Agro-climatic Zones Of Punjab Research Articles

Rainfall Variability and Rice Production: An Assessment Based on the Variability in Indian Monsoon and Ground Water Level of Punjab, India

In Punjab, 99 per cent of total cultivated area is under irrigation but it is at the cost of declining ground water table. Due to rainfall variability and very high requirement of water in rice crop, which occupy large area in the state during kharif season, has further deteriorated the situation of water resources. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify the relationship between declining groundwater level, variable monsoonal rainfall and rice yield of different agroclimatic zones of Punjab. The historical data of rainfall for different locations of Punjab viz. Amritsar (1998-2017), Ballowal Saunkhri (1998-2017), Bathinda (1998-2017), Ludhiana (1998-2017) and Patiala (1998-2017) was collected from the Department of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology, PAU, Ludhiana and Met Centre, IMD Chandigarh. The productivity data of rice was collected from indiastat.com and Statistical Abstract of Punjab whereas the data related to groundwater table (1998-2017) were collected from the Central Ground Water Board, Punjab. It was observed that the ground water table level showed significant decrease after 2005 at all locations and there was a positive correlation between rice yield and ground water table at all the locations except at Amritsar where it was negatively correlated. The deficit rainfall years showed very less impact on rice yield which has increased continuously. However, the relationship between groundwater table and rainfall indicated that deficit monsoonal rainfall led to further decline in groundwater table as it was not recharged.

Decadal Analysis of Rainy Days and Extreme Rainfall Events in Different Agroclimatic Zones of Punjab

Decadal Analysis of Rainy Days and Extreme Rainfall Events in Different Agroclimatic Zones of Punjab

Molecular Characterization of Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) Populations from Punjab, India

Helicoverpa armigera Hubner (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a highly polyphagous and migratory pest of several economically important crops in parts of Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe. Molecular variability of H. armigera infesting different crops viz. non-Bt cotton, pigeon pea, Egyptian clover, sunflower and tomato mostly from the areas near Ludhiana, Punjab, India and inter-location variability on Egyptian clover across three agroclimatic zones of Punjab was studied by mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I sequence alignments. Based on sequence analysis of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene, the Ludhiana population differed from Gurdaspur population by the 0.2% and from Abohar population by 0.5% while the latter two differed from each other by 0.7%. Among populations infesting various host plants, cotton population differed from sunflower by 0.2%, Egyptian clover by 0.3% and tomato and pigeon pea by 0.4% suggesting little genetic variation among populations collected from different regions of Punjab and infesting various hosts.

ARIMA approach for temperature and rainfall time series prediction in Punjab

The present study aims to explore the effectiveness of Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (SARIMA) models in forecasting meteorological time series data exhibiting seasonal patterns. We compared the performance of SARIMA models with different configurations and evaluate their forecasting accuracy using real-world meteorological datasetsfor three different agroclimatic zones of Punjab (sub mountainous region, central region and south west region) was analyzed to forecast mean monthly maximum air temperature, minimum air temperature and rainfall. The weather data was used from 1984-2022 for sub-mountainous zone (Ballowal Saunkhri), 1970-2022 for Central zone (Ludhiana) and 1977-2022 for south west zone (Bathinda). The results provide insights into the suitability and limitations of SARIMA models for meteorological forecasting and offer practical recommendations for practitioners and researchers in the field. The goodness of fit was tested against residuals using Ljung-Box test. The accuracy of the model was tested using Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and root square mean error (RMSE). The model achieved Mean Absolute Errors (MAE) ranging from 0.61 to 0.78 for maximum temperature, 0.74 to 0.49 for minimum temperature, and 32.12 to 45.44 for rainfall, with lower MAE values indicating higher predictive accuracy. The fitted model was able to capture dynamics of the temperature time series and produce a sensible forecast. However, the model was unable to forecast rainfall series efficiently.

Modelling the climate change impact of mitigation (RCP 2.6) and high emission (RCP 8.5) scenario on maize yield and possible adaptation measures in different agroclimatic zones of Punjab, India.

