Crop Diversification for Doubling Farmes’ Income in Karnataka

The present paper has analysed the impact of crop diversification on farm income in Belagavi district of north Karnataka. For study, data were collected from 120 farmers comprising 60 farmers following sugarcane as mono cropping, 30 farmers following sugarcane-based intercropping, and 30 farmers following alternate cropping systems, through personal interview method and pertained to the agricultural year 2016–17. Tabular and budgeting techniques were employed to analyse the data. Five major cropping systems were identified in the study area, namely, CS-I (Sugarcane mono-crop), CS-II (Sugarcane + Fodder maize), CS-III (Sugarcane + Soybean), CS-IV (Turmeric-sole) and CS-V (Maize + Chickpea + Groundnut). The net returns over total costs in these cropping systems were 54, 89, 78, 391, 1, 07, 835, 1, 40, 198 and 84, 793, respectively. Based on the findings of the study, it can be inferred that alternate and sugarcane-based intercropping systems not only double the farm income but also improve soil fertility, yield productivity and water-use efficiency, which are eco-friendly as well as farmer-friendly.