Socio-economic and Environmental Perspectives of Sustainable Watershed Eco-System in Union Territory of Pondicherry

The study conducted in the Karaikal region of the Union Territory of Pondicherry during 2004-05 has made a comparison of watershed and conventional systems. The crop diversification index has been found 0.28 in watershed and 0.32 in the conventional system. The study has revealed that nearly all the farmers in the watershed and only 40 per cent in the conventional system apply organic fertilizers. Moreover, farmers apply more fertilizers in the conventional (235 kg/ha) than watershed (210 kg/ha) system. The index of yield stability for all the crops has been found to be 0.98 in the watershed and 0.84 in the conventional system. The gross return has been found higher by 11.65 per cent, and net return by 32.18 per cent in the watershed than the conventional system. The input self-sufficiency ratio has been found to be 0.52 in the watershed and 0.47 in the conventional system. The analysis has indicated that if the agricultural income were considered, there has been no significant variation in food security in the two systems. The analysis has further revealed that there is a potential in promoting watershed system of farming for which it is necessary to devise policies that will provide incentives to watershed farmers both directly and indirectly. Until effective biological measures of soil fertilization are introduced, polices could be adopted to promote the application of biological and chemical fertilizers in a balanced way, so as to maintain soil structure and sustain or increase crop yields.