Impact Study on Productivity and Sustainability of Groundnut (arachis Hypogaea) Cultivation Through Cluster Frontline Demonstrations (cflds) in Northern Agroclimatic Zone of Telangana

Background: Groundnut is a major oilseed crop supporting farmer livelihoods; however, yields remain suboptimal due to poor adoption of improved technologies. To bridge this gap, cluster front line demonstrations (CFLDs) were conducted during rabi 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25 to assess the productivity, profitability and sustainability of integrated crop management (ICM) practices in the northern agroclimatic zone of Telangana. Methods: A total of 88 demonstrations were laid out on farmers’ fields using improved variety K-1812 (Kadiri Lepakshi) with recommended ICM practices, while adjacent plots under farmers’ practices served as controls. Data on pod yield, technology gap, extension gap, technology index, benefit-cost ratio, sustainability yield index (SYI), sustainability value index (SVI), adoption level and horizontal spread were recorded and analyzed annually. Result: Improved practices produced a mean pod yield of 25.75 q ha-¹, a 29.58% increase over farmers’ practices (19.86 q ha-¹). The technology gap (5.89 q ha-¹), extension gap (19.25 q ha-¹) and technology index (42.78%) indicated further scope for yield improvement. Higher SYI (0.60, 0.64, 0.60) and SVI (1.74, 1.85, 1.99) under ICM compared to farmers’ practice confirmed sustainability advantages. CFLDs achieved a superior B:C ratio (3.54) and generated an additional income of ₹ 34,789.95 ha-¹ over traditional practice (2.72). Adoption of ICM increased substantially (overall 159.51%), with horizontal spread expanding to 282 ha (206.07%) by 2024-25. The findings highlight the strong potential of ICM-based CFLDs for enhancing groundnut productivity, profitability and sustainable technology dissemination under real farm conditions.