Climate change is one of the biggest global challenges we are facing today. The impacts of climate change can be felt in various sectors such as water resources, agriculture, livestock and fisheries. Agriculture sector has been identified as a critical sector that needs to adapt to climate change. Climate smart agriculture (CSA) is an approach which helps farmers to increase productivity, mitigate risks, and ensure the sustainability of agricultural production in the face of climate change.
There are various CSA approaches that can be adopted for the agri sector. To begin with, farmers should focus on improving soil fertility by using organic manures such as composts, bio-fertilizers, crop residues etc and also improving crop diversification by adopting mixed cropping and crop rotation. Farmers should also practice water management for better productivity by using efficient irrigation methods such as drip and sprinkler irrigation, rainwater harvesting etc.
Additionally, farmers can also take up climate resilient crops that are able to withstand extreme weather conditions such as drought and floods. Also, they can take up climate smart livestock management practices such as optimum stocking density, using shelters to protect animals from extreme weather conditions etc.
The adoption of CSA approaches would not only help farmers to improve the productivity but also increase their income levels in the face of hostile climate conditions. Furthermore, it will be instrumental in ensuring food and nutritional security for all.
Basics Of Climate Smart Agriculture
What is climate-smart agriculture
Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) refers to the farming practices and technologies that help agricultural production systems become more resilient to climate change while continuing to provide food security.
Why is CSA needed?
Climate-smart agriculture is becoming increasingly important in India as the country faces challenges such as population growth, a growing demand for food, and climate change. Climate-smart agriculture refers to practices that help farmers sustainably increase their agricultural productivity and incomes, adapt and build resilience to climate change, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions when possible.
The climate-smart agriculture approach aims to minimize trade-offs and increase synergies in order to make crop, livestock, forestry, fisheries, and aquaculture more productive and sustainable.
Climate-smart agriculture is not a separate type of farming, it’s an imaginative way to map out growth plans that make the agricultural industry more efficient and sustainable while also preparing for climate change.
Implementation Of Climate Smart Agriculture
Climate-smart agriculture is the term for actions taken in different ecosystems like fields, pastures, forests, and oceans and freshwater ecosystems. This involves using technologies and practices to manage these systems in a way that improves food security while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Policy reforms are necessary to support this effort as well as investments strategies that target climate smart agricultural initiatives.
Different components of climate-smart agricultural systems include:
- In order to balance near-term food security and livelihoods needs with adaptation and mitigation priorities, the management of land, crops, livestock, aquaculture, and capture fisheries must be improved.
- Managing ecosystems and landscapes to protect the natural world that we rely on for food, agriculture, and a stable climate.
- Services for farmers and land managers that can enable them to better manage the risks and impacts of climate change and undertake mitigation actions; and
- Changes in the wider food system including demand-side measures and value chain interventions that enhance the benefits of climate-smart agriculture.
National climate-smart agriculture approaches necessitate the alignment of activities from many different stakeholders.
Government Of India Initiatives
India understands that food security in the present and future, as well as sustainable andclimate-resilient agriculture, rely on developing effective adaptation strategies. Therefore, the country has taken prompt action to address climate change issues.
Through these efforts, the government has gained key insights into how climate variability and change affects major food crops, horticulture, and livestock production at both the regional and national level.
The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) has been launched in order to sustainably address agricultural issues, enhance livelihood opportunities and economic stability, thereby ensuring food security. The NMSA is also designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector and adapt to climate change.
The NMSA has identified 10 key dimensions for adaptation. These include improved crop seeds, livestock and fish culture; water use efficiency; pest management; improved farm practices; improved nutrient management; agricultural Insurance; credit support; markets; access to information and livelihood diversification.
The country has initiated the National Livestock Mission (NLM) in order to increase livestock production while protecting the environment, preserving animal biodiversity, ensuring biosecurity and farmers’ livelihood.
Creating activities such as hay/silage production, fodder banks and densification, feed enrichment processing units, and feed processing units will diminish the amount of greenhouse gases emitted.
In order to achieve sustainable development of the fisheries sector, a major initiative has been taken with the launch of the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB). The NFDB focuses on increasing fish production by promoting sustainable practices and improving the value of fisheries in India.
The Ministry of Agriculture established the National Initiative for Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA), a major program of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), to conduct long-term research on how Indian agriculture responds to climate change, including not just grains but also horticulture, natural resource, livestock, and fisheries.
