Drought Prone Research Articles

An Appraisal of Farmer Variety Selection in Drought Prone Areas and Its Implication to Breeding for Drought Tolerance

Maize production and productivity among small scale farmers of southern Africa is limited mainly by drought and low soil fertility. This study aimed at assessing how farmers prioritize selection of varieties for planting under drought stress and how this could help improve the breeding approaches for varieties for resource constrained farmers in marginal environments. A survey was conducted in two drought prone districts of Zimbabwe. Data collection was done using a structured questionnaire, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. The study revealed that farmers have limited options for drought tolerant varieties available on the market. Contrary to breeders, farmers in drought prone areas do not consider disease resistance as an important trait. The farmer preferred traits include, high yield potential, drought tolerance, early maturity, and good performance even under poor soil conditions. Drought tolerance associated traits such as resistance to leaf rolling, tassel blast, general plant recovery to stress and stay green characteristics were identified as the most important traits but most of the varieties currently available on the market do not have these traits. The farmers were willing to make trade-offs among traits like taste or disease resistance for increased yield potential when selecting varieties to grow. Traits preferences or ranking and possible trade-offs were specific to specific areas and groups of farmers. In this study farmers still planted the traditional varieties or landraces because they are drought tolerant, taste better and can be propagated from farm saved seed. These findings show that farmers have limited options on drought tolerant varieties on the market and that scientists need to tap into farmer knowledge, especially on possible trade offs, trait ranking and germplasm for use in developing better adapted varieties which are specific to target farmers. Policies and seed systems analysis on variety availability, distribution and marketing channels also need to be strengthened.

Performance Analysis of a PV Pump Harvesting Rain Water in the Drought Prone Area of Bangladesh

In this paper the performance of a PV driven water pump, without battery storage, for supplemental irrigation by harvesting rainwater is analyzed. A brushless DC motor is used in this work. The worst day, in terms of rainfall, of the month of July has been chosen for data collection. The variation of the flow rate as a function of the PV array power is found to be linear. Head loss is calculated and found greater at higher flow rate. Lower trend of the subsystem efficiency is observed with the increment of the array power. Considering the module efficiency of the manufacturer, the system efficiency is also calculated and found 3.2% as the highest. The amount of water lifted is found to be quite satisfactory for supplemental irrigation.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/dujs.v60i1.10333 Dhaka Univ. J. Sci. 60(1): 37-41, 2012 (January)

Sericulture - An Micro Enterprise as a Source of Livelhood of The Rural Poor – A Case Study of The Drought Prone Area of Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh

Sericulture - An Micro Enterprise as a Source of Livelhood of The Rural Poor – A Case Study of The Drought Prone Area of Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh

Spatial Variation of Vegetation Moisture Mapping Using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission & Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Data

Drought is a recurrent phenomenon in Jharkhand. It affects the livelihoods of the majority of its people, particularly tribals and dalits living in rural areas. Twelve of the 24 districts of the state, covering 43% of the total land area, are covered under the Drought Prone Areas Programme (DPAP). Hunger and starvation deaths are reported almost every year. Vegetation moisture content is one of the key parameters in drought monitoring, agricultural modelling and forest health mapping. In this paper the three different approaches is described using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission & Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data for measuring the vegetation moisture content in a part of Palamu Commissionaire of Jharkhand state, which is prone to severe drought. ASTER thermal data was used to calculate land surface temperature using Normalized Differential Vegetation Index (NDVI) emissivity correction method. Reflective bands are used to determine NDVI, Modified Soil Adjustment Vegetation Index (MSAVI) & Normalised Differential Water Index (NDWI). The three different vegetation moisture estimation methods namely MSAVI – LST (land surface temperature) feature space identification, NDWI & Vegetation Dryness Index (VDI) is applied to determine the vegetation moisture level. The results of three methods were classified and final moisture content map was produced. The result was validated using rainfall data of study area. This study indicates that by proper pre-processing of ASTER data, it can be used to estimate the land surface temperature and vegetation moisture content and can be used for drought prediction.

