Productivity, Profitability and Monetary Net Return Use Efficiency of Need based Soybean (Glycine max) Cropping Systems under Vertisols in Malwa Plateau of India

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] is a major legume crop having two major quality characters viz. protein and oil. Soybean is known as ‘miracle bean’ rich in protein (40%) and moderate in oil (18-22%) with balanced amino acid (FAO, 1982). Soybean is a high valued and profitable crop. In India, it is grown on  an area of about 12.09 million hectares, which is likely to produce more than 11.22 million tonnes with productivity 928 kg/ha during the year 2020-21 (Anonymous, 2021). In order to that, Madhya Pradesh (6.19 million hectare), Maharashtra (4.04 million hectare) and Rajasthan (1.12 million hectare) constitute the major niche for the cultivation of soybean crop. Soybean is not only an important pulse crop but also known as oilseed crop in Central India.
       
Soybean and wheat/chickpea are most productive crops and predominantly grown in a sequential cropping, particularly under irrigated/rainfed cropping production system in almost periphery of Malwa region and Nimar Valley zone of India. Generally, growing of soybean and wheat in a cropping sequence are nutrients exhaustive and required heavy cost of cultivation in desirable agricultural practices during its cultivation. Long term regular practice of soybean-chickpea and soybean-wheat system in the growing region is posing severe problems before the growers such as complexity in weed management, deterioration of soil-properties, delayed sowing of wheat and low market value of produce owing low productivity as well as poor economic  viability of this cropping system.
       
All domestic demands of the farmers pertaining to agricultural produce could not be possible to fulfill by growing crops in existing soybean-wheat/chickpea cropping systems. The socio-economic status of the growers connected with prevailing soybean based cropping sequences in the region is fairly less. Thus, the diversification and intensification of various crops under soybean based cropping sequences is a possible way for increasing the productivity and profitability per unit area per year without deteriorating the soil fertility and existing cropping sequence needs to be evaluated to meet the domestic need of farmers. The land and water use efficiency and employment opportunities can be enhanced with diversification and intensification of soybean based cropping systems with minimization of cultivation risks. 

A field experiment was laid out during rainy, winter and late winter seasons of 2015-16 and 2016-17 at the research farm of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Dhar, Madhya Pradesh. It belongs to “Malwa Plateau” under 10th agroclimatic zone of Central India. Temperature varies between a minimum temperature of 12°C in December and January and maximum temperature of 45°C in May and June however normal annual rainfall is 830 mm. The soil of the experimental site was clay loam in texture, pH 7.60 with normal Electrical Conductivity (0.58 dS/m) and medium organic carbon content i.e. 0.59%. The experimental field was analysed and found values of major available nutrients i.e. N (236 kg/ha) low in available, P (11.60 kg/ha) medium in available and K (350 kg/ha) high in available contents. In these 16 cropping sequences, soybean was sequenced with feasible winter crops viz. wheat (Triticum aestivum and Triticum durum L.), chick pea (Cicer arietinum L.), garlic (Allium sativum L.), onion (Allium cepa L.), potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) and garden pea (Pisum sativum L.) with inclusion of garlic (Allium sativum L.), onion (Allium cepa L.) in late winter and tested in randomized block design with 4 replications.
       
Only soybean was grown during rainy season with two varieties i.e. JS 95-60 early duration (82-87 days) and JS 93-05 medium duration (90-95 days) under all cropping sequences. The amount of precipitation was 938.2 and 1103.51 mm during the year 2015-16 and 2016-17, respectively. Different varieties as per their feasibility to accommodate the succeeding crop under present investigation were cultivated under different need based diversified cropping sequences.  The variety used for winter crops was like wheat (HI-1544) aestivum, wheat (HI-8663) durum, chickpea (JG-130) desi, chickpea (RVKG-101) kabuli, Potato (Kufri jyoti),  garden pea (Arkel) and garlic (G-282) and onion (AFLR) during late winter, respectively. Sowing of rainy, winter and late winter season crops were done on 21.06.15 and 26.06.16; 17.10.15 and 21.10.16; and 02.01.16 and 03.01.17 during two consecutive years, respectively. The recommended dose of N:P:K (kg/ha) for soybean 20:80:20, wheat 120:60:40, chick pea 20:60:20, garlic 100:50:50, onion 100:75:50, potato 120:50:100 and garden pea 20:60:20 was applied. The observations of experiment were recorded as per standard procedure. The experimental data was statistically analysed given by Gomez and Gomez (1984). The differences among treatments were calculated by using ‘F’ test and critically differences at 5% probability.
       
The methods of calculation of various cropping system indices with their references are as follows:
 
Soybean equivalent yield (SEY)
 
It was estimated by converting of prevailing market prices of grain yield of different crop components in every sixteen cropping sequences as suggested by Yadav and Newaj (1990). After this, soybean equivalent yield of all crops in a respective cropping sequence was summed up and further the values of soybean equivalent yield of all treatments were analysed statistically.
 
Economics of the treatments
 
Economics of different treatments was estimated as per government rates of the production and the cost involved in various cultural operations and inputs cost including labourers required for each treatment combination and the gross monetary returns (GMR) was also estimated from the production of the same treatment and prevailing market rate in the area.
   
Benefit cost ratio or profitability is the index indicating monetary gains over each rupee investment under different treatments. It is determined by formula given below:
   
Monetary return use efficiency (Per day return)
 
Monetary return use efficiency is also known as income per day. It provides the efficiency of the cropping system or monetary value and obtained by using the formula given below:
   
Soybean, winter crops viz.wheat, chick pea, garlic, onion, potato and garden pea and late winter crops viz. were harvested on 07.10.2015 and 09.10.2016; 20.02.2016 and 23.02.2017; 11.05.2016 and 21.05.2017 during two consecutive years, respectively. All the observations of experiment recorded as per standard procedure. The experimental data was statistically analysed given by Panse and Sukhatme (1985). The treatment differences were tested by using ‘F’ test and critically differences at 5% probability.

