Peri-Urban Vegetable Cultivation in
the NCR Delhi
Peri-urban Vegetable Cultivation in the NCR Delhi
Introduction
Peri-urban agriculture is recognised for its potential role in increasing food security,
employment and income generation, poverty alleviation, community resource development,
waste management and environmental sustainability. A large part of the world population is
living in peri-urban areas. The rich social and economic variability of peri-urban areas
offers opportunities for innovative science, living condition improvements and agricultural
and ecosystem management requiring novel policies, and action to promote harmony both
between society and nature and between groups of people.
The population of Delhi is around 1.4 crores which is causing phenomenal pressure
on land, infrastructure and civic amenities. Availability of rail, road and air transport, cold
storage, processing units, export houses and well established market network, will be
helpful for taking up vegetable cultivation in peri-urban areas of Delhi in an organised way.
Also, a huge quantity of solid waste generated during handling and marketing of fresh
vegetable produce in NCR, Delhi, which is creating health and environmental hazards, can
be used or recycled to produce vermicompost, etc., for use in organic vegetable
production. Peri-urban vegetable cultivation can provide farmers the possibility to cultivate
a small piece of land, and obtain an income to meet their essential and basic needs. In
recent years, around big cities, green belts are being developed which can provide a very
intensive and profitable network of small farms specialised in production of perishable
vegetables for consumption by the urban consumers. This is likely to result in a social
symbiosis between farmers and city dwellers with mutual benefits and advantages. This
will require involvement of a large number of institutions to address many issues related to
the peri-urban vegetable cultivation in a viable participatory approach to make an impact
and deliver anticipated results to the peri-urban population.
Status
Delhi has five Community Development Blocks comprising 209 villages, of which,
199 villages are inhabited while the remaining 10 villages are uninhabited. Now-a-days
about half of the NCR area is urban. The rural area of the NCR is divided into five Rural
Development Blocks: Alipur (north), Kanjhawla (northwest), Najafgarh (southwest),
Mehrauli (south) and Shahdara (east). Out of a total area of 1,47,448 ha, net sown area is
48,357 ha, diara land 7,000 ha, fallow land 12,886 ha, and cultivable waste land 10,850 ha.
In addition, NCR Delhi has 74,248 ha non-agricultural land, 11,708 ha other uncultivated
land, 1,561 ha forest land, 1,267 ha under tree crops and grooves. The total percentage of
agricultural land comes to 41.7 per cent, 35 per cent of the total agricultural land is under
vegetable cultivation. The annual collection of vegetables from Delhi farms is around 22
lakh tonnes. This is from around the periphery of the city from where men folk commute
daily to the city and women attend to the needs of peri-urban vegetable cultivation. Major
vegetables grown in and around Delhi include cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, spinach,
mustard (leaves), cucurbits, okra, brinjal and tomato. In addition, culinary herbs such as
fenugreek and coriander are also cultivated.
In NCR Delhi, 42 per cent landholdings are of up to 2 ha while rest (58 per cent) are
of up to 3 ha. This size of holding suits best for development processes and technology
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adoption. Approximately, 1 per cent of the urban and 17 per cent of the rural population is
engaged in agriculture and adoption of vegetable cultivation is on a rise replacing cereal
crops, due to its being more remunerative than other crops. As such, up to 35 per cent of
land in some villages has gone under vegetable cultivation. Almost, all kinds of vegetables
(tropical, subtropical and temperate) can be grown in Delhi farms, which is again an
advantageous position. An important factor affecting both, land use and cropping patterns,
is the access to transport networks for linkages with urban markets, labour and capital.
Resource Constraints
Most of the farmers are ignorant about the quality of the seed material, its
usefulness and availability. The improved high yielding varieties and hybrids have
also not reached them due to either poor extension services or high cost. The
quantity of such seed material available is also meagre. There is very little or
sometimes no dissemination of advanced/improved production technologies
including high-tech vegetable cultivation and off-season vegetable cultivation,
probably due to lack of trained manpower/system.
There is no awareness about low volume high value vegetable crops like broccoli,
Chinese cabbage, asparagus, celery, parsley, leek, baby corn, cherry tomato, etc.
and as such their demand by starred hotels and elite class is also only partially met
with.
Farmers are mostly ignorant of right stage of harvesting, proper cleaning, grading
and packing of the produce, which results in low price for their produce. Sometimes,
improper labelling of different grades also results in confused marketing and poor
sale price.