Clima e incendios forestales en Cantabria: evolución y tendencias recientes

Wildfires are a frequent event in Cantabria, but their seasonality does not match the typical warm season maximum generalized in most of the Iberian Peninsula. They occur at the end of the winter and the beginning of the spring (January to March), being mostly anthropogenically triggered, in conjunction with “Suradas”, a windstorm which combines high winds and low humidity. In this contribution temporal trends of several climatic variables from meteorological observatories located in Cantabria and nearby regions are analyzed since 1961 during the highest risk period in order to assess to what extent the occurrence of wildfires may be linked to the recent climatic variability. Our results show that the regional climate has become warmer and drier, due to the combined effects of increases in temperatures and the decrease in relative humidity and precipitation, variables that are likely to play an important role in drought and fire proneness. However, the exception is the frequency of “Suradas”, which have reduced. Those regional climatic trends are strongly linked to the recent evolution of atmospheric circulation at regional and hemispheric scale. The higher frequency of anticyclonic cells over the Iberian Peninsula, and conversely, the reduction of the number of Atlantic baroclinic disturbances are consistent with the temporal evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation.

Identification of Agricultural Drought Vulnerable Areas of Tamil Nadu, India – Using GIS Based Multi Criteria Analysis

Though drought is normal part of the climate, vulnerability to drought depends on various climatic and physical factors. Information on the vulnerability to drought, helps in mitigation and drought proofing the region. This study aims at identifying the drought vulnerable regions of Tamil Nadu; India over agricultural area through Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) under GIS environment. Major climatic, edaphic, biotic and social factors are considered. Each factor is classified into five classes and appropriate weights are assigned. The MCA under GIS environment was carried out and the results showed that the drought vulnerable region discerned by MCA mostly matched with the blocks identified by the Drought Prone Area Programme (DPAP) of Federal Government of India. Some blocks identified as drought vulnerable in this study and under DPAP had majority of area under forest. Some blocks of the state were found drought vulnerable in this study, which was not identified by DPAP.

Determinants of Household Food Security in Drought Prone Areas of Ethiopia

This paper documents the determinants of household-level food security based on the data collected in 2003 from 954 randomly-selected households in major drought-prone areas of Ethiopia; namely from the West and East Haraghe zones of Oromiya and South Gonder zone of Amhara. The food security is assessed using the calorie intake, anthropometrical measures and based on household-declared perceptions about the food security situation. The Probit model for factors affecting the food security level and the Tobit model for factors affecting the incidence of food security were employed. Factors that significantly affected the food security level are agroecology, family size, number of crops grown, number of plots owned, access to drinking water, the wealth status of the household and the number of community-based organizations (CBOs) in the village. The incidence of food security was significantly affected by agro-ecology, number and types of crops grown, access to climatic information, proportion of household members with formal education, number of CBOs in the village and the adoption of soil conservation measures. The results confirm the important role of some of the development interventions of both government and non- governmental organizations (NGOs) to promote food security through formal education, soil and water conservation measures and production diversification. In addition, important factors that need to be considered are access to climatic information and strengthening the role of CBOs. Keywords: Food Security; Calorie Intake; Anthropometric Measures; Ethiopia; Probit; TobitEast African Journal of Sciences Vol. 2 (1) 2008: pp. 68-78

Rural Credit Market Imperfections in Drought Prone Bolangir District in Orissa: Some Critical Issues and Policy Options

