Scholarlink

Introduction: <p>Agriculture is a vital ecosystem service on which societies rely to manage essential resources. In Uttarakhand, more than 70% of the population depends on subsistence farming, which results in loss of biodiversity and abandonment of traditional farming practices.</p> Objective: <p>The primary objective of the current study is to analyze the patterns, productivity, and economic characteristics of sustainable agriculture in the Urgam Valley, focusing on the ecosystem services it provides.</p> Methodology: <p>Comprehensive enumeration and random stratified sampling were performed over five village clusters in the Urgam Valley, encompassing more than 70% of the population. Crop productivity was evaluated with the Quadrate method (1.0&#xa0;m x 1.0&#xa0;m plots) with five replications over two successive years. Economic evaluations encompassed human and animal labor expenses, market pricing for inputs (seeds, manure), and agricultural yields. The Harvest Index (HI) was computed to assess the efficiency of grain production in relation to overall biological yield.</p> Results and discussion: <p>Urgam had the best production for major crops, including potatoes (2363.125&#xa0;kg/ha), wheat (1170&#xa0;kg/ha), and finger millet (558.125&#xa0;kg/ha). In contrast, Bharki recorded the lowest crop yields for barley (414.375&#xa0;kg/ha) and mustard (313.75&#xa0;kg/ha). The highest HI values were recorded for Barnyard Millet in Bharki (46.95%) and Finger Millet (48.68%), signifying elevated resource conversion efficiency. The lowest HI values for Amaranthus were observed in Urgam (28.56%), indicating potential for efficiency enhancements. Kidney beans exhibited the highest output-input ratio of 3.95, illustrating their worth as a cash crop despite the highly laborious methods involved. The cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of agriculture in the Urgam Valley depicts an over-dependence on human and animal labor, which forms the bulk of input costs.</p> Recommendations and conclusion: <p>The study also notes several policy recommendations for adopting sustainable agriculture in the Urgam Valley, such as enhancing soil health, assisting local farmers in growing Indigenous crops, applying climate-smart agriculture approaches, and combining Indigenous knowledge and new technologies to help the farmers cope with subsistence and commercial farming.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Sustainable agriculture and provisioning ecosystem services in the Urgam Valley, Central Himalayas: patterns, productivity, and economic insights

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2025年11月10日

查看全文
  • Ashok Kumar Meena,
  • R. K. Maikhuri

摘要

Introduction:

Agriculture is a vital ecosystem service on which societies rely to manage essential resources. In Uttarakhand, more than 70% of the population depends on subsistence farming, which results in loss of biodiversity and abandonment of traditional farming practices.

Objective:

The primary objective of the current study is to analyze the patterns, productivity, and economic characteristics of sustainable agriculture in the Urgam Valley, focusing on the ecosystem services it provides.

Methodology:

Comprehensive enumeration and random stratified sampling were performed over five village clusters in the Urgam Valley, encompassing more than 70% of the population. Crop productivity was evaluated with the Quadrate method (1.0 m x 1.0 m plots) with five replications over two successive years. Economic evaluations encompassed human and animal labor expenses, market pricing for inputs (seeds, manure), and agricultural yields. The Harvest Index (HI) was computed to assess the efficiency of grain production in relation to overall biological yield.

Results and discussion:

Urgam had the best production for major crops, including potatoes (2363.125 kg/ha), wheat (1170 kg/ha), and finger millet (558.125 kg/ha). In contrast, Bharki recorded the lowest crop yields for barley (414.375 kg/ha) and mustard (313.75 kg/ha). The highest HI values were recorded for Barnyard Millet in Bharki (46.95%) and Finger Millet (48.68%), signifying elevated resource conversion efficiency. The lowest HI values for Amaranthus were observed in Urgam (28.56%), indicating potential for efficiency enhancements. Kidney beans exhibited the highest output-input ratio of 3.95, illustrating their worth as a cash crop despite the highly laborious methods involved. The cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of agriculture in the Urgam Valley depicts an over-dependence on human and animal labor, which forms the bulk of input costs.

Recommendations and conclusion:

The study also notes several policy recommendations for adopting sustainable agriculture in the Urgam Valley, such as enhancing soil health, assisting local farmers in growing Indigenous crops, applying climate-smart agriculture approaches, and combining Indigenous knowledge and new technologies to help the farmers cope with subsistence and commercial farming.