A simulation study was performed for assessing climate change impact on maize under Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs 2.6 and 8.5) for Punjab, India. The study area comprised of five agroclimatic zones (AZs) including seven locations. The bias corrected temperature and rainfall data from four models (CSIRO-Mk-3-6-0, FIO-ESM, IPSL-CM5A-MR and Ensemble) were used as input in CERES-Maize model which was run with constant management practices for two Punjab maize hybrids (PMH1 and PMH2). The maize yield for upcoming 70 years (2025-2095) was simulated and its deviations from the baseline (2010-2021) yield were computed under optimized sowing (early May to early July) and current sowing (end May to end June) period. With current sowing dates, the maize yield declined under both RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively in all the AZs, i.e. by 4-23 and 60-80% in AZII, by 5-60 and 60-90% in AZIII, by 9-30 and 50-90% in AZIV and by 13-40 and 30-90% in AZV. Though yield decline was lesser under RCP2.6 as compared to RCP8.5, but still it indicates that adaptive strategy such as shifting of sowing dates may be helpful in stabilizing the maize yield. The results for iterative combinations of sowing period revealed that early June sowing in AZ II for both the hybrids, mid to end June (Ludhiana and Amritsar) and end May to mid June (Patiala) sowings for PMH1 were able to nullify the negative impact of climate change. Maize cultivation in AZIV and AZV would not be a suitable venture for farmers of the region. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Response of pigeonpea varieties to sowing dates at high plant density under different agroclimatic zones of Punjab

Response of pigeonpea varieties to sowing dates at high plant density under different agroclimatic zones of Punjab

Assessment of production traits and lactation wise economics of buffalo in Punjab state of India

Buffalo is considered as the dairy animal for modern times due to its higher adaptability and productivity in the changing climatic conditions. In India, large part of the milk production comes from small and medium dairy farmers. Buffalo contributes 45.44% to the total milk production in India. With only 3.65% of the total buffalo population of India, Punjab contributes 7.91% of the total buffalo milk production. In Punjab, around 70% milk production comes from small and medium dairy farms with herd size of 2 to 10 animals, another 25% from large/commercial herds and the rest from domestic (1%) and peri-urban dairies (4%), which are concentrated around big cities. In Punjab, buffaloes produce about 56.38% of the total annual milk production in the state. The current study was conducted in three agro-climatic zones of Punjab by selected 90 buffaloes farmers in the district viz. Hoshiarpur, Patiala and Mansa by simple random sampling method. The economics of buffalo was calculated on lactation basis. The average age at 1st calving was 43 months, and inter-calving period was 469 days, lactation length (days) was 281 days, dry period (days) was 188 days, average milk yield (liters/day) was 8.3 lts/day. The lactation-wise total cost of rearing buffalo was highest in 2nd lactation i.e. Rs. 95393 and the net profit was Rs. 52335 in 4th lactation period. Thus, buffaloes contribute positively to the income which makes its rearing beneficial financially.

A critical assessment of changes in climate predicted by four GCMs under different RCP scenarios in Punjab (India)

The projected temperature, rainfall and solar radiation derived from four General Circulation Models namely CSIRO-Mk3-6-0, FIO-ESM, IPSL-CM5A-MR and Ensemble model under four RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) scenarios were analyzed on annual basis for four agro-climatic zones of Punjab. The inherent bias in the simulated data was corrected by the difference method at monthly scale for maximum temperature, rainfall and at daily scale for solar radiation. In general, the temperatures are expected to increase linearly in future while the solar radiation and rainfall would decrease under the four RCP scenarios. Amongst the four models, the maximum temperature is predicted to increase from the baseline during mid/end century by 0.5 to 1.2/1.6 to 2.6 °C and minimum temperature is predicted to increase from the baseline during mid/end century by 1.1 to 2.6/2.7 to 4.1 °C by CSIRO-Mk3-6-0, respectively followed by IPSL-CM5A-MR model in decreasing order. The solar radiation predicted by four models is predicted to decrease from baseline during mid/end century by 0.5 to 1.1/0.3 to 1.2 W/m2 and rainfall during mid/end century by 96 to 558/59 to 530 mm by CSIRO-Mk3-6-0, respectively followed by FIO-ESM model in decreasing order. The highest/lowest maximum temperatures were predicted by four models under four RCP scenarios were 32.9 °C (Bathinda)/30.5 °C (Ludhiana), highest/lowest minimum temperature were 20.8 °C (Patiala)/17.9 °C (Amritsar), highest/lowest solar radiation 15.9 W/m2 (Amritsar and Bathinda)/14.9 W/m2 (Amritsar) and highest/lowest rainfall 659 mm (Amritsar)/346 mm (Abohar), respectively.