The paper analyzes the nature of contractual arrangements, interlinkages and imperfections observed in the rural credit market today in drought prone Bolangir district in western Orissa. It examines the differential access of different farmer categories to formal and informal sources of credit, their purpose of borrowing and mode of credit utilization. It tries to trace out the different types of impediments faced by the farmers in . Availing credit from institutional sources and suggests some innovative measures to improve their access to credit. The study reveals that the benefits of credit reforms hardly reached the target group. The poorest of the poor still approach the village moneylenders and traders for credit. Though majority of loans were originally sanctioned for cultivation and other productive purposes, significant diversion occurred towards current consumption. Cumbersome and time consuming banking procedure, failure to supply credit at t/uf time of need and rigid collateral requirement are the major hindrances causing poor access 10 formal credit institutions. The crop loss due to natural . Calamities and the unproductive utilization of borrowed funds resulted in rising default rate and delayed loan repayments. The study concludes that keeping in view the local socio-economic and ecological conditions, the rural credit policy needs to be revamped to make the rural credit market more efficient and responsive to the needs of the local population in the drought prone region.

Agricultural drought assessment at disaggregated level using AWiFS/WiFS data of Indian Remote Sensing satellites

Spatial differences in drought proneness and intensity of drought caused by differences in cropping patterns and crop growing environments within a district indicate the need for agricultural drought assessment at disaggregated level. The objective of this study is to use moderate resolution satellite images for detailed assessment of the agricultural drought situation at different administrative units (blocks) within a district. Monthly time composite NDVI images derived from moderate resolution AWiFS (60 m) and WiFS (180 m) images from Indian Remote Sensing satellites were analysed along with ground data on rainfall and crop sown areas for the kharif seasons (June – November) of 2002 (drought year), 2004 (early season drought) and 2005 (good monsoon year). The impact of the 2002 meteorological drought on crop area in different blocks of the district was assessed. The amplitude of crop condition variability in a severe drought year (2002) and a good year (2005) was used to map the degree of vulnerability of different blocks in the district to agricultural drought. The impact of early season deficit rainfall in 2004 on the agricultural situation and subsequent recovery of the agricultural situation was clearly shown. Agricultural drought assessment at disaggregated level using moderate resolution images is useful for prioritizing the problem areas within a district to undertake, in season drought management plans, such as alternate cropping strategies, as well as for end of the season drought relief management actions. The availability of ground data on rainfall, cropping pattern, crop calendar, irrigation, soil type etc., is very crucial in order to interpret the seasonal NDVI patterns at disaggregated level for drought assessment. The SWIR band of AWiFS sensor is a potential data source for assessing surface drought at the beginning of the season.

Employment Generation to Women in Drought Prone Areas: A Study With Reference to the Development of Sericulture in Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh

The paper presents the details of employment generation through sericulture activity in drought prone area where ninety per cent of the district population subsists on agriculture .It focuses mainly on the employment of women in the activity which can be easily performed by them. It also emphasizes on the income generation through the activity. It also presents a comparison of generation of employment by other crops .The author also presents few suggestions for the development of sericulture in the district .The study assumes significance in the context of employment generation to women in drought prone areas where the non farm employment opportunities barely exist in the district.

Soil Water Management and Conservation Practices Towards a New Cropping Pattern in Drought Prone Areas of Bangladesh

Soil Water Management and Conservation Practices Towards a New Cropping Pattern in Drought Prone Areas of Bangladesh

Rural Out-migration in the Drought Prone Areas of Ethiopia: A Multilevel Analysis

This article presents a multilevel analysis of rural out-migration in Ethiopia over the 1984–1994 period. Using a recent household survey carried out in the drought prone rural areas of Ethiopia, discrete-time hazard models are used to examine the impact of individual, household and community factors on migration. Incorporating a life-course and the “new economics of migration” perspectives, our findings suggest that rural out-migration in these areas can be viewed as a function of individual, household and community characteristics. We find that mobility of people for schooling in the impoverished rural communities is minimal. Migration of both sexes was possible mainly through marriage, although females tend to depart their residences more than males. Our findings also reveal substantial period effects on out-migration trends.

