Integrated crop management enhances productivity and profitability of redgram (Cajanus cajan L.) under rainfed alfisols

Introduction

Redgram (Cajanus cajan L.) is one of the important pulse crops cultivated in semi-arid and rainfed regions of India and plays a significant role in food security and soil fertility improvement through biological nitrogen fixation. However, the productivity of redgram in farmers' fields remains low due to cultivation of local varieties, imbalanced nutrient management and inadequate pest and disease management practices. Integrated Crop Management (ICM) is a holistic approach integrating improved varieties, nutrient management, biofertilizers, agronomic practices and plant protection measures for sustainable crop production. Adoption of integrated crop management technologies has been reported to improve productivity and profitability of pulse crops under rainfed conditions (Harish et al., 2020) [3] . Bharathi et al. (2015) [1] also reported that integrated nutrient management practices significantly improved growth, yield and economics of pigeonpea under rainfed conditions. The use of improved varieties such as PRG-176 in combination with integrated nutrient and pest management practices enhances yield potential and adaptability of redgram under dryland ecosystems (Reddy et al., 2018; Indian Institute of Pulses Research, 2020) [9,4] . Improved crop management practices including seed treatment with Rhizobium, phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and Trichoderma viride improve nutrient uptake, root growth and disease resistance in pulse crops. Patel et al. (2015) [7] reported that biofertilizer application along with integrated nutrient management enhanced growth and yield of pigeonpea under semi-arid ecosystems. Front Line Demonstrations (FLDs) are effective extension interventions for bridging the gap between research recommendations and farmers' practice. Samui et al. (2000) [10] reported that FLDs significantly improved productivity and profitability of pulse crops. Similar findings on the effectiveness of Front Line Demonstrations in pulse crops were also reported by Choudhary et al., 2017 [2] and Verma et al., 2018 [13] . Therefore, the present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of Integrated Crop Management practices on redgram productivity and profitability under rainfed Alfisol conditions and to statistically validate the yield differences using paired t-test analysis.

Therefore, the present study was conducted to 1. Evaluate the effect of Integrated Crop Management practices on redgram productivity. 2. Compare yield and economic returns between farmers' practice and demonstration plots. 3. Validate the yield differences statistically using paired t-test analysis. • Benefit-cost ratio

Materials and Methods

Statistical analysis

Yield data recorded from demonstration plots and farmers' practice plots were subjected to paired t-test analysis to determine the significance of yield differences between the treatments. The t-test statistic was computed using the formula:

The significance of treatment differences was tested at 5 per cent probability level.

Results and Discussion

Productivity and Yield Performance

The pooled data across three consecutive years (2022-23 to 2024-25) demonstrated a substantial enhancement in redgram grain yield due to the implementation of Integrated Crop Management (ICM) practices compared to traditional Farmers' Practice (FP).

The demonstration plots (Demo) achieved a mean grain yield of 1819 kg ha -1 whereas the Farmers' Practice plots recorded a lower mean grain yield of 1563 kg ha -1 (Table 1). Adoption of ICM interventions led to a yield increase of 256 kg ha -1 (16.38%) over traditional practices.

To assess statistical significance across the 14 paired frontline demonstrations (n = 14), a paired t-test was conducted. The test revealed a statistically significant difference between the demonstration and farmer practice plots (t = 4.85, df = 13, p = 0.0003) at a 1% level of significance (p < 0.001) (Table 1). This highly significant t-value confirms that the productivity gains were directly driven by the recommended ICM management package rather than random variability.

The superior performance under ICM can be attributed to the synergistic effect of balanced fertilization, improved seed treatment, optimum planting geometry, and timely integrated pest and weed management strategies. These findings are in close agreement with Indian Institute of Pulses Research (2020) [4] , who emphasized that integrated production technologies enhance canopy development, photosynthetic efficiency, and source-tosink translocation in pulse crops. Similar significant yield enhancements in pigeonpea under frontline demonstrations in rainfed dryland conditions were reported by Choudhary et al.

(2017) [2] , Singh et al. (2018) [12] , and Verma et al. (2018) [13] .

The variability and yield spread between treatments are illustrated in the box plot distribution (Figure 1). The median yield level in FLD plots was higher than in FP plots, with the upper whisker extending beyond 2200 kg ha -1 in high-performing demonstration fields. Furthermore, the higher upper quartile (Q 3 ) observed in the ICM plots demonstrates that improved technologies offer greater potential for yield maximization under favorable growing seasons compared to non-standardized traditional farmer methods.

Comparable yield variability and stability trends in rainfed redgram systems have been observed by Harish et al. (2020) [3] and Kumar et al. (2022) [5] .

Economic Returns and Profitability

The monetary returns and economic viability of redgram cultivation under ICM practices and Farmers' Practice are detailed in Table 2 and depicted in Figure 2. Adoption of ICM resulted in a lower overall cost of cultivation Rs. 49,068ha -1 compared to Farmers' Practice Rs. 52,268 ha -1 , resulting in a direct input savings of Rs. 3,200 ha -1 (Table 2). The reduced production cost under demonstration plots was primarily achieved through balanced nutrient management, avoidance of excessive or unnecessary pesticide spraying, and optimized seed usage. Similar reductions in cultivation costs due to systematic nutrient and pest management were reported by Bharathi et al.

(2015) [1] and Sharma et al. (2016) [11] . Owing to higher grain production and lower input expenditures, the demonstration plots registered higher gross returns Rs. 121,328 ha -1 and net returns Rs. 72,260 ha -1 compared to Farmers' Practice Rs. 107,653 ha -1 gross returns and Rs. 55,385 ha -1 net returns (Table 2, Figure 2). Demonstration plots generated an additional net profit of Rs. 16,875ha -1 , representing a 30.47% increase in net profit over conventional practices. The Benefit-Cost (BC) ratio was substantially higher under ICM demonstrations (2.47) than under Farmers' Practice (2.06) (Table 2). The higher BC ratio highlights the enhanced capital efficiency and economic robustness of recommended technology packages for dryland redgram growers. These economic benefits are consistent with findings from Samui et al. (2000) [10] , Patel et al.

(2015) [7] , Reddy et al. (2018) [9] , Rao et al. (2019) [8] , and Kumar et al. (2020) [6] , who concluded that adopting integrated crop management interventions significantly boosts both farm profitability and benefit-cost ratios in rainfed pulse production systems.

Acknowledgement

AcknowledgementThe present study was supported by Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Hyderabad, Telangana, India Advisory and Transfer of Technology Centre, DAATTC), Mahabubnagar, Professor Jayashankar Telangana Agricultural University, Hyderabad, Telangana, India. No external funding was received for conducting this research work.

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