Background: Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is crop of economic importance in global and national scale. India is the greatest producer of quality cotton, the third largest exporter and the second largest consumer. Conventional cotton farming creates environmental pressures and negative impact on public health. Organic farming is the sustainability option in cotton production. Cotton is the energy intensive crop, which uses high amount of input energy to produce seed cotton. Hence, energy budgeting is highly essential for better energy utilization and resource conservation and also measuring the input use efficiency of a farm/agronomic practices is vitally important in present day Indian agriculture.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: Sensing the economic importance of cotton, ten number of eco-friendly, ecologically safe organic nutrient management (ONM) practices were framed and field experiment was conducted in split plot design with two main plots (M) and five subplots (S) and replicated thrice. The direct and indirect energy used in different ONM practices were computed and energy coefficients were computed from energy equivalents and that has been used as inputs to generate efficiency coefficients by using an input oriented DEA approach. 
 
Result: Energy budgeting on field operation basis reported that, the field preparation and irrigation operation uses most of the energy (in non-renewable forms) which needs attention and there is the scope to find alternative energy conservation systems. Results on input use efficiency reported that the ONM practice, double green manuring followed by cotton and application of well decomposed poultry manure and foliar application of fermented fish extract at 5% concentration at 25 and 35 DAS are 100% efficient in terms of technical CRS, technical VRS, scale, allocative and cost efficiencies. This organic nutrient management practice would produce optimum output from the least amount of input and would be ideal for sustainable cotton production.&nbsp;

Energy Budgeting and Efficiency Analysis of Organic Cotton: A DEA Approach

Background: Cowpea is a versatile leguminous pulse crop that exhibits resilience to drought and adapts well to various climates. It serves multiple purposes and can be enjoyed both in its raw form and as a grain pulse. Various studies established that cowpea has the potential vegetable crops with nitrogen fixation capacity. Thus, the study of environmentally safety and clean production of cowpea for better crop yield along with energy use efficiency and carbon budgeting for sustainable crop production is an important issue for the upcoming future. 
 
Methods: The present study was carried out at the experimental farm of Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Sepahijala, Latiacherra, Tripura under CAU (I) on 2022 and 2023 with three high yielding cowpea varieties (Kashi Kanchan, Kashi Gauri and Kashi Unnati). The design followed in the experiment adhered to a Randomized block design (RBD) with five replications.&nbsp; 
 
Result: Experiments result revealed that Kashi Kanchan perform outstanding by showing maximum pod yield. In the context of energy equivalent and Carbon budgeting, Kashi Kanchan is showing high energy use efficiency (45.01) and high carbon efficiency (1.59).

Energy Budgeting and Economic Analysis of Cowpea Varieties under Rainfed Condition

<div style="text-align:justify">Making and maintaining the agriculture into a profitable business in the context of increasing population, food security and depleting natural resources is a very complex problem. Providing contamination free food with rich nutrition is an immediate and future challenge besides maintaining soil and environmental health. Ecosystem based Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) recommends the use of organic crop rotation, compost and green manure, organic pest control etc. as well as mechanized farming operations. The present article discusses the importance and practicality of ZBNF on the basis of available literature. Its benefits and consequences are far-reaching. Hence an attempt has been made to describe the ZBNF system, its utility and sustainability for Indian agricultural conditions. The four major components of ZBNF; such as Jivamrit, Achchhadan, Bijamrit and Vapasa etc are reported to be very cost-effective. In addition to the description of these, discussions on natural insecticidal measures, major benefits and challenges of ZNBF have also been included. The need has been felt for the necessary policy interventions in the absence of detailed published scientific research literature and hence, a few salient points have been discussed. This discussion will be a contribution in taking Indian agriculture a step forward.</div>

​Zero Budget Natural Farming for Sustainable Agriculture: A Review

<div>India will surpass China as the most populated country in the world, with an estimated nearly 1.67 billion people by 2050 (World Population Data Sheet, October 2019). In order to feed this population, the country has to adopt a policy of vertical growth in productivity as the opportunities of further horizontal expansion of cultivated area are almost exhausted. Continuous cropping depletes the soilnutrient reserves and hence, the soils are to be replenished with the essential major andminor plant nutrients. In this context, Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) given by Subhash Palekar is not appropriate technology to adopt the farmers because in this technique, cannot provide adequate quantity of nutrients required forhigher crop productivity as soil has a limited nutrient supplying capacity. In addition, ZBNFrecommends use of traditional varieties of crops having almost half the yield potential ofmodern high yielding varieties. Thus, farmers will not earn enough to double their income with low crop productivity.</div>