Direct Seeded Rice (Dsr) Genotypes for Drought Prone Upland Area

Direct Seeded Rice (Dsr) Genotypes for Drought Prone Upland Area

Irrigation in Drought Prone Areas

Investment in irrigation forms a major part of the strategy of increased agricultural production and rural development in the successive five year plans. This calls for greater efforts on preparation of basinwise regional plans for optimum development of water and related resources, within the national policy framework. There is a greater need for laying stress on economic efficiency in planning, implementation and management of irrigation projects so that the projected benefits to the farmers are achieved. Irrigation planning and management pose problems which are extremely complex. It needs a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach drawing insights and skills from many fields to tackle these complex problems.

インド・デカン高原南部の干ばつ常習地域における農村開発

インド・デカン高原南部の干ばつ常習地域における農村開発

Application of Markov chain model in determining drought proneness

Rainfall distribution especially run of wet and dry spells will have dominating effect on the crop yield. Two state Markov chain model of order one has been used to evaluate sequences of dry and wet weeks during southwest monsoon period over dry farming tract of Maharashtra.
 
 An index based on parameters of this model has been developed to bring out the degree of drought proneness. Following this index dry farming tract of Maharashtra has been delineated into five zones of different degree of drought proneness.

Quantification of drought and crop potential

The dry farming tract in India, where annual rainfall varies from 40 to 100 cm, comprises of 105 districts in nine States. In this tract rainfall is the limiting factor for successful raising of crops, In order to stabilising the crop at certain level even in a low rainfall year, it is essential to know the frequency of drought years so that agricultural planning is drawn up on a rational scientific basis, For the purpose, amongst other things, it is necessary to know the minimum week by week rainfall at different probability levels. In this paper the lowest amount of rainfall at different probability levels (10 to 90% ) has been computed by fitting incomplete gamma distribution probability model to weekly rainfall totals of 87 stations in the dry farming tract during the Indian monsoon season. The same amount of rainfall behaves differently, in terms of water availability to plaits depending upon atmospheric demand. Moisture Availability Index (MAI) which is defined as ratio of probabilistic rainfall of a week to potential evapotranspiration has been computed, Crop requires various amount of water at its different growing phases and least one third of potential demand is necessary even in the early stage. Moisture availability index at 50% level has been used to map out drought prone areas. The period when MAI >= 0.3 has been taken as the crop growing period, The mid-season water stress period, i.e., when MAI >= 0.3 has been found out from 50% probability level and this period has been used to map out drought prone area both in time and space, Severity of drought has been classified by the number of water stress periods -as well as their durations. Drought proneness has also been discussed at other probability levels whenever necessary. Applying the present criteria, drought prone area both in time and space in the dry farming tract has been demarcated. A drought prone area is found extending from Aurangabad in Maharashtra to Bangalore in Karnataka. Occurrence of drought is frequent in Gujarat and eastern Rajasthan.

Spells of dry days related to agricultural drought in India

Efficacy of dry spells in identifying drought prone areas has been advanced in the study. For this purpose, daily rainfall from 1 June to 31October which nearly covers all growth phases of crops grown principally during kharif season for a 70-year period (1901-1970) for 26 stations in Maharashtra State have been analysed. Two types of dry days were classified. vtz., a day receiving less than 2 .5 mm of rainfall and receiving less than 6.3 mm or rainfall. Dry spells for both the categories have been computed and analysed. Similarly proba bilities of occurrence of dry spells of different lengths have been analysed. A theoretical distribution is also fitted to dry spells. The study revealed that logarithmic distribution nearly represents both categories or dry days. Analysis or dry spells and the probabilities onfirmed that the hard-core of the drought in Maharashtra State is located over Ahmednagar district. Other areas which possess high degree of drought proneness are eastern parts of Pune, Satara and Sangli districts and western parts of Sholapur, Aurangabad and Bhir districts. In coastal belt of Konkan and eastern parts of Vidarbha, the drought menace is ccmpara tlvely less