Agriculture is our lifeline. We depend on it for our survival as the major source of our food is linked with agriculture. In our country, India too we are majorly an agrarian society . Even though there are different eating habits in different parts our country. But India is one of those very few countries, which is able to experience all four seasons in all its formats in a proper way. And this is because we have been placed geographically in a strategic place on the world map. With a burgeoning population, the primary source of food becomes all the more important and crucial.

We all know, that in many parts of the country, agriculture is seen not just as a profession but as a way of life and sometimes serves as an individual’s identity. And like every sphere, climate change also has irreversible impact on agriculture. he unimpeded growth of greenhouse gas emissions is raising the earth’s temperature. The consequences include melting glaciers, more precipitation, more and more extreme weather events, and shifting seasons. The accelerating pace of climate change, combined with global population and income growth, threatens food security everywhere. Changes in precipitation patterns increase the likelihood of short-run crop failures and long-run production declines.

In developing countries like India, where food security is a major issue and their case is more vulnerable, climate change is like a menace that needs to be tackled with a lot more seriousness. Below are few suggestions that can probably help us in delaying the dangers of food insecurity that pose a serious threat to us and our future generations.

1-Using water more efficiently and effectively, combined with policies to manage demand: Water as we know is a limited resource and the ground water depletion, uneven rainfall patterns and droughts are reasons of crop failure. Just by building better irrigation facilities may not be sufficient as water itself may be in scarcity. What is required is use of advanced water accounting systems and technologies to assess the amount of water available, including soil moisture sensors and satellite evapotranspiration measurements. Such measures can facilitate techniques such as alternate wetting and drying of rice paddies, which saves water and reduces methane emissions at the same time.

2-Improving soil health : Soil is the most crucial ingredient in any farming activity. Increasing organic carbon in soil helps it better retain water and allows plants to access water more readily, increasing resilience to drought. It also provides more nutrients without requiring as much chemical fertilizer — which is a major source of emissions.

3-Switching to less-thirsty crops: Maize or legumes consume less water as compared to rice. So switching to such type of crops can seriously be beneficial. But a generation or a region which has its food eating patterns that involves rice, such kind of thought is also scary. So, there is a big challenge to introduce new variants and alter eating practices.

4- Collaborative Efforts to be launched– For Ex-World Bank Group’s Climate Change Action Plan (2021-2025) is stepping up support for climate-smart agriculture across the agriculture and food value chains and via policy and technological interventions to enhance productivity, improve resilience, and reduce GHG emissions. So such organizations need to be formed and a collaborative approach needs to be undertaken so that the adverse effects are minimized.

What are your thoughts and suggestions on this topic? Do let me know.

Love,

Chinmayee

“This post is part of Blogchatter’s CauseAChatter.”