AGRICULTURE AND IRRIGATION

AGRICULTURAL SEASONS

ALL THE CULTIVABLE LAND IN THE DISTRICT falls under one of the three categories, namely jirayat (dry crop land), bagayat (irrigated land) and rice lands. Dry crop lands on account of their dependence on the monsoon, are further divided into kharif (early monsoon) and rabi (late monsoon) lands. Kharif crops are brought to maturity by the rains of south-west monsoon whereas rabi crops depend on north-east monsoon, dew and irrigation.

Kharif season, which commences in June and terminates in September, draws its rainfall mainly from the south-west monsoon and from the ante-monsoon showers in May. An average rainfall of 69" received during this season is on the whole fairly distributed. The main kharif crops of the district are:-paddy, kharif jowar, bajri, ragi, Italian millets, kodra, vari, sava, maize, turi, kulith, udid, chavali, groundnut, niger, sugarcane, chillies, brinjals, tomatoes, bhendi, cucurbits and leafy vegetables. Sowing and reaping of these crops roughly coincides with the commencement and termination of the monsoon. With the exception of sugarcane, sowing is generally done between mid June and mid July and harvesting between the middle of September and the end of November. Kharif Jowar, however, is harvested between the middle of December and the middle of January. Crops like chillies, turi and cotton are harvested in September, December, January and February respectively.

In the heavy rainfall zone paddy, ragi, Italian millet, kodra, vari, sava and rala are the main crops grown. In the central and eastern zone, kharif jowar, turi, groundnut, cotton, tobacco, chillies and all pulses are grown. Sugarcane, which is the main cash crop of the district, is grown all along the river valleys. Planting of tobacco is generally done in August and it is harvested in January. Planting of sugarcane commences from November onwards and is over by the end of January. Cultivators take ratoon crop of sugarcane at least for four years. There is also the practice of planting of cane by the rajooing method, especially in the month of August. This is a 16 month crop. Kharif jowar and groundnut grown in central and eastern zone are dibbled by marking the lands by a marker. Cotton crop is grown as a miscellaneous crop generally along with chillies. Sowing is over by the end of July.

Rabi crops such as shalu jowar, gram and wheat are grown in parts of central zone and eastern zone, along the river-banks submerged during floods. The moisture retained by the soil from monsoon showers, rains received from north-east monsoon and dew are sufficient for these crops. In the western zone, after the harvest of paddy, crops such as watana (field peas), val and gram are taken in the lands retaining sufficient moisture. Advantage of north-east monsoon rainfall is also taken. Wherever watering facilities are available, wheat, onions, garlic and vegetables such as carrots, radish, cabbage, brinjals and tomatoes are the other crops grown after the harvesting of paddy.

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