Though a good network of wholesale markets exists, less suitable transportation
facilities and unplanned production, creates market glut, resulting in poor payment to
the farmers. Lack of sufficient cold storage facilities to store surpluses for next day
marketing also amount to a major constraint. Nonexistent or meagre local marketing
system also results in low sale price as well as market glut.
There has been inadequate attention towards post-harvest management to prevent
losses and to ensure supply during odd periods. Infrastructure facilities like
precooling units, cold stores, refrigerated transportation system, packinghouses,
modernised market places are either absent or negligible. Market information
system is also either non-existent or not available in big mandis resulting in irregular
production, uncertain availability of the produce and unorganised market prices.
Resource Availability
Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), the premier institute of agricultural
research, education, technology development and extension is situated in the state
and can be looked at, for all sorts of technical guidance.
A large cultivable area in plain and also a sizable spread of Yamuna riverbed is
under cultivation. Another 10,850 ha of cultivable waste land, 11,708 ha of
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uncultivated land and 12,886 ha of fallow land are available to be brought under
vegetable cultivation.
Unemployed but educated rural youth and also women are available to be trained in
vegetable cultivation for gainful employment and increased production.
A fresh vegetable export zone (VEZ) can be established comprising a group of
villages involved in custom production conforming to norms of export in certain low
volume high value vegetables.
Protected cultivation of off-season vegetables with high quality, particularly during
rainy season and winter can be promoted with the improved technologies.
Organic farms can be established and recycled wastes from city and APMC mandis
(fresh vegetable sale points) consumed as organic manure. This will also reduce
environmental pollution and health hazards.
A large number of processing and preservation units are functioning, though on part
time basis, because of irregular supply of raw material. Ensuring their full time
functioning in an organised way will assure utilisation of market glut as well as
availability of products during off-season.
An excellent network of marketing of agricultural produce under APMC already
exists to satisfy wholesale marketing requirements. There are over nine regional
mandis in different parts of Delhi.
Delhi climate is suitable for cultivation of all types of seasonal as well as perennial
vegetable crops. Off-season cultivation is also possible as has been demonstrated
through polyhouse and polytunnel cultivation during rainy season and low
temperature regimes.
Facilities for training the farm supervisors as well as farmers exist both in the
Department of Agriculture/Horticulture, Delhi, as well as at IARI, for making available
trained manpower in production including seed.
An array of vegetable varieties suitable for cultivation under both biotic and abiotic
stresses, for production of high nutrition, higher biomass (quantity) and for specific
end-use is available (courtesy IARI, ICAR) to suit different conditions of production
and utilisation.
Infrastructure exists for seed multiplication and distribution and also for production
technology demonstrations in the form of several farms under Delhi government’s
Department of Agriculture/Horticulture.
A network, to some extent, also exists under the Department of Agriculture/
Horticulture of Delhi government to help in dissemination of new technologies up to
farm level and for monitoring of their progress/adoption.
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IARI has developed a number of production technologies (some are listed below),
which are available for popularisation and adoption:
i. Off-season nursery production to help enhancing availability of produce in
cucurbitaceous vegetables.
ii. Off-season production technology under protected cover for high value
vegetables like cucumber, summer squash, tomato and capsicum.
iii. Almost year-round production of radish, tomato, cauliflower using suitable
varieties in successive sowings.
iv. Kharif onion production to reduce storage requirement, fetch higher returns,
also stabilise market price.
v. Easing and economising hybrid seed production in pumpkin, bottle gourd, ash
gourd, bitter gourd, luffa, etc., to help employment generation, reduced cost of
F1 hybrid seed, increased F1 hybrid seed availability.
vi. Ratooning in okra and brinjal to extend the crop avail134 ability beyond the
normal season under open field. This ensures availability of the produce
during lean/offperiods. vii. Off-season production technology of
cucurbitaceous vegetables in riverbed and diara land.
A good road network exists in the state for transporting cultivation inputs to the farm
and for transport of produce from farms to the markets/consumers. Similarly,
sufficient irrigation facilities in the form of canals and bore wells also exist. However,
drip and sprinkler irrigation/fertigation facilities need generation.
To help organic farming goshalas and dairy farms also exist in the state to provide
organic manure (e.g., FYM, composts, etc.) and such other related inputs.
Branches of different banks are available in every locality to possibly extend credit
facilities to farmers through these branches.
