In situ Rainwater Harvesting and Conservation

Rainfall being a stochastic variable, the spatial and temporal distribution as well as quantity is highly unpredictable and erratic. Consequently rainfed farming especially in the arid and semi-arid areas is a major challenge. Drought and crop failures are quite common in these areas as the soil moisture availability often does not match with the evaporation loss. In order to address these problems, standardization of technologies viz. in situ rain-water harvesting and conservation is inevitable for increasing crop productivity. A substantial part of post-monsoon (January - April) rains can be effectively harvested through land shaping and using suitable mulches. With such models arid fruit crops like ber, bael, aonla, pomegranate, custard apple, wood apple, phalsa, fig etc. may be grown profitably. Considering the above facts a research programme on efficiency of different in situ rainwater harvesting techniques for improved productivity and quality of aonla, ber, custard apple and pomegranate were carried out and the inferences drawn from the study is compiled.