ICAR Research Outlines Strategies for Preventing Heat Waves and Safeguarding Crops

Variety selection based on when the crop is sown is an important component in crop protection in the event of an abnormal temperature rise, such as the recent heat in March and April.

According to a report prepared by scientists from the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR), mulching straw in orchards can help save fruit crops, and bathing cows and buffaloes are one of the simple practices that farmers can adopt to combat the adverse effects of climate change.

ICAR has identified 151 risk-prone clusters in 25 districts across Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, and Punjab as part of the National Climate Resilience Program for Agricultural Innovation (NICRA).  

Exposure To the Heat Wave

The heat wave coincided with grain filling and the stage of development of the wheat, resulting in yellowing, shrinkage, and forced ripening - with an average yield loss of 15-25 percent.

High temperatures have also caused moisture stress, sunburn, falling flowers, and less fruit set in garden crops like horsetail, pomegranate, mango, and lemon. Tomatoes, cabbage crops, and cucumbers all showed significant effects.

Ways To Solve the Problem

According to a report titled "Heat Wave 2022: Causes, Consequences, and Ways for Further Development Agriculture of India" by Santana Kumar Bala, JVNS Prasad, and Vinod Kumar Singh from the Central Research Institute of Dry Land Agriculture, loss of appetite and fever in dairy animals resulted in a 15% reduction in milk yield, as well as a decline in egg production and an increase in broiler mortality.

According to the report, technologies such as sugar cane mulching, ridges, and furrows have retained soil moisture and reduced stress.

Heat-resistant wheat varieties DBW173, Raj4120, and Raj4079 reduced crop losses by 5-6 percent in Bagpat, Jhansi, Hamirpur, Chitrakut, Protapgarh, Kaushambi, Bahraich, Gonda, Maharajgarj, March 20, and Urdakh clusters. The maximum temperature was 3-4 degrees warmer than normal.

Timing And Sowing

"If the monsoon is delayed, farmers should plant short-term rice to ensure wheat is planted on time." Otherwise, they must choose late wheat varieties if the late harvest of rice causes a delay in wheat sowing. Even the crop must be chosen based on the time of sowing, it is not necessary to stick to a specific crop even if the usual sowing window for it has passed, "said Singh, one of the report's authors.

He emphasized that sowing zero-income wheat ensures timely sowing - immediately after Kharif rice - in the flooded areas of Gonda and Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, thereby reducing crop losses.

Heat-resistant and late-sown chickpea cultivar RVG202, as well as timely sowing of Pusa Bold mustard cultivar, avoided heat stress during ripening in selected Madhya Pradesh clusters, according to the report.

Other Methods Used

In March-April, the temperature in Jalna, Maharashtra, was 39.6-42.8 degrees, and in Nandurbar, it was 41.5-43.0 degrees, both of which were 4 degrees higher than the previous year. The sudden temperature increase had an impact on the garden crops.

Elastic technologies, such as mulching straw in gardens, have significantly reduced the effects of heat stress while also reducing water use in the clusters where the NICRA project is being implemented. Plastic mulching in conjunction with frequent drip irrigation has assisted in reducing thermal injury to fruits and vegetables.

There was no crop damage. Scientists have also recommended that farmers should cover fruit trees with shade nets and a cotton cloth to reduce sunburn and sunburn of leaves and stems. It also helped to protect the fruit from getting sunburned.

Providing shade, bathing the animals, and feeding 50-70 grams of green fodder, concentrates, and mineral mixture per day helped reduce the impact of heat stress on cows and buffaloes and minimize milk yield losses in selected clusters. In villages where electricity was not an issue, farmers used fogs, fans, and coolers as this helped maintain proper ventilation and air circulation in the barns.

More Heat Waves Are Predicted

In contrast to previous heat waves, the extreme heat in 2022 was widespread and covered a large portion of the country. Extreme weather like this is expected to become more common and severe in the coming years as a result of climate change.