Productivity and energetics of rice (Oryza sativa) based cropping systems in Indo-Gangetic plains

A field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Farm, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh during 2016-17 and 2017-18 to study the productivity and energetics of rice (Oryza sativa L.)-based cropping systems under irrigated condition. The experiment was conducted in randomized block design with three replications. The treatment comprised ten rice-based cropping sequences. Results revealed that rice-potato-green gram recorded significantly high system rice equivalent yield over rest of the cropping sequences during both the years of study. Energy input was recorded highest in rice-potato-green gram followed by rice-potato-cowpea fodder, rice-mustard-sudan grass fodder, rice-whet-cowpea fodder and lowest in rice-berseem-cowpea fodder sequence. Rice-mustard-sudan grass fodder sequence recorded significantly high energy output, net energy, energy output-input ratio and energy intensity as compared to rest of the cropping sequences during both the years of investigation, whereas energy productivity was high in rice-cabbage-cowpea fodder sequence compared to other sequences during both the years of experimentation. However, specific energy was higher in rice-wheat-green gram sequence than rest of the cropping sequences except rice-wheat sequence during second year of investigation where it remained at par with rice-wheat-green gram sequence.