Economics of cropping system intensification for small-holder farmers in coastal salt-affected areas in West Bengal: options, challenges and determinants

Abstract

Farmers in the coastal zone of West Bengal depend mainly on agriculture but constrained with low productivity and hence low income. Productivity constraints attributed to prolonged water logging during and after the wet (kharif) season, soil salinity and the scarcity of low saline irrigation water as the dry (rabi) season progresses. Level of cropping intensification is very low (123%). Experiments were conducted during 2016–2019 at farmers’ field (90 farmers) in this coastal saline zone for finding suitable cropping intensification options. Several new cropping systems have been found feasible that can increase the cropping intensity to 200–300% while providing better income (2–5 times as compared to baseline). Besides, for better utilisation of scarce freshwater resource the vegetable–vegetable–vegetable cropping system was evolved successfully through solar powered drip irrigation system and low-cost drip irrigation system. Such cropping systems provided higher profitability as compared to the existing farming practices. The paper also highlighted various determinants that may influence the adoption of these new cropping systems by the farmers and the possible strategic options therein.