Climate Change Challenges in Agriculture Sector

• Union Agriculture Secretary Devesh Chaturvedi outlines a two-pronged approach – adaptation and mitigation – to address climate change challenges.

• Primary agricultural cooperative societies (PACS) are emphasized as key players in building climate change resilience in rural India.

• Adaptation strategies include creating drought- and flood-resistant crop varieties, efficient water management techniques, and crop insurance.

• Mitigation efforts include promoting natural farming, using carbon market incentives, and ensuring food security and farmer livelihoods.

• The Ministry is working on creating two lakh multi-purpose PACS and setting up 70,000 grain storage points across the country.

• National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development Chairman Shaji K.V. identifies four pillars to address climate change challenges: accelerating green lending, providing access to data, internal green transformation, and resource mobilisation.

• The summit also includes sessions on irregular monsoons, climate change and new seeds, digitisation, bio energy, and price risk management