TUTICORIN: Scientists of Agricultural Research Station, Kovilpatti, visited Ettayapuram recently where rainfed black cotton soil cultivation is always at prime. The team met the farmers to know how much they spent on soil and water conservation measures. A majority of farmers said loss of space and unavailability of labour were the major drawbacks though they knew that water storage and retention were the main advantages of soil and water conservation. Farmers were adopting mostly in-situ measures like summer tillage, bunds across slope followed by ploughing across the slope and vegetating the bunds. The ex-situ measures were less adopted. M. Rajeswari, Soil and Water Conservation Engineer, told the farmers that an yield increase of at least 15 per cent per year could be achieved when water conservation measures like ridges and furrows, broad bed and furrows, compartmental bunding and vegetative barriers were put in place for any dry land crops like cotton, sorghum, maize and pulses. She said the construction of percolation ponds at the terminus of gullies would help in recharging groundwater. V. Subramanian, Chief Scientist, All India Coordinated Research Project on Dry land Agriculture, told the farmers that in the present context of diversified rainfed agriculture a single agricultural system alone might not be widely applicable and participatory approaches to soil and water conservation on the existing traditional practices were the need of the hour.