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Previousstudiesshowedthatperiurbanagricul-

tureinHyderabadplaysanimportantroleinthelivelihoods

ofadiversegroupofpeoplefromdifferentcastes,religions

andsocialclasses(Buechler&Devi,2002).Theselivelihood

activitiesaresubjecttotransitionandareinfluencedbythe

constantgrowthofthecity,withresultingeffectslikeincreas-

ingpollution,growthofurbanpoverty,foodinsecurityand

malnutrition.

Agricultural BiodiversityStrengthening Livelihoods in

Periurban Hyderabad, IndiaIn periurban Hyderabad, India, leafy vegetables are

increasingly grown along the Musi River and sold

in urban markets. This agricultural biodiversity can

significantly help urban and periurban farmers

  become more resilient to the impacts of such

changes.

Johanna Jacobi

Axel W. Drescher

Priyanie H. Amerasinghe

Philipp Weckenbrock

During a field study in 2007 (in cooperation with the

InternationalWaterManagementInstitute(IWMI)andthe

UniversityofFreiburg,Germany(IPG/APT)),arapidappraisal

of vegetables cultivated with wastewater irrigation was

carriedout1.Alargenumberofvegetablevarietiesappeared

toflourishinthevegetablegardens,unexpectedlyalsoin

thosewherewastewaterwasusedforirrigation.Eventhough

paragrass,afodderplant,andricewerethedominantcrops

intheperiurbanfringes,thevegetablegardensplayedanimportantrolebysupportingthelivelihoodsofsmall-scale

farmers,many of whom were women (Buechler & Devi,

2002).Spinach(Spinacia oleracea)wasgrownonnearlyone

thirdoftheareaundervegetablecultivation.Otherimpor-

tant crops included amaranth (Amaranthus tricolor) and

roselle(Hibiscus acetosella var. sabdariffa).Theseleafyvege-

tables-traditionallyinhighdemand-haveashortgrowing

seasonandfetchhighmarketpricesduetotheirusagein

traditional dishes. In 2008, the study was extended to

comparecropdiversityindifferentirrigationsystemsandto

explore its role in the livelihoodsofsmallholderfarming

groups.Thisphaseofthestudyusedthehomegardenmodel,whichisbasedonthesustainablelivelihoodsapproach,as

theoreticalbackground(Drescheret al.,2006;Drescher1998).

GISmappingwascarriedouttocapturerichnessandabun-

danceofvarietiesand theextentofvegetablecultivation;

andsemi-structuredinterviewswereconductedwithvege-

tablefarmers.

No significantdifferenceswere found in thebiodiversity

indices(Shannon-indexorSimpson-index)ofgardensthat

usedgroundwatercomparedtothosethatusedwastewater

forirrigation.Cropdiversityplayedanimportantroleinboth

systems in strengthening the resilience of smallholders,

allowingthemtospreadriskssuchasyieldlossordecreasingdemandforacertainvegetable.Perennialcropsandinter-

cropping were common among farmerswho owned the

cultivatedlandanddisposedofawell,butmorethan70per

cent of the interviewees were in an insecure situation

concerninglandtenure.Therefore,fast-growingleafyvege-

tableswerecultivated,mostlywithwastewaterirrigation.

Thesefarmerswereexposedtopollutantslikepesticidesand

industrialeffluents, andfluctuatingpricesof food,seeds,

pesticides and fertiliser. Only one third were native of

Hyderabad.Theevaluatedmonthlyincomefromvegetables

(inSeptember2008)perpersonwasINR1617.202.Onaverage,

4.8peoplewerefarmingperacre,sothecultivationwasveryintensive. Almosthalf of the participants had secondary

sourcesofincomebesidesvegetablecultivation,forexample

Woman harvesting spinach (Spinacea oleracea)Photo: J. Jacobi

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Schematic sketchPhoto: J. Jacobi

foddergrassordairyproduction.Itwasthuspartoftheir

livelihoodstrategytodiversifyincomesources,eventhough

cultivatingvegetableswasgenerallyregardedasrewarding

bytheparticipants.

Astheschematicdrawingillustrates,thesmallplotswereframedbyirrigationcanals.Betweentheplots,mostlyculti-

vatedwithleafyvegetables,tallerplantsweregrown,either

forseeds(e.g. Amaranthus tricolor ),fortubersandleaves

(Colocasia esculenta, Ipomoea batatas) orperennialplants

(Lagerstroemia parviflora).54varietiesofvegetablesfrom20

familiesweremappedandidentifiedinthethreeperiurban

villagesintheresearcharea.Amongthevegetablesmapped,

18(includingcabbage)werecultivatedfortheleaves,mostof

whichwereusuallycookedlikespinach.

