DIRECT SEEDED RICE IN PUNJAB:

STATUS AND PROSPECTS

M S Bhullar Agronomist Punjab Agricultural University (bhullarms@pau.edu)

ISSUES
Rice area in Punjab: 2.7 mha State water resources: sustain only 1.6 mha Declining water tables (over-exploitation of underground
aquifers)

Soil structure and health (excessive tillage including puddling) Declining labour availability (and rising labour costs) Energy inputs (for water extraction and tillage) Flooded field (major source of atmospheric CH4)
Need for RCT (saves water, labor and energy)

Direct Seeded Rice

Rising labour costs and declining availability of farm labour for rice planting

Puddling in rice

Transplanting of Rice in Puddled Field

can also lead to delayed planting and yield losses

Laser leveling

Optimum sowing time

Grain yield (kg/ha) 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0
DSR- June 7 DSR- June 14 DSR- June 21 DSR- June 28 PTR

1- 15 June Optimum sowing time for DSR

Varietal performance in DSR

Grain yield (kg/ha)
9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 PR-115 (125d) PAU 201 (144d) PR-118 (158d) PTR DSR

8%

29%

57%

Short and Medium duration varieties perform better in DSR

Optimum seeding rate

Seed rate (kg/ha)

20- 25 kg/ha seed optimum for DSR

2006

Drum Seeding

Broadcasting

2009

DSR Drill

Weeds- A major issue

Uncontrolled weeds reduce the DSR grain yield by >50%

Herbicides and DSR performance

Grain yield (kg/ha) 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 Pendimethalin Bispyribac Pendimethalin fb bispyribac Weedy check

Grasses and Cyperus sp

Bispyribac as POST

PRE fb POST

Pendimethalin as PRE

Weedy check

Emerging problematic weeds in DSR

Leptochloa chinensis Eragrostis sp Dactyloctenium aegyptiacum

Leptochloa chinensis

Eragrostis sp

D. aegyptiacum

Irrigation Water Applied (mm)

Rain (mm) DSR=663 PTR=562

Grain Yield (t ha )
-1

Harvested area=25m2 Moisture content at harvesting = 15-20% Moisture content adjusted to 14%

System/Irrigation PTR DSR Mean

Daily 7.12 6.56 6.84

20 kPa 7.39 7.01 7.20

40 kPa 6.32 4.42 5.37

70 kPa 5.4 3.38 4.39

Mean 6.56 5.34

LSD (p=5%) System =0.79 Irrigation=0.91

Alternate wetting and drying is the key to water saving in DSR

Production package for DSR

Laser-levelling: essential for the success of DSR Time of sowing: 1- 15 June Seed rate: 20- 30 kg/ha Establishment: Well prepared moist/dry seed bed Varieties: Short and medium duration Weed management: Sequence of PRE and POST herbicides Irrigation scheduling: Alternate wetting and drying saves 2030% irrigation water Nitrogen: Similar N input as PTR

PRESENT STATUS
Successful adoption DSR grown on ~6000 ha in 2011 (still small fraction of
total rice area 2.7 Mha)

Area under DSR Non-existent only 5 years ago -This is an important start Efforts needed to support this adoption process so that potential benefits from this technology can be fully realised

This process of adoption can be facilitated by maintaining current LONG-TERM SITES in different regions so that local farmers can develop confidence in the long-term viability of this CA technology

CHALLENGES/OPPORTUNITIES
As the adoption of DSR will progress, new researchable issues will come up which will further help in refining and fine tuning the DSR technology

Advancing sowing time (Impact on yield and water

saving)

Weed flora will become more diverse (Need to

minimize yield losses and weed control costs)

Identifying weed competitive and iron efficient cultivars Planting in ZT brown manured fields Irrigation management for different soil types And more-----

The ever worsening labor, water and energy crisis will help in fast adoption and indicates a bright future for DSR in Punjab Substantial increase in area is expected this year