General Overview of Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF)

<div>Background: Early duration pigeonpea genotypes a boon as the crop needs a very little amount of inputs, survives well even under available water conditions because of its Bio-tillage in nature. There are many causes of low productivity of pigeonpea, using long duration genotypes, using convention varieties, non monitored input like sowing date and management practice and short duration genotypes play a very important role in productivity as well as production in Rajasthan.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: A two-year field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Station, Sriganganagar Rajasthan, during the Kharif season of the year 2018 and 2019. The experiment is laidout with a split plot design with thrice replication, in the main plot four dates of sowing allotted viz: D1: 25th May, D2: 10th June, D3: 25th June and D4: 10th July and in subplot five genotypes allotted viz: V1: UPAS-120, V2: ASJ-105, V3: Pant- 291, V4: PUSA- 992, V5: ICPL- 88039. 
 
Result: Field experiments resulted, the Sowing date D2: 10th June (1451 kg ha-1), is best suitable as compared to others in terms of yields, its attributes and B:C ratio both the years. In the short duration varieties V4: PUSA-992 (1586 kg ha-1) superior to others. In respect of different sowings dates the energy budgeting viz: energy use efficiency varies from D1: 25th May (9.80) and (5.99) to D4: 10th July (8.14) and (4.95), energy productivity (kg MJ-1) varies from D1: 25th May (0.164) and (0.104) to D4: 10th July (0.126) and (0.078) in both the years. In respective of genotypes the higher energy use efficiency found in V4: PUSA-992 (10.34), (6.56), energy productivity in V4: PUSA-992 (0.171 kg MJ-1), (0.111 kg MJ-1) which was superior with others in all aspect in both the years respectively.</div>

Energy and Economic Budgeting of Pigeonpea Genotypes (Cajanus cajan L.) at Various Sowing Dates

<div>Three-year (2014-2016) field experiment was conducted for evaluation of maize (Zea mays L.) based intercropping system for productivity, profitability, energy budgeting and soil health in Eastern Himalayan region. The treatments consisted of four sole crop viz. maize, soybean, groundnut, cowpea and six intercropping treatments viz. maize + groundnut (1:1), maize + soybean (1:1), maize + cowpea (1:1) and &nbsp;strip cropping of maize + groundnut (4:4), maize + soybean (4:4), maize + cowpea (4:4). The highest maize equivalent yield (10.2 t ha-1) was recorded in maize + groundnut cropping system (1:1) followed by maize + soybean (1:1) with 8.9 t ha-1. The highest SNBC (soil microbial biomass carbon) (66.2 mg g-1) and organic carbon (1.3%) were recorded with the cultivation of cowpea as a sole or intercrop. Strip cropping system, maize + cowpea (4:4) recorded the highest soil available N, P2O5 and K2O kg ha-1, highest energy efficiency (12.53) and energy productivity (955.01 g MJ-1).&nbsp;</div>

Evaluation of Maize (Zea mays L.) + Legume Intercropping System for Productivity, Profitability, Energy Budgeting and Soil Health in Hill Terraces of Eastern Himalayan Region

<div>Background: This study is meant to examine the energy requirement and energy input- output of different cropping sequences&nbsp;.The crucial objective to conduct experiment to understand energy efficiency using inputs and outputs which were disbursed in cropping sequences. Hence, it is need of the hour to identify the most remunerative and cost effective cropping sequence with high energy efficient for UGP of India.</div>

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<div>Methods: This study was carried out at the research farm of ICAR-Indian Institute of Farming Systems Research, Modipuram, during 2017-2021.The divergent cropping sequences viz.&nbsp;sugarcane-ratoon-wheat (CS1); rice-wheat-dhaincha (CS2); pigeonpea +maize-chickpea-okra (CS3); maize-berseem-black gram (CS4); sorghum-mustard-green gram (CS5) and Napier+cowpea/berseem (CS6) were compared in reference to curtail higher energy inputs&nbsp; through selected alternate cropping sequences. The obtained energy values were calculated by multiplying the amount of inputs and outputs by using energy conversion factors. 
 
