PERFORMANCE AND PROSPECTS OF MILLET-BASED CROP ROTATIONS: YIELD, ENERGY, AND ECONOMIC INSIGHTS IN SEMI-ARID ZONE OF HISAR

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted at CCSHAU, Hisar during Kharif seasons of 2022–23 and 2023–24 in randomized block design in both Kharif and Rabi seasons, replicated thrice with eight treatments (foxtail millet, little millet, browntop millet, proso millet, kodo millet, barnyard millet, finger millet, and pearl millet) in the Kharif season and each millet was rotated with three major rabi crops i.e. wheat, raya and chickpea. Thus, a total of 24 crop rotations with three replications during the rabi season. Results revealed that the pearl millet–Indian mustard closely followed by foxtail millet–Indian mustard was found most economical and energy efficient with 4.8 and 30.4% higher net returns, 8.5 and 5.8% higher B:C ratio, 12.9 and 43.2% higher returns/day, 6.9 and 58.2% higher output energy, 10.8 and 61.3 percent higher net energy returns than pearl millet–wheat and pearl millet–chickpea crop rotations, respectively. Among all millet-based crop rotations, pearl millet followed by wheat/Indian mustard/chickpea rotations were recorded with significantly higher net returns (71.5/75.0 /57.5 × 103 ₹/ha), B:C ratio (1.52/1.65/1.56) and per day returns (311/351/245 ₹/day/ha), output energy (303.3/324.4/205 × 103 MJ/ha) and net energy returns (274.6/304.5/188.7 × 103 MJ/ha), respectively. Little millet/finger millet-Indian mustard/chickpea rotations proved most uneconomical. Pearl millet/ Foxtail millet-based crop rotations with Indian mustard can make their crop rotations economically profitable and energy efficient.