The program, which encompasses over 21 Central Institutions and various State level Agricultural Universities, is one of the largest projects in any developing country. Not only does it address strategic research but also demonstrates how to best bet practices on farmers’ fields to cope with current variability.
This is being carried out in 130 districts that are most vulnerable.
The Ministry of Agriculture, jointly with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), has invested significant effort in capacity development for farmers, scientists, and extension workers at all levels on the consequences of climate change in agriculture and the need to adopt local adaptations.
In key areas of the country that are especially vulnerable to changes in climate, the government is promoting types of crops that can tolerate harsh conditions, as well as better practices for managing water and nutrients. These include using micro-irrigation, conservation methods like no-tillage farming, crop diversification, pest surveillance with an integrated approach to pest management.
These measures along with improved agro-advisories and weather based crop insurance are likely to help farmers to cope with climate variability and minimize risks.
In order to strengthen extension, the National Mission on Agriculture Extension & Technologies (NAME&T) was started in 2014-15.
ICAR has established a number of in-situ and ex-situ water conservation techniques and dryland agriculture technologies, which are being expanded through the Integrated Watershed Management Program (IWMP) and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
The Government of India is taking multiple steps to manage the long-term effects of climate change. The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) mission, which falls under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), strives to develop and carry out strategies that will make Indian agriculture more weatherproof against changing climates.
National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)
The NMSA is one of eight Missions outlined in the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), with the objective of raising sustainable agriculture through climate change adaptation practices. The main emphasis is on increasing agricultural production, particularly in rainfed regions, by way of integrated farming, soil health management, and integrating resource conservation.
The NMSA’s many components, such as Rainfed Agriculture, Soil Health Management, and Organic Farming, all play a key part in meeting the SDGs and INDC goals. For example, Rainfed Agriculture aims to increase farm productivity and incomes in rainfed areas by working towards sustainable land management practices. These practices include the use of integrated farming methods such as water harvesting, and skills development.
One important goal of the NMSA is to implement climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices in order to maintain food security, increase farm incomes and adapt to climate change.
The NMSA programmatic intervention focuses mainly on conservation agriculture to improve farm productivity, sustainability, profitability and climate resilience by promoting location-specific integrated/composite farming systems; soil and moisture conservation measures; comprehensive soil health management and mainstreaming rainfed technologies.
Rainfed Area Development (RAD)
RAD focuses on Integrated Farming System (IFS). It is a type of Integrated Farming System (IFS) that aims to boost output and minimize hazards linked with climate change. This method embeds agricultural activities such as horticulture, livestock, fisheries, agro-forestry, apiculture, and others into the crop/cropping system to allow farmers not just to maximize profits for their own livelihood but also to reduce the effects of drought, flood or other severe weather disasters through income generated from related operations during crop loss.
Micro Irrigation
Micro Irrigation technologies, such as drip and sprinkler irrigation, is a reliable technology that has become increasingly popular among farmers in India.
Micro irrigation has many benefits for farmers, including water savings, reduced fertilizer usage, and lower labor costs. In addition, micro irrigation can help increase crop yields and farmer incomes.
This method of irrigation has the ability to irrigate more land with the same amount of water as traditional irrigation. In addition, due to the simplicity of irrigation, water deficient cultivable waste land and undulating ground regions may simply be cultivated.
NABARD has created a dedicated Micro Irrigation Fund with an initial corpus of Rs. 5000 crore (Rs. 2000 crore for 2018-19 & Rs. 3000 crore for 2019-20) in order to encourage public and private investments in Micro irrigation. The main objective of the fund is to make it easier for States to gather resources so they can expand coverage of Micro Irrigation.
So far, eight varieties of climate resilient seeds have been developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in crops such as rice, green gram, maize and lentil. These seeds are tolerance to climatic stresses.
Apart from this, 177 climate-resilient varieties have been made available to farmers through large-scale demonstrations across the country.
In 2011, ICAR also established a key network project called National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA).
The project is made up of several parts, including strategic research on adaptation and mitigation, field testing of technologies in 151 clusters of villages one each from climatically vulnerable districts, and generating public awareness about the extent to which agricultural climate change impacts may be reduced.
Our project hopes to create technologies that can withstand harsh weather conditions, including droughts, floods, and heat waves. These tools will help those living in areas most prone to extreme weather to better deal with such disasters.
