Contingency cropping for Anantapur Photo: Dibakar Roy · Pexels License · source ↗

Contingency cropping for Anantapur

The Anantapur District Agricultural Contingency Plan (DACP), prepared by ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA) in collaboration with ANGRAU and the AP State Agriculture Department, is the documented decision matrix that tells farmers and the agriculture extension system which crop to sow when the southwest monsoon (SWM) is delayed, fails or arrives unusually early. Anantapur is India's second-driest agricultural district (after Jaisalmer) with an annual rainfall of 510-590 mm and an extreme inter-annual coefficient of variation; contingency cropping is the central risk-management tool for the district's kharif season.

Principle

Anantapur's standard kharif crop is rainfed Spanish-bunch groundnut, normally sown between mid-June and mid-July at the onset of SWM. If sowing is delayed beyond mid-July, the crop fails to complete its 105-110 day cycle within the rainfall window and yields collapse. The contingency plan replaces groundnut with shorter-duration drought-tolerant alternates progressively, depending on the actual onset and the cumulative rainfall received by specific calendar dates.

Procedure - decision matrix

The CRIDA-published DACP provides week-by-week sowing recommendations based on actual SWM onset:

Normal onset (15 June - 5 July, >100 mm cumulative rain): Spanish-bunch groundnut (K-6, K-9, Dharani, Narayani) at recommended density.
Late onset (6 July - 20 July, 50-100 mm cumulative): short-duration groundnut (K-6, K-9 at 30 x 10 cm) plus pearl millet/finger millet/foxtail millet (Foxtail Millet Korralu Cultivation) as catch crop on lighter soils.
Very late onset (21 July - 5 August, 25-50 mm cumulative): switch to drought-tolerant alternates - foxtail millet (SiA 3085, SiA 3088), finger millet (Finger Millet Ragi Cultivation) (VR 762, GPU 28), sorghum (Sorghum Jowar Crop) (PSV 56, CSV 15), redgram (Maruti, ICPL 87119) and castor (DCH 519).
Monsoon failure (after 5 August, <25 mm cumulative): cluster bean (RGC 936), horsegram (Hebbal Hurali 1, Hebbal Hurali 2), niger and limited high-stress millets only.
Mid-season dry spell (30-45 day rainfall break): deploy supplemental protective irrigation through farm pond (Farm Pond) at peg initiation; foliar spray of 2% urea + 1% MgSO4 to sustain canopy.

Where and when it applies

The DACP is district-specific and updated periodically by CRIDA after each major drought year. It is operationalised through the AP State Agriculture Department's Rythu Bharosa Kendras (RBKs), KVK Anantapuramu, ANGRAU campus advisories and SMS extension. Farmers receive specific seed-variety recommendations at the panchayat level along with seed-supply arrangements through APSSDC and AP Seeds. The plan integrates with crop insurance (PMFBY Crop Insurance) - replanting compensation is contingent on adherence to contingency cropping advisories.

Limitations

The plan's effectiveness depends on timely seed availability of alternate crops; APSSDC stocks are often insufficient when whole-district contingency triggers. Farmer preference for groundnut is strong because of the long-established marketing channel at Kadiri (Kadiri Groundnut Mandi); switching to millets and pulses is socially and economically harder despite agronomic merits. Successive deficit years have also depleted soil seed banks of older drought-resilient cultivars. The recent ICRISAT and CRIDA push for millet revival under the Sub-Mission on Nutri-Cereals partly addresses this.

Sources

District Agricultural Contingency Plan - Anantapur. ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture.
Districtwise Promising Technologies for Rainfed Groundnut. ICAR-CRIDA.
AP State Department of Agriculture Contingency Plans. AP Agriculture Department.