 17070, with an average net return of Rs 12857.

According to the estimated benefit-cost ratio, farmers' practices ranged from 1.53 to 1.86 and recommended practices from 1.92 to 2.41. Therefore, it was evident that the high-yielding Indian mustard variety NRCHB-101, which was produced using scientific methods, performed better than the native cultivar Yella. It can be concluded that holding demonstrations of new technologies aids farmers in boosting their revenue. Previous studies by Dutta (2014) [4] , Tiwari and Saxena (2001) [13] , and Sachan et al. (2023) [10] have revealed similar findings.

Yield gaps

To estimate the yield difference over the years of demonstration (2019 to 2023), the yield of farmers' var. Yella and Rapeseedmustard var. NRCHB-101 under Cluster Front Line Demonstration were compared. The yield gap/technology gap has been shown to vary between 3.85 and 5.05 q/ha over the years of investigation. 2019 saw the largest yield/technological gap (5.05 q/ha), while 2023 saw the smallest gap (3.85 kg/ha) (Table 2). By applying Cluster Front-Line Demonstrations with tested technology in farmers' fields, the potential output of rapeseed-mustard can be significantly boosted. Uneven rainfall distribution, differences in soil fertility, unfavourable weather patterns, and localized crop management problems that occur while attempting to maximize the production potential of specific crop cultivars may all be contributing factors to the greater technological gap. Chongloi and Singh (2021) [2] and Ahmad et al. (2017) [1] also reported similar results.

Extension gaps

With each subsequent year of observation, the extension gap exhibited growing trends (Table 2). During the 2019-2023 study period, the extension gap varied from 1.95 to 2.75 q/ha. In order to reverse the trend, it highlights the necessity of educating farmers through many kinds of means so they will embrace improved agricultural production technologies. Thus, the concerning trend of the widening extension gap will be reversed by using the newest production technology and high-yielding cultivars. Farmers will eventually abandon the outdated technology and embrace the new ones as a result of the new developments. This result is consistent with Chongloi, et al.

Technology Index

The viability of the advanced technology in farmers' fields is shown by the technology index. The more feasible the technology, the lower the technology index value (Mishra et al, 2007) [9] . According to the technology index data (Table 2), it reached its maximum of 36.07% in 2019 and its lowest of 27.50% in 2023. This implies that there is a considerable gap between the technology used by farmers and that developed at research institutions. The technology index demonstrates how the enhanced technology is feasible in the farmer's field. Insect and pest infestations, weather patterns, variations in soil fertility, and the unavailability of irrigation water during critical times can all be attributed to this variation in the technology index over the course of the study. Cluster Front Line Demonstration, however, would eventually result in increased production and productivity enhancement in rapeseed-mustard cultivation when district farmers adopted the established method. This will be accomplished by introducing high-yielding varieties and showcasing improved technologies, followed by a vigorous awareness campaign. Similar findings are also reported by Sanjay Kumar et al. (2020) [12] . practices could increase the yield of rapeseed-mustard by 21.79% to 27.09%. Under challenging rice fallow situations, scientific agriculture techniques using improved rapeseedmustard varieties may aid in increasing oilseed production. Farmers were convinced to adopt the intervention by the demonstration's economic viability, which was supported by the favourable benefit-cost ratio. Additionally, farmers should be educated about scientific agricultural methods. Consequently, the technologies showcased under CFLDs contributed to the expansion of rapeseed-mustard growing area, as well as the enhancement of productivity and output.

Acknowledgement

AcknowledgementThe authors are thankful to the Director, ICAR-ATARI, Zone VII, ICAR-Umiam, Meghalaya, for providing the financial support under NMMOP Scheme to conduct CFLD on Oilseeds. The authors also express their sincere thanks to Director, ICAR-RC for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya, India for continuous support and for providing the necessary facilities.

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