Evaluation of different paddy straw management technologies for their economic viability in rice-wheat system

The study examines the economics of different paddy straw management methods in rice-wheat systems in Gurdaspur, Punjab during the Rabi seasons (2019-20 and 2020-21). The experiment was carried out with 2 wheat varieties, HD 3086 (V1) and PBW 550 (V2), using varied treatment combinations of crop residue management approaches, tillage and seed drilling methods. Based on the pooled data, the PAU (Punjab Agricultural University) cutter cum spreader + incorporation with Mould Board plough + Use of Seed drill (M4) treatment produced the highest plant height (95.87 cm). Treatment PAU cutter cum spreader + PAU happy seeder with press wheel (M2) (437.71) had the highest density of tillers per square meter, significantly outperforming other treatments. A significant interaction was observed between paddy residue management methods and varieties in terms of the number of tillers. Maximum spike length (12.81 cm) was obtained with Stubble Shaver + Burning + Zero Tillage Drill (M1), whereas maximum number of spikelets per spike (18.33) was noted in method (M2). The treatment method (M2) turned out to be the most efficient in terms of yield (44.02 q/ha) and benefit cost ratio (1.72).