SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE:
ROAD TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT ON INDIAN AGRICULTURE
INTRODUCTION:
by Vanshika Vijh
One of the 17 sustainable development goals adopted by UN i.e. goal 13 urges countries to take urgent actions to combat climate change and come up with Intended Nationally Determined Contributions thus, providing them customized flexibility to tackle climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions with efficient use of sustainable technologies which add upto overall efforts to keep increase in global temperature below 2 degree Celsius.
Since, food is the basic necessity for a human being to survive other than air, water and shelter so impact on agriculture due to prominent change in climate needs to be studied desperately and adaptation and mitigation strategies should be devised in a way to be able to survive through these troubled waters.
IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON INDIAN AGRICULTURE:
India is like a farmer’s cradle with crops being farmer’s children predominating the economy, society and polity of India so India needs to pay special attention to the adversely changing climate as India is a tropical country and further rise in temperature can end the bounties of conductivity it gathers due to apt climate availability for crops to bloom. Expected changes due to shift in climate are:

ONGOING EFFORTS BY GOVT. TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE MENACE:
 India actively participated in the Paris Climate talks and laid down its INDC’S to curb the adversities of climate change which mainly are:
• Reduction by 2030, the emission intensity of GDP by 32 to 35 per cent from 2005 level.
• Generate about 40% of electric power installed capacity from non-fuel based energy resources.
 India has initiated the concept of International Solar Alliance which would work towards formulation of strategies and sharing of ideas between tropical countries to effectively manage climate change responses.
 India has indulged in signing of various bilateral agreements with countries like USA and Germany to gain technological access so as to work upon sustainable renewable energy models.
 Govt is working towards development of Training Centre in below sea farming with the aim of equipping coastal areas with science and art of biosaline and below sea level agriculture.
 Govt has also taken climate change management to a mission mode through development of NAPCC (National Action Plan for Climate Change). This also includes a mission for promotion and research on renewable energy and sustainable agriculture.
SUGGESTIVE MEASURES TO NEGATE THE ILL-EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE OVER INDIAN AGRICULTURE:
 Our basic strategy should be to maximize the production benefits of good monsoons and minimize the adverse impact of climate change.
 There is a need to work upon establishment of local action plans to adapt and mitigate the adversities of climate change and for that Panchayat level “Climate risk management centres” and cadre of trained “Community Climate Risk Managers”. These managers at the local level should be rural men and women who can be leaders in promoting climate smart farming systems.
 Urgent action is required in conservation of “Smart Millets” and their reintroduction in the diet because millets and other underutilized crops are more drought and heat resistant plus highly nutritious at the same time.
 There will be a need for anticipatory research in several areas of farming which will need change. For example, in crops like wheat and rice the breeder should shift attention to per day productivity from per crop productivity since the duration of crop is likely to get reduced.
 With rising of mean temperature the advantage of production of seed tubers of potatoes in aphid (vectors of virus) free season will be lost and we will have to produce potato crop from true sexual seeds thus, losing out on dominance of India in potato production.
 There is a dire need to be prepared for frequent floods and hailstorms by introduction of rice crop elongated genes which can grow over flood level in all flood prone areas.
 There is a scope for development of biosaline agriculture involving both halophytes and marine aquaculture.
 There is a need for agriculture to make a contribution in reducing green house gas emissions.
1) This can be done through promotion of biogas plants which can prevent methane accumulation in the atmosphere and at the same time provide fuel and fertilizer to the farmer.
2) Nitrous Oxide emissions as a result of fertilizer application can be reduced through use of neem coated urea.
 Involvement of women is particularly important since they suffer the most from adverse effect of climate change for example in areas like collecting drinking water, fuel wood, fodder etc. Hence all the efforts should be gender sensitive.
 IT can be mobilized along the coastline like mobile phones can be used to provide information to small scale fishermen as to heights of waves from different distances and where the fishes are. Technology can play a transformational role in the area of fisheries.

CONCLUSION:
It is a well known fact that climate change has already increased the volatility of prices of agricultural commodities. In future it would be difficult to import food grains at an affordable price. Therefore the future will belong to the nations with grains and not guns. An uncommon opportunity now exists for converting a potential calamity like climate change into a tool for achieving the goal of “sustainable agriculture”.