Nature-Based Solutions and Climate-Resilient Agriculture

Mains: GS III – Environment

Why in News?

Climate change is increasingly affecting agricultural systems through rising temperatures, erratic monsoons and frequent extreme weather events and in this context, Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and Climate-Resilient Agriculture (CRA) have emerged as sustainable approaches to strengthen the resilience of farming systems.

Why Indian agriculture is vulnerable to climate change?

Domination of agriculture – Agriculture remains central to India’s economy and rural livelihoods.
It supports the livelihoods of about 58% of India’s population, employs nearly 46.1% of the workforce and contributes around 18% of the country’s Gross Value Added (GVA).
Unequal Landholdings – The average landholding is only 1.08 hectares, while about 89.4% of marginal and small farmers own less than 2 hectares.
This limits their capacity to absorb climate-induced losses and invest in new technologies.
Dependent on Rain – Further, nearly 60% of India’s agriculture is rainfed, accounting for about 40% of total food production.
Therefore, fluctuations in monsoon rainfall have a direct impact on agricultural productivity.
Climate Change – Since the 1950s, India has experienced rising average temperatures, declining monsoon precipitation and increases in extreme temperatures, rainfall events, droughts, sea levels and the intensity of severe cyclones.
Climate change can reduce crop performance by disrupting photosynthesis, altering pest populations, reducing fertiliser use efficiency, affecting soil fertility and causing soil-moisture loss and nutrient imbalance.
Hence, building climate resilience is essential for both agricultural productivity and national food security.

What is the significance of Climate-Resilient Agriculture?

Climate-resilient agriculture – It refers to farming practices that enable agricultural systems to adapt to changing climatic conditions, reduce vulnerability to climate-induced shocks and enhance productivity.
Measures – It involves both adaptation and mitigation measures:
- Selection of appropriate crops and climate-adapted varieties.
- Adjustment of sowing windows and crop duration.
- Adoption of appropriate planting methods.
- Agroforestry.
- Biochar.
- Efficient use of fertilisers, insecticides and pesticides.
- Improved water and soil management.
The resilience of agriculture also depends on the resilience of social systems.
Households, communities and regions need access to technical knowledge, government services and institutional support to effectively respond to climatic challenges.

Nature based solution for Agriculture . UPSC

How Nature - based solution helps?

Nature-based Solutions – They provide an important approach to simultaneously address climate adaptation, climate mitigation and ecosystem restoration.
Components – In agriculture, they include regenerative agriculture, conservation agriculture, reduced-tillage or zero-tillage practices, agroforestry and biochar.
Objectives – Ensuring better adaptation and resilient food production, mitigating climate change, and enhancing nature and biodiversity.
Significance – The importance of NbS extends beyond individual farms.
They are now part of the emissions-reduction plans of at least 102 nations’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that nature-based solutions could deliver 37% of the cost-effective climate mitigation needed to keep global temperature increases below 2°C by 2030.

Thus, NbS can help address the interconnected challenges of climate change, agricultural sustainability and global food security.

Biochar as a Promising Nature-Based Solution

Biochar is one of the important nature-based solutions highlighted for Indian agriculture.
According to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), biochar is charred biomass produced through slow pyrolysis, in which organic material such as crop residues and wood waste is heated at controlled temperatures of 300–500°C without oxygen.
India generates around 350 million tonnes of agricultural waste annually.
Proper treatment of this biomass can produce nutrient-rich organic fertilisers and generate about 18,000 MW of power annually.
Biochar has high carbon content and can improve soil fertility, water-retention capacity and nutrient-use efficiency.
It can also contribute to carbon sequestration and climate-change mitigation.
Importantly, it offers a more sustainable alternative to open-field crop-residue burning, thereby helping reduce air pollution and particulate-matter emissions.
A review by IIT Delhi researchers estimates that biochar could sequester an average of 376.11 megatonnes of CO₂-equivalent in Indian soil, potentially reducing 41–63% of emissions from agriculture and allied activities.

What are India’s Major Policy Initiatives for Climate-Resilient Agriculture?

National Action Plan on Climate Change – The National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), launched in 2008, provides an overarching framework for India’s climate-change policies.
National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture – Under the NAPCC, the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) was launched in 2014–15.
It seeks to promote climate-resilient agriculture through improved soil health, efficient water use and sustainable farming practices.
It has initiated schemes such as:
- Per Drop More Crop
- Rainfed Area Development
- Soil Health and Fertility Scheme
- Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture
- Agroforestry
- National Bamboo Mission
India also became the first country to adopt a National Agroforestry Policy in 2014, followed by the launch of the National Mission on Natural Farming in 2024.
National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture – The National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA) was launched by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in 2011 and is implemented by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
NICRA’s vulnerability assessment of 651 agricultural districts identified 310 districts as vulnerable, including 109 very highly vulnerable and 201 highly vulnerable districts. Based on this assessment, District Agriculture Contingency Plans have been prepared for all 651 agricultural districts.
NICRA also projects that by 2050, yields could decline for rainfed rice by 20%, wheat by 19.3% and kharif maize by 18%, while soybean yields could increase by 3–10% by 2030.
Between 2014 and 2024, ICAR released 2,900 crop varieties, of which 2,661 were tolerant to one or more biotic or abiotic stresses, including pests, diseases, water, temperature, humidity and soil-related stresses.

How these measures strengthen adaptation and food security?

These initiatives strengthen agricultural resilience by promoting climate-adapted crop varieties, improving soil and water management, supporting agroforestry and natural farming, and preparing district-level contingency plans.
Such measures reduce farmers’ vulnerability to droughts, irregular rainfall, temperature changes and other climatic shocks.
Improved soil fertility and water retention can support productivity, while diversified and climate-tolerant crops can reduce the risk of crop failure.
Nature-based solutions additionally help restore ecosystems, improve soil health, enhance biodiversity and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, adaptation and mitigation can be pursued together.
By protecting agricultural productivity under changing climatic conditions, these measures contribute to the availability of food and thereby strengthen food and nutritional security for India’s 1.4 billion people.

What are the challenges and the way forward?

Technologies such as tolerant crop varieties, genome-edited crops, biofertilisers, biopesticides and water-smart technologies face constraints arising from lack of awareness, limited access to credit and quality inputs, and high upfront costs.
These challenges are particularly significant for small and marginal farmers, they require financial support and initial hand-holding from the government to develop skills in agriculture and allied sectors.
Therefore, successful climate-resilient agriculture requires greater awareness among stakeholders about climate-change impacts and greater confidence in adopting improved agricultural technologies.
Farmers, government agencies, research institutions and other organisations must work collaboratively.

What lies ahead?

Climate change poses a serious challenge to India’s agricultural productivity, rural livelihoods and food security.
However, initiatives such as NAPCC, NMSA, NICRA, agroforestry, natural farming and biochar demonstrate India’s efforts to build resilience.
The integration of nature-based solutions with climate-resilient agricultural practices can simultaneously improve soil and water health, strengthen adaptation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, restore biodiversity and sustain agricultural productivity.
With appropriate institutional support, technological access and farmer-oriented implementation, these measures can help increase farmers’ incomes, strengthen climate adaptation and ensure food and nutritional security for future generations.

Reference

The Indian Express| CBS for Solution