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The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) regained contact with its Mars helicopter Ingenuity on January 21.

About Ingenuity: A Mars Helicopter 

• Ingenuity is a small, autonomous aircraft that flew to Mars aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover.
• It is a solar powered aircraft which consists of a wireless communication system, navigation system, computers and cameras.
• It was built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of NASA.
• Significance of Ingenuity: It is an experimental flight test to determine whether life is  possible on Mars.

About Perseverance Rover

• Objective:  To study signs of ancient life, and collect samples of soils & rocks that can be sent back to Earth for future missions.
• Mission Duration: At least one Mars year (approximately 687 Earth days)
• Launched: July 30, 2020, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

NASA Perseverance Rover

List of Missions to Mars: Their Names and Associated Country

News Source: The Hindu

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StartupShala has been introduced by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

What is the StartupShala Flagship Accelerator Program?

• Aim: To accelerate the development and success of early-stage startups by providing resources and opportunities to accelerate one’s startup journey to the next level.
• In this program an extensive network of partners from different incubation centers, educational institutions, and large corporate entities come together to offer startups diverse facilities and resources.

Eligibility Criteria For Startups to Apply for Program

• It should be a DPIIT-recognised startup.
• It is important for the startup to work in the sustainability sector.
• The startup should generate revenue.
• The startup should be a growth stage startup.

Significance of StartupShala Flagship Accelerator Program

• Programs like StartupShala drive innovation and create wealth.
• The StartupShala Flagship Accelerator program will help to kick-