Socio- economic Profile of the Farmers in Five Agro-Climatic Zones of Punjab, India

The present study was conducted in Punjab to analyse the socio- economic profile of 200 farmers using an interview schedule. The findings of the study revealed that large percentage of farmers belonged to general category and majority were nuclear having 2-5 members. Majority of farmers were cultivating between 5 to 15 acres of land. Largest percentage among these cultivated less than 5 acres. The owned cultivated land ownership of majority was less than 5 acres with negligible families owning more than 20 acres. More than fifty percent (56.5%) families leased in land for cultivation. Out of these, half of the sample families leased less than 5 acres of land and more than one fourth families (26.54%) between 5-10 acres of land. Farming was primary source of income for very large majority of the farmers. More than half of the farmers were engaged in some secondary occupation with highest percentage engaging in farm based entrepreneurship followed by farming and non-farm based business. Annual income of majority of farmers was upto three lakhs. Income was not significantly different in different zones which was highest in zone IV and least in zone V. Few of the farmers reported being a member of some organization.

Effect of meteorological parameters on Karnal bunt incidence in wheat under different agroclimatic zones of Punjab

To quantify the effect of meteorological parameters on incidence of Karnal bunt in wheat crop, an investigation was done using 9 to 12 season’s data of Bathinda and Ludhiana stations of Punjab. Maximum temperature during March in range of 25-31oC, minimum temperature of February (8.5-11.0oC), morning and evening relative humidity of March in range of 85-95 and 40-60 per cent respectively, rainfall more than 25 mm with sunshine hours 5.5-9.0 hrs/day during mid February to mid March favour Karnal bunt in wheat crop. Maximum temperature of March showed significant negative correlation with incidence of Karnal bunt whereas minimum temperature of February showed significant positive correlation with disease incidence at both locations. Morning and evening relative humidity showed significant positive correlation with disease incidence. Rain amount and rainy days during mid February to mid March significantly influenced disease incidence. Sunshine hours had negative correlation with disease incidence. Backward multiple linear regression (BMLR) analysis indicated maximum temperature, rainfall and sunshine hours play significant role in Karnal bunt incidence at Ludhiana. However, at Bathinda, maximum temperature, evening time relative humidity, rain amount and rainy days played significant role.

Variability in reference evapotranspiration and moisture availability in three agroclimatic zones of Punjab, India


 A research study was undertaken to estimate reference evapotranspiration (ETO), moisture index (MI) and aridity index (AI) and analyse their trends in different locations/zones of Punjab. Annual and seasonal ETO was observed to be highest in south-west and lowest in north-east zone. North-east zone experienced increasing trend in annual as well as seasonal ETO. Districts within the central zone had large variability within the zone. MI and AI were in the order of north-east zone followed by Central zone and South-west zone indicating better moisture availability conditions in north-east. Mean difference in annual and seasonal MI and AI also indicated statistical similarities within the districts of north-east and south-west zones but different from other zones. Thus, increasing trend of ETO in north-east region and higher ETO range in south-west zone along with severe moisture availability necessitates the need for more careful planning of water resources in the region.

Knowledge and practices of dairy farmers about environmental health: Need for eco-health approach in Punjab

The dairy industry impacts environmental health in various ways and the extent of the impact depends upon the knowledge and practices of dairy farmers. This research surveyed the knowledge and practices of the dairy farmers (n-300) towards environmental safety from five different agro-climatic zones of Punjab (India). Data were analyzed using SPSS software through descriptive statistics, Chi-square test of independence with Cramer’s V value as measures of effect size. Analysis of variances, followed by Games Howell post hoc test was performed to analyze subgroup differences amongst explanatory variables. The majority of farmers (57.66%) had a low knowledge score on environmental safety. Majority of farmers did not know greenhouse gases emission (81%) from dairy animals/their excreta, the impact of dairy farming on climate change (86.67%), and were not treating farm effluents before discharging them into the environment (92.67%). Climate change (I) followed by air pollution (II), human-animal-environment interaction (III), water pollution (IV), and soil pollution(V) were the rank-wise factors reported to affect dairy farming. Further, socio-demographic and farm characteristics have a positive influence on the farmer’s knowledge. The study warrants an extensive awareness campaign on scientific cum eco-friendly dairy farming with an emphasis on measures to reduce environmental pollution and an eco-health approach to bridge the knowledge hiatus.