Soybean yield equivalent (SEY)
 
A perusal of data revealed that soybean yield equivalent of cropping system as a whole, T₁₅ - soybean (JS 93-05)-potato (Kufri jyoti)-onion (AFLR) system was recorded significantly maximum SEYs (17731 kg/ha) among all crop-sequences mainly due to greater SEY of potato during winter along with considering good SEYs of onion in late winter season. Closely followed by T₇ - soybean (JS 95-60)-potato (Kufri jyoti)-onion (AFLR) with regard to SEYs (17318 kg/ha). The next best crop sequence was soybean (JS 93-05)-onion (AFLR) recorded greater SEY 10443 kg/ha in T₁₄ cropping sequences (Table 2). It might be due to higher yield of onion in the sequence.  Further, the results revealed that there is sufficient scope to intensify the existing cropping sequence and increase in cropping sequence productivity with inclusion of onion and garlic during late winter while the minimum productivity of the cropping sequence based on SEYs was registered in soybean (JS 95-60) - chickpea (JG-130) desi i.e. 4279 kg/ha. This could be ascribed due to low yield realized from local chickpea in the sequence (Table 1). Similar results were reported by Billore et al., (2013); Kumar and Kushwaha (2020); Narolia et al., (2018) and Prajapat et al., (2014).
 

 

 
Economics (Profitability)
 
Data showed that all diversified intensive crop-sequences registered significantly greater GMR and NMR than prevailing crop-sequences viz. soybean-wheat/chickpea systems. The treatment (T₁₅)- soybean (JS 93-05) - potato (Kufri jyoti)-onion (AFLR) fetched maximum GMR of ₹ 4,83,207/ha and NMR of ₹ 3,62,170/ha closely followed by T₇-soybean (JS 95-60)-potato (Kufri jyoti) - onion (AFLR) GMR of  ₹ 4,68,247/ha and NMR of ₹ 3,47,260/ha among all crop sequences mainly due to high production potential of entire cropping system over existing crop sequences viz. T₁ with NMR of ₹ 90,492/ha and T₃ with NMR of (₹ 75,824/ha). Based upon above facts, the farmers have choice to select any suitable cropping system depending on their investment capacity (Table 3).
 

               
The significant maximum profitability (4.00) was noted with T₁₅- soybean - potato - onion cropping system closely followed by T₁₄-soybean-onion system considerably greater B:C (3.74) ratio than existing cropping sequences viz. T₁ (2.99) and T₃ (2.81). Almost whole crop sequences under present study had profitability more than 3.0 except to soybean-chickpea and soybean-wheat cropping system, which registered minimum profitability (2.81 to 2.99) index (Table 3). Economics in termsmof profitability mainly attributed to such variations in GMRs, NMRs and B:C ratio of different cropping systems agreeing with views of Billore et al., (2013); Jugnahake et al., 2018; Kumar and Kushwaha (2020) and Prajapat et al., (2014).

Monetary net return use efficiency (₹ /ha/day)
 
Data revealed that among all 16 diversified intensive crop sequences, T₁₅- soybean-potato-onion significantly fetched maximum (^¹ 1156.1/ha/day) monetary value closely followed by T₁₄-soybean-onion (^¹ 879.81/ha/day). The another best crop sequence was T₁₃- soybean (JS 93-05) - garlic (G-282) (₹ 664.18/ha/day) and T₁₆- soybean  (JS 93-05) - garden pea - garlic (₹ 608.64/ha/day) as compared to both existing and traditional cropping sequences of the locality viz. T₁₁- soybean - chickpea desi (` 396.44/ha/day) and T₃- soybean - chickpea desi (₹ 356.23/ha/day). Differences among all these treatments were found significant (Table 4). Similar results were reported by Jugnahake et al., 2018; Kumar and Kushwaha (2020); Narkhede et al., (2011); Narolia et al., (2018); Prajapat et al., (2014) and Ramesh et al., (2009).
 

It is concluded that the treatment T₁₅ - soybean (JS 93-05) - potato (Kufri jyoti) - onion (AFLR) cropping sequence registered the highest soybean equivalent yield (17731 kg/ha) in terms of system productivity with maximum gross returns (₹ 4,83,207/ha), net returns (₹ 3,62,170/ha), benefit: cost ratio (4.0) and monetary return use efficiency (per day return) (1156.01). Next highest productivity (17318 kg/ha) with maximum gross returns (₹ 4,68247/ha), net returns (₹ 347260/ha), benefit: cost ratio (3.87) and monetary return use efficiency (per day return) (1134.95) was recorded in soybean (JS 95-60) - potato (Kufri jyoti) - onion (AFLR) which was closely followed by soybean (JS 93-05) - onion (AFLR) cropping sequence in which soybean-equivalent yield of 10443 kg/ha, maximum gross returns ₹ 2,83,337/ha, net returns ₹ 2,07,562/ha, benefit: cost ratio 3.74 and monetary return use efficiency  (879.81) was recorded over prevailing cropping sequences (soybean-wheat and soybean-chick pea). The minimum SEYs 4279 kg/ha with GMR of ₹ 1,17,724/ha, NMR of ₹ 75,824/ha, B:C ratio (2.81) and monetary net return use efficiency (₹ 356.23/ha/day) were recorded in T₃-soybean (JS 95-60)-chickpea (JG-130).

The authors are thankful to the Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakoot Gramodaya Vishwa Vidyalaya, Chitrakoot, Satna and Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh for providing the financial support in carrying out the study.

None.