Reasons for cultivating a broad diversity of 

vegetablesMore than 80 per cent of the respondents mentioned

economicreasonsforahighcropdiversity.Statementssuch

as“More varieties mean more customers and therefore more

money” indicatedadiversifieddemand.Theneedtoreactto

variationinpriceswasalsomentioned,andhouse-to-house

salespractisedbysomerespondentsrequiredabroadrange

ofproductsaswell.Morethanhalfoftheparticipantssaid

thatdiversityrenderedthemlessvulnerabletopestinfec-

tionsandyieldlosses.Allagreedthatabroaddiversitywas

desirableandthethreepersonswiththelowestdiversity

(six varieties) mentioned their age and lack of external

labour asreasons for notcultivating a larger number of

differentcrops.Abroaddiversitymitigatesvulnerabilityandcanthereforeberegardedasastrategytostrengthenresi-

lience(Cromwell,2001).

Farmers’ adaptation strategiesSeveral adaptation strategies of the smallholders inter-

viewed were evaluated during the study and previous

research.Thesestrategieshelpedmakethemmoreresilient

toeconomicandecologicalstressfactorsassociatedwiththe

growingcity,limitedresourcesandsocioeconomicchanges:

• Adaptationtoglobalchangeintheformofphysicalwater

scarcityinSouthIndiacanbeobservedbymigrationtoperiurbanfringes(themajorityoftherespondentscame

toHyderabadinsearchofworkandwater),wherewaste-

waterisareliable,uncontestedsourceofirrigationwater

thatmakesitpossibletocultivatevegetablesthroughout

theyear.

• Thestudyshowsanadaptationthroughhighcropdiver-

sitytoseveralriskfactorssuchasattacksbypests,yield

loss,e.g.throughheavyrainfallduringthemonsoon,and

fallingmarketdemandandprices.

• Adaptationtothegrowthofthecitycanbeobservedinthe

selection of cropswith a short growing season,which

allowsmigrationtootherplotswhenthelandissoldfor

construction,aswasobservedduringthestudy.

• Ashort-termcroppingsystemof2-4weeksallowsfarmers

toreacttomarketdemandandinsecurelandtenure:most

ofthefarmersreportedthattheycultivatefast-growing

leafyvegetableslikeamaranthandspinachinorderto

guaranteeadailyincomeandbeabletopaythemonthly

rent(70percentleasedthelandonamonthlybasiswith

no guarantee of continuation beyond the following

month).

• Producingperishablegoodslikeleafyvegetablescloseto

themarketswheretheycanbesoldfreshlyhastheadvan-tageofshorttransportationroutes.

• Throughcultivationof their ownvegetables, producers

can reduce their families’ food expenditures, which

enhancestheirresiliencewithrespecttotheglobalfood

crisis.

• Thecultivationofleafyvegetablesisalsoinpartanadap-

tiontotheuseofpollutedwater.Leafyvegetablescancope

withthehighnitrogensupplybetterthanfruit-bearing

vegetables,andcanbeharvestedearlierthanthoseirri-

gatedwithgroundwaterduetothefertilisingeffectof

polluted water (amaranth: 15-30 days reported in the

study,30-50intheliterature).• Irrigationregulationhelpstoalleviaterisksfrompolluted

water:severalfarmersstatedthatthefieldswerenotirri-

gated ondayswhenindustrial effluentswere released.

Thesedayswereknowntothefarmersbyexperience.

The direct advantagesofcropdiversityforthefarmersare

enhancedfoodsecuritythroughdietary diversity(providing

Field preparation in Parvatapuram near HyderabadPhoto: J. Jacobi

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Agricultural Biodiversity Strengthening Livelihoods in Periurban Hyderabad, India

minerals, vitamins and proteins) facilitated by self-con-

sumptionof the cultivated vegetables (mentioned by all

participants),andincomegenerationtoimprove financialassetsthroughthesaleandbarteringoftheirproduce.

The indirect advantages ofcropdiversityareadaptationto

fluctuatinginputpricesandwaterscarcity(throughtheuse

of the reliable wastewater source) and reduction of risk

throughcultivationofplantswithdifferentagro-ecological

requirements(lossesduetothefailureofoneparticularcrop

canbecompensatedwiththeyieldofanother).