Farmer's Perception regarding On-farm Water Conservation in Punjab Agriculture

The present paper aimed to explore the farmer's perception regarding on-farm water conservation in Punjab agriculture and outline the critical factors affecting the knowledge and adoption of on-farm water conservation techniques. The study was conducted in Moga, Rupnagar and Sri Muktsar Sahib districts selected randomly representing three agro-climatic zones of Punjab. The study revealed that most of the respondents were literate with farming experience of more than 15 years. The regression analysis applied on the knowledge index, and adoption index concluded that by enhancing the education level, mass media exposure, extension contacts, participation in extension activities, and farming experience, the knowledge level regarding the new technologies may improve, resulted in the effective adoption of that particular technology. It will also help to reduce future constraints in the adoption of the technologies and for increasing the income level of the farmers by decreasing the cost of production.

Seroprevalence and Spatial Distribution of Toxoplasmosis in Relation to Various Risk Factors in Small Ruminants of Punjab, India

Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an obligatory apicomplexan, intracellular, ubiquitous, eurykaryotic zoonotic pathogen that infects all warm blooded animals and recognized worldwide as one of major causes of infectious abortions and reproductive failure in small ruminants Methods: In the present study, 823 small ruminants (245 sheep, 578 goats) evaluated for T. gondii infection by ELISA to explore seroprevalence and spatial distribution of toxoplasmosis from different agro-climatic zones of Punjab. Result: A high seroprevalence (40.58%) of T. gondii recorded in small ruminants being higher in sheep (42.85%) than goat (39.60%). Seropositivity of toxoplasmosis in sheep and goat with history of abortion was found to be 63.80 and 50.00%, respectively. Goats with the history of abortion were 1.72 times more at risk (Cl =1.15-2.56) to T. gondii infection as compared to animals without the history of abortion (Cl =0.39-0.86). Similarly, sheep with the history of abortion were 2.74 times more at risk (Cl =1.31-5.71) to toxoplasmosis as compared to sheep without abortion history (Cl= 0.17-0.76). Goat and sheep farms with frequent access to cats were 2.03 times (CI =1.05-3.90) and 4.04 times (Cl =1.78-9.14) more at risk, as compared to farms with limited cats access. Spatial distribution and predictive seroprevalence analysis indicate possible risk of toxoplasmosis in whole of the state with higher possibility of disease in agroclimatic zones III, IV and V.

A dynamical assessment of multidimensional poverty in agro-climatic zones: an evidence from Punjab Pakistan.

The dynamics of poverty have become a controversial issue and one of the most common socio-economic problems in global economies, especially in developing economies as a whole. As per the importance of precise dilemma, the current study examines single as well as multidimensional poverty in the agro-climatic zones of Punjab, Pakistan, for the last 8 years from 2011-2012 to 2018-2019 by utilizing four available latest HIES (Household Integrated Economic Survey) datasets taken from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). This study uses a couple of indexing methods, namely FGT (1984) and Alkire and Foster (2007). Temporal analysis of the first measure of poverty demonstrates that with a shorter (longer) time gap, poverty presents a hybrid (declining) trend in the uni-dimensional spectrum in the province of Punjab and its agro-climatic zones. While population decomposition for uni-dimensional poverty validates that residences of cotton-wheat Punjab and lower intensity Punjab is the major contributor to overall province poverty. Thus, to diminish poverty in a single-dimensional context, it is the need of time to take emergency steps like uplift economic growth, lessen income inequalities, and create job opportunities by the government for the improvement of the living standard of the residences of the overall province with special consideration on both these most affected zones. Similarly, calculations of the second measure of multidimensional poverty reveal that poverty also presents a hybrid (declining) trend with a shorter (longer) span of time in the overall province and all agro-climatic zones with the exception of the wheat-rice zone. However, dimensional decomposition for multidimensional poverty index demarcates that education and health are the major contributors to MDP, and declining the households' deprivation in both these dimensions is relatively helpful to nippy fall in poverty in the study area.

