ABSTRACT
The Rice-Wheat Consortium (RWC) is a CGIAR ecoregional program that has the following goal:
The consortium was established in 1994 to deal with the rice (Oryza sativa L.)-wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) (RW) farming systems practiced extensively in the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) and Himalayan midhills of South Asia. These RW systems are one of the most important cropping systems in South Asia for food production, and millions of farmers depend on it for their livelihoods. Since almost as much area is devoted to RW systems in China, they represent one of the major farming systems in the world. This chapter provides information on
various aspects of these systems in relation to no-till farming to acquaint readers with background information for better understanding the other contributions to this volume.