Strategy
Delhi, having ever-increasing consumer population, requires extra procurement of
horticultural produce, particularly vegetables from neighbouring states of Uttar Pradesh,
Haryana and Rajasthan. The present day production of around seven lakh tonnes of
vegetables is not sufficient and, as such, intensive vegetable cultivation on available land,
on scientific lines, using latest technologies, should be adopted/promoted. Further,
additional land, including diara land, has to be reclaimed and brought under vegetable
cultivation. Efforts have to be made on reducing post-harvest losses and utilising/avoiding
market gluts, improvement in produce management and utilisation strategy, including
processing and systematic marketing. Improved marketing information system has also to
be developed. Important vegetable crops which hold promise in cultivation are onion,
bhindi, chilli, bitter gourd, tomato, potato, brinjal, cauliflower, peas, bottle gourd and
cucumber. The thrusts have to be decided for programmes on long term and short-term
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basis. In addition, some medicinal and aromatic plants also need promotion in cultivation
for use in therapeutic and pharmaceutical industry.
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A brainstorming session was held in New Delhi, to deliberate on these issues. The
following recommendations emerged as a result of deliberations at this Session.
Recommendations
Horticulture advisory service and extension network of the NCR Delhi, needs to be
strengthened. Awareness generation about IPM, IPNM, biological pest control and
off-season vegetable production technologies should be given major thrust through
preparation and distribution of informative material on vegetable cultivation on
scientific lines.
Modern micro-irrigation systems (drip, sprinkler) including fertigation, arrangement of
supplies for installation of systems on cost basis needs to be promoted to improve
cost-benefit ratio in vegetable production.
Protected crop and nursery production technology should be popularised so as to
make it profitable/viable on commercial scale. This will also help in off-season
production of vegetables.
Production of hybrid seed and use of pest-resistant high yielding F1 hybrids and
varieties of vegetables in commercial cultivation need promotion. Hybrid seed-
production techniques developed by IARI should be used to economise seed
production cost.
Export production farms, particularly for vegetables should be established.
Infrastructural facilities for post-harvest management viz., cool transport chain,
precooling units, packing houses, short- and long-term cold stores, etc., should be
improved.
Human Resource Development programmes, by giving more emphasis on training
of farmers and farm supervisors in the field of scientific cultivation of vegetable
crops, as well as multiplication of seed and planting material should be
strengthened.
*
A brainstorming session on Peri-urban Vegetable Cultivation in NCR Delhi, for improving urban
health, generating rural employment and improving income of the farmers was held on 23rd
December 2003, under the convenership of Dr. S. Nagarajan, at IARI in New Delhi. The
participants comprised representatives from National Horticultural Board (NHB), Agricultural
Produce Marketing Committee (APMC: Subzi Mandis), National Horticulture Research and
Development Foundation (NHRDF), Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export
Development Authority (APEDA), NABARD, Fruit & Vegetable Project of Mother Dairy, Delhi State
Department of Agriculture, NSC, IFFCO, KRIBHCO, ICAR Headquarters and scientists from
various divisions of the IARI.
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Yamuna riverbed (main diara and upland diara) area for vegetable cultivation on
scientific terms should be developed.
There is need for generation of awareness and establishment of on-farm storage,
processing and preservation units.
System towards making available information regarding demand, supply, price,
market outlook, consumers’ preference, marketing channels and practices to help
streamlining sale of the produce should be developed.
Extension network to help dissemination of knowledge/ technologies (IARI vegetable
production technologies) and monitoring their adoption; generation of written
material on technology transfer and arrangement for its adoption should be
strengthened.
Commercial nursery production units should be established.
Contract cultivation/cooperative farming should be encouraged.
Model production farms with quality considerations for fresh vegetable export should
be established.
Micro-irrigation (drip, sprinkler), and fertigation systems need to be promoted.
Reclamation and conversion of unutilised cultivable land, waste land, fallow land,
and riverbed and diara land area into scientific vegetable cultivation.
Development of market information system to regulate supply, price, and efficient
sale of the produce, establishment of Farmers’ Sale Points and promoting farmer
based cooperative marketing.
Establishment of organic vegetable farms for elite class and for selected vegetables.
Government of NCR Delhi, should establish viable linkages with the concerned
government departments of the adjoining states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan
for implementation of the policy issues in a mission-mode approach. IARI can be the
hatching ground to form small projects on different component issues on the suggested
lines. Financial institutions should provide credit in the form of short-term soft loans to the
farmer. The technologies and improved vegetable seed could be made available by IARI.
Expertise in the form of contract vegetable production and sale, can also be taken from
Fruit and Vegetable Project of Mother Dairy. Expertise available in the IARI could be
utilised for imparting training on various aspects of scientific vegetable cultivation in peri-
urban areas. The ultimate aim should be to improve socioeconomic status of the vegetable
growers of NCR Delhi, later to be adopted by other metros.