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<div>Result: Maximum inputs energy consumed by sugarcane crop alone (33.14x103 MJ ha-1). Results shown that irrigation, seed, fertilizers and diesel required higher energy for the completion of cultural operations. However, higher inputs energy was used in irrigation followed by seed and fertilizers, respectively. In regard to per cent energy intake through inputs, the highest energy spent was for irrigation (35.30 MJ ha-1) and fertilizer (23.80 MJ ha-1).The wheat equivalent yield was higher in sugarcane-ratoon-wheat (125.58 t ha-1). Maximum output energy was with above system (596.70&times;103 MJ ha-1). Highest net energy returns was counted with sugarcane-ratoon-wheat (549.37x103 MJ ha-1), energy ratio (12.60) and energy profitability (11.60). Indeed, energy efficiency was highest in same system (1657.50) followed by maize-berseem-black gram (1421.96).</div>

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Energy Budgeting of Different Cropping Sequences in the Indian Upper Gangetic Plains

<div>Background: Maize-wheat is the predominant cropping system of dryland ecology of Jammu region, but due to their comparatively higher input requirements especially of nutrients and water under the fragile ecology of these dry lands an untenable threat has been posed to their factor productivities. Therefore, all cropping sequences that suit and sustain better on the natural resources of the dryland ecosystems for a longer period of time needs to be explored. 
 
Methods: The treatments consisted of two oilseeds i.e. mustard) and gobhi sarson and two pulse crops i.e. chickpea and field pea taken during rabi were followed by two oilseed i.e. soybean and sesame and two pulse crops i.e. green gram and black gram grown during kharif. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with four replications. 
 
Result: Significantly higher chickpea equivalent yield of green gram was observed with field pea- green gram sequence (10.26 q/ha) which was at par with the chickpea &ndash; green gram and field pea - black gram system. The available nitrogen status was significantly influenced and recorded highest (166.82kg/ha) under field pea- green gram system. Further overall nutrient mining by this system was quite low as compared to other systems.</div>

<div>Effect of Different Pulse and Oilseed based Cropping Systems on Yield and Nutrient Budgeting under Rainfed Conditions of Jammu</div>

Institutional banking system in India is strengthened through nationalization of banks and many innovative initiatives such as Self Help Group (SHG) - Bank Linkage Programme, Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme and Financial Inclusion. However, many studies conducted in Tamil Nadu, have pointed out several issues such as inadequacy of crop loan amount owing to lower scale of finance and minimum focus on long term agricultural advances that are hampering the banking services directed towards agricultural development. &nbsp;In order to address these issues, an attempt was made in the present study to assess the causes for and consequences of credit gap in the disbursement of short term / crop loan to the sample farm households; Results of the &nbsp;study indicated that &nbsp;the credit gap I (Credit requirement - Scale of finance) and Credit Gap-II (Credit Requirement - Credit Sanctioned) per ha of paddy were lesser in ST borrower farms, which indicted that &nbsp;though the scale of finance for paddy has been fixed at higher level, i.e., well above the credit requirement, the actual credit disbursement was far lesser than the credit requirement. The working capital, in general, enhances the productivity of the crop and the external financial assistance could help farmers in purchasing the necessary farm inputs in adequate quantities and thereby the farm productivity could be improved. But the scale finance itself was far lesser than the working capital required for cultivating paddy in all categories of farms and this resulted in the wider credit gaps in the different farm categories.

Evaluating the gap in demand and supply of institutional lending for paddy cultivation in Thiruvarur district of Tamil Nadu, India

<div>Agriculture is extremely important in a developing country like India. Apart from fulfilling the food requirement of the growing Indian population, it also helps to improve the country&rsquo;s economy. By 2050, 60% of India&rsquo;s population would have severe food insecurity. Increased food production is critically needed, but high production costs and market price fluctuations are forcing farmers into debt. The usage of chemical fertilizers and pesticides has expanded in India since the green revolution. Excessive chemical use has a negative influence on the ecosystem, soil, human health and groundwater purity. Spiritual farming or Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) is the most effective way to lower farmers&rsquo; input costs. Subhash Palekar practised and advocated Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) in India. Building elements of ZBNF are jeevamrith, bijamrith, mulching and soil aeration. These four approaches contribute to improved soil health, microbial population and crop output. Intercropping, contour bunds, crop rotation, green manures, compost, and biological pest management is some of the other fundamental elements. Spiritual farming as the potential to reduce pollution while also preserving productivity in our agroecosystem and has the ability to improve agricultural viability and food security.</div>