Energy inputs and crop production in western Pakistan

The objective of this study was to investigate the patterns of energy use and their relationship with crop production on farms in the Dera Ismail Khan (D.I. Khan) District of the North West Frontier Province, Pakistan. A year-long survey of daily inputs of energy to more than 600 crop plots of 26 farms in seven villages was carried out. These represented both rainfed and irrigated farms operated by bullocks and tractors. Irrigation was provided by either canal or tube-wells. Data on energy inputs were recorded for crop-production operations through biweekly visits to the selected farms, for human labor, bullocks, electric motors, diesel engines and tractors. Applications of fertilizers and chemicals and the results of yields were recorded. On a per hectare basis, the use of tractors reduces the use of both human labor and bullocks on farms and increases the total energy consumption. Due to timely land preparation, yields of most of the crops were higher on tractor-operated farms than on bullock-operated farms. On rainfed farms, energy consumption was the lowest due to lack of a permanent source of irrigation. Floods destroyed the crops on certain plots, and therefore subsequent operations like harvesting were not performed. Canal-irrigated farms had higher cropping intensities and used more energy than rainfed farms. Per hectare consumption of energy was highest on tubewell-irrigated farms due to the high consumption of electrical or diesel energy for pumping.