Evaluation of promising tomato hybrids having resistance to late blight and root knot nematodes in diverse agroclimatic zones of Punjab

Evaluation of promising tomato hybrids having resistance to late blight and root knot nematodes in diverse agroclimatic zones of Punjab

Milk quality and safety issues inside the farm gate of dairy farmers of Punjab (India)

Milk quality and safety is the biggest concern of the Indians' dairy industry. Although milk contamination can occur at any stage of the milk value chain but farm contamination is supposed to be the major culprit. The present study investigated the perception and practices of dairy farmers about milk safety and quality at the farm level. Randomly selected dairy farmers (n -300), across the five different agro-climatic zones of Punjab, India, were surveyed using a pre-tested structured questionnaire. The study analyzed the awareness and practices of the respondents based on the five aspects namely milker's hygiene, animal hygiene, environmental hygiene, milk handling, and chemical residue in milk. Pooled milk samples collected from every alternate farm (n-150) were subjected to somatic cell count (SCC), fat, SNF, adulteration, and E.Coli contamination. Data were analyzed using SPSS software through descriptive statistics, Chi-square test of independence with Cramer’s V value as measures of effect size. Analysis of variances, followed by Games Howell post hoc test was performed to analyze subgroup differences amongst explanatory variables. The majority of farmers (64%) were found to have low knowledge scores related to all five aspects of milk quality and safety. The milk handling (ranked first) followed by animal hygiene, personal hygiene, environmental hygiene, and antibiotics and other residues in milk (ranked last) ordered wise aspects affecting milk quality and safety. Further, socio-demographic and farm characteristics of respondents have a positive influence on the farmer's knowledge of milk quality and safety. High SCC (Mean- 424000) and E .coli contamination in 24% samples further revealed poor adherence to hygienic milk practices. Only 5% of samples were found adulterated with water and 3% of samples were found to be urea positive. Ignorance and lack of scientific knowledge among dairy farmers are the major hindrances in the production of quality and safe milk. An extensive awareness program on milk quality and safety, coupled with incentives on quality products should be undertaken to enhance the awareness of the small and medium dairy farmers.

Income and Consumption Expenditure Pattern of Marginal and Small Farmers in Punjab

The study highlighted the income and consumption pattern of the marginal and small farmers in the three agro-climatic zones of Punjab for 2011-12. It was found that out of the total net family income of these farmers, the majority was earned from crop and dairying, followed by income from non-farm activities. The net per capita annual income of marginal and small farmers was found to be as low as about 15361 and 26625. Corresponding to this, the annual per capita household consumption expenditure was 12144 and 13239. This situation depicted the vulnerability of these farmers to indebtedness in case of unforeseen expenditure situations. Also, there existed an income and consumption disparity in Punjab, whereby the poorer section accounts for less than one-fifth share of the total income and expenditure. There was a need to address the problems of this section in isolation as this section formed the major proportion of the farming population in the state and was most prone to economic misery.

Carbon footprint and water footprint of rice and wheat production in Punjab, India

Carbon footprint and water footprint assessments can be powerful tools to guide sustainable food production systems. The present study simultaneously quantified the carbon footprint (CF) and water footprint (WF) of rice and wheat production in the five agro-climatic zones of Punjab, India using farm survey data. Further, the variability in CF among the five agro-climatic zones and farm sizes was analysed. The carbon footprint per unit area of rice and wheat was found to be 8.80 ± 5.71 and 4.18 ± 1.13 t CO2eq/ha respectively. The CF per tonne of rice and wheat was 1.20 ± 0.70 and 0.83 ± 0.23 t CO2eq/t respectively. Large farms had 39% lower CF per tonne of rice compared to small farms. Residue burning, direct methane emissions and fertilizer use were the most important factors that contributed to the CF of rice and wheat production in Punjab. Nitrogen fertilizer use was identified as the major hotspot for mitigation. The average WF of rice and wheat was found to be 1097 and 871 m3/t respectively. A disparity between CROPWAT estimates of blue WF and actual blue water use was established indicating the need for actual blue WF accounting, particularly for flood irrigated crop production. Additionally, policy measures based on ground situation are discussed and the major role of local government policies in mitigating carbon and water footprint is highlighted.

Measurement of reproductive disorder remedial practice adoption (RDRPA) for curing infertility in dairy animals of Punjab

The present study was conducted on 540 dairy farmers belonging to all the six different agro-climatic zones of Punjab by personal interview technique to assess Reproductive disorder remedial practice adoption (RDRPA) for curing infertility in dairy animals. The adoption rate was more for farmers running large dairy units followed by those running medium dairy units, then small dairy units. Unawareness and cost factor played a significant role in non-adoption. Adoption of remedial practices such as appropriate body weight, balanced diet feeding, comfortable housing, deworming, insemination by trained person significantly differ according to size of dairy units. There was significantly difference in mean RDRPA score of farmers running small, medium and large dairy units at P