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The study pertains to the characterization of Meerut, Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur district of western Uttar Pradesh in terms of soil, climate and land use. Based on soil and climate, homogeneous agro-ecological units were developed for these regions and the agri-technical possibilities of improving the productivity of major crops were studied. For land use, IIRS-1D LISS III and IRS P6 LISS III of both rabi and kharif season of 1998 and 2008 were used and the homogenous units were developed by using ArcGIS. Seventy eight agro-ecological units were identified. Satellite data shows an overall 5.31% decrease in double cropped area with increase in permanent fallow by 2.57% . Shift of land from agricultural to non-agricultural uses were 4.41% in which conversion of agricultural land to built-up areas has been estimated as 2.89 per cent. The yield gaps (potential-current) of rice, wheat, maize and sugarcane for each agro-ecological units (AAU) were calculated. Water and NPK fertilizer requirement for bridging these gaps were estimated.

Mulching is one of the important agronomic practices in conserving the soil moisture and modifying the soil physical environment. Wheat, the second most important cereal crop in India, is sensitive to soil moisture stress. Field experiments were conducted during winter seasons of 2004–2005 and 2005–2006 in a sandy loam soil to evaluate the soil and plant water status in wheat under synthetic (transparent and black polyethylene) and organic (rice husk) mulches with limited irrigation and compared with adequate irrigation with no mulch (conventional practices by the farmers). Though all the mulch treatments improved the soil moisture status, rice husk was found to be superior in maintaining optimum soil moisture condition for crop use. The residual soil moisture was also minimum, indicating effective utilization of moisture by the crop under RH. The plant water status, as evaluated by relative water content and leaf water potential were favourable under RH. Specific leaf weight, root length density and dry biomass were also greater in this treatment. Optimum soil and canopy thermal environment of wheat with limited fluctuations were observed under RH, even during dry periods. This produced comparable yield with less water use, enhancing the water use efficiency. Therefore, it may be concluded that under limited irrigation condition, RH mulching will be beneficial for wheat as it is able to maintain better soil and plant water status, leading to higher grain yield and enhanced water use efficiency.