After consulting with State Agricultural Universities (SAUs)/Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), the DA&FW issues advisories to the States through the Crop Development Directorates (CDDs) in order to raise awareness and implement contingency plans as needed locally.
Besides, the India Meteorological Department under the Ministry of Earth Science issues weather-based operational agro-meteorological advisories with ICAR and SAUs under the Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa Scheme.
Agromet advisories are communicated to farmers through different channels, like the print and electronic media, Doordarshan, radio, internet etc.
The Meghdoot mobile App, launched by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, gives farmers access to weather information and alerts specific to their district so they can make more informed decisions about their crops.
Popular Examples Of Climate smart farming In India
In India, technologies and practices for improved water management and climate-smart agriculture (CSA) are progressing.
Farmers’ vulnerabilities to climate change vary depending on their landholdings, crops produced, and location. Solar-based irrigation systems and Direct Seeded Rice (DSR), as CSA methods, are becoming increasingly popular among several Indian farmers.
Other examples of climate-smart farming practices in India include the development of new crop varieties that are better suited to harsh weather conditions, as well as the use of technologies like micro irrigation, which can help farmers conserve water and increase their crop yields.
Agro-advisory services and weather insurance are two examples of CSA in India. Solar water pumps, community-based and on-farm water management, adaptable crops, breeds, and seedbanks, sustainable livestock management, integrated nutrient management that includes biogas usage, and minimal tillage are just a few of the many kinds of initiatives.
Innovations at the market level include building strong local institutions, implementing gender-inclusive strategies, making cross-sector linkages and providing access to market information.
Rice is an excellent example of a salt-tolerant crop. Rice is a major food source in India and many other parts of Asia and Africa. Rice production may be severely hampered by climatic extremes such as sea level rise, which causes coastal salinization.
The adoption of ‘climate-smart’ rice has led to enormous increases in yield in poverty-ridden farming communities that are especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The Sahbhagi Dhan variety is specifically deployed in India.
A great example of CSA at work is Dhundi village in Gujarat, who use solar power to irrigation their farming lands.
The solar programme provides farmers with two sources of income. First, they can sell the electricity they generate back to the local grid. Second, because they have a reliable source of water, they can diversify and grow crops other than those that are reliant on rainfall.
Farmers are also testing a change in how they plant rice. Instead of planting rice seeds in puddles of water (the traditional method), some farmers are instead choosing to sow the seeds directly into the field (a practice known as direct-seeded rice). Direct-seeded rice requires less water to grow, and thus emits fewer greenhouse gases associated with farming.
Rice paddies that do not puddle are being developed by scientists from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), and the first trials are now near harvest in India, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Odisha. Rice today accounts for approximately 10% of worldwide methane emissions – roughly equivalent to those generated by cattle.
IRRI’s breeding programme works to develop and test new lines of seeds that will excel in dry or puddled ground, by bringing useful traits from many plants together into one superior line.
Though direct seeded crops need less time and effort to grow than transplanted crops, they can have issues such as weeds, uneven growth, and weak stems. These problems usually require extra attentiveness in the form of weed management or strong tillering.
The breeding lines that will be developed will incorporate the following: well-adapted to direct-seeding conditions, and free of risk. They’ll give farmers the control they want over how they grow rice while eliminating the danger of crop failure.
If farmers want to transplant, they can; if they want to opt for direct seeding, that’s fine; if they want to utilize equipment or broadcast their produce, they can do them as well. There’s no danger of crop failure with either option.
DSR could potentially resolve the long-standing issue of paddy stubble burning in north India. Since DSR shortens the crop growth duration, if for example Punjab, Haryana and UP were to switch to DRS, rice would hypothetically mature earlier than it does currently. This would give farmers more time to manage straw better rather than burning it.
Way Forwaard
The most effective way to practice CSA is through collaboration between government agencies and farmers, as well as incorporating mechanised farming methods and new technologies.
Technology, big data, and digital solutions at various levels can help farmers confront climate-related problems in agriculture.
Farmers must be confident in technology and the part it can play. India has a long way to go when it comes to improving its seasonal weather predictions. District levels are where met departments operate. And the regions are huge, with farmers growing a variety of crops. India lacks the technology to keep track and monitor all of these crops; Indian farms must be digitized.