Despitetheseadvantagesofcultivatingavarietyofcropsin

theurbanenvironment,theproducers’livelihoodsremain

insecureintermsofecological,socialandeconomicaspects.The use ofwastewater, for example, entails health risks,

especially the direct risk posedby industrial wastewater

pollutedwithchemicals.Anindirecteconomicriskisalso

posedbysoaringfertiliserprices.3

ConclusionAlthoughthereareonlyafewhundredvegetablegrowers

along the Musi, in a city of sevenmillion, these farmers

providean importantdiversityof fresh vegetables to the

marketsofHyderabad.Thestudyindicatesthatthisagricul-

turalbiodiversityisperceivedasanimportantformof‘natu-

ralcapital’ in the livelihoodsof farmers. It is determined

mostlybythedirecteconomicbenefitstofarmers,andin

smallpartalsobythetypeofirrigationusedandecological

factors.Cropdiversityisthusmuchmorethanashort-term

adaptationstrategy;itis partoftheentirelivelihoodstra-

tegy.However,itshouldbeassuredthatindustrialeffluences

areseparatedfromdomesticeffluents.Thisposesfewerrisks

and ismore profitable for urbanand periurban farming

(Krishnagopal&Simmons,2007).Cultivatingahighdiver-

sityofcropsinasustainablewayisknowledgeintensive.

Therefore,theseperiurbanfarmersneedtobeassistedin

meaningfulways,suchasbysettingupfarmerfieldschools

andfocussingtheeffortsofagriculturalextensionservices

onsmall-scalefarmers.

Johanna Jacobi, Axel W. Drescher, Philipp Weckenbrock

SectiononAppliedGeographyoftheTropicsandSubtropics,DepartmentofPhysicalGeography,FreiburgUniversity,Germany.Email:johannajacobi@gmx.deEmail:Axel.Drescher@geographie.uni-freiburg.de

Priyanie H. Amerasinghe

IWMISouthAsiaRegionalOffice,Patancheru,India.Email:P.Amerasinghe@cgiar.org

Diversified vegetable garden near HyderabadPhoto: J. Jacobi

Note

1) The water from the Musi River, which is polluted by more than 600

million litres of wastewater per day (Krishnagopal & Simmons, 2007)

and from the sedimentation basin Nallah Cheruvu (Telugu for blacklake) was classied as wastewater. Later, a sewage plant was

constructed upstream with a capacity of around 339 million litres

per day.

2)€ 24.70, currency rate March 2009.

3) The Guardian, August 12th, 2008: “Soaring fertiliser prices threaten

world’s poorest farmers”. The Hindu 15. 8. 2008: “Millions could

starve as fertiliser prices soar”

References

Buechler, S. &. Devi G. (2002): Livelihoods and Wastewater Irrigated

Agriculture - Musi River in Hyderabad City, Andhra Pradesh, India.

In: Urban Agriculture Magazine no.8, pp.14–17.

Cromwell et al. 2001: Agriculture, Biodiversity and Livelihoods:

Issues and Entry Points for Development Agencies. In: Koziell, I. &

Saunders, J.: Living off Biodiversity: Exploring Livelihoods andBiodiversity Issues in Natural Resources Management, pp. 75-112.

Krishnagopal, G. &. Simmons R. (2007): Urban and Periurban

Agriculture: Towards better Understanding of low Income Producer

Organizations. Hyderabad City Case Study. Access Livelihoods

Consulting India Private Limited, Secunderabad and International

Water Management Institute (IWMI), South Asia Regional Ofce,

Patancheru, India.

Drescher, A.W., Homer R.J. & Iaquinta D.L (2006): Urban Homegar-

dens and Allotment Gardens for Sustainable Livelihoods: Manage-

ment Strategies and Institutional Environments. In: Kumar, B. &

Nair, P. (ed.): Tropical Homegardens. A Time-Tested Example of

Sustainable Agroforestry, pp. 317-338.

Drescher, A.W. (1998) Hausgärten in Afrikanischen Räumen -

Bewirtschaftung nachhaltiger Produktionssysteme und Strategien

der Ernährungssicherung in Sambia und Simbabwe = Sozioökono-mische Prozesse in Asien und Afrika, 4. Centaurus, Pfaffenweiler.

Habilschrift, Geowissenschaften Uni Freiburg.

 Amaranth (Amaranthus tricolor), red and green variety Photo: J. Jacobi