National Consortium on the System of Rice Intensification: A Summary
Summarizing two National level consortiums on the System of Rice Intensification that were held in New Delhi in October 2010 and march 2011. this article highlights the way forward for spreading the use of SRI in the country.
Background
I ndia is the world’s second largest rice producer, accounting for more than 20 per cent of the global production. The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) may help substantially in reducing the embedded subsidies in every grain of rice and result in a yield increase of 15 per cent to 40 per cent.
Through the adoption of a technique such as the SRI, the country’s rice production could be increased by more than five million tonnes annually, which will help in meeting the food security requirements in the coming years. In addition to fertilizer and price subsidies, electricity subsidies on rice have reached an untenable level and it is estimated that on a per hectare basis, SRI could reduce about 3,151 kWh of electricity and about Rs 12,607 on subsidies.
At present, about 42 countries have adopted SRI worldwide. In India, about 1.5 lakh farmers have adopted the technique, covering 12,000 ha across 160 districts. Tamil Nadu and Tripura are the leading states that have adopted SRI. It is now realized that remodeling the extension system in the framework of strengthening the ‘innovation systems’ would promote SRI.”
SRI focuses on planting single seedlings instead of multiple seedlings in a clump, and not keeping irrigated paddy fields flooded during the rice plants’ vegetative growth stage. This results in the reduction of the water required for irrigation by about 30 to 50 percent and a substantial reduction in the application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Whereas civil society has played an important role in taking SRI forward, government agencies in Tripura, Tamil Nadu, Orissa, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh have innovated their extension strategies and have been able to take SRI further. “SRI is a bankable technology approved by NABARD, and it can enhance farmers’ incomes and improve soil health and has the potential to become a leader in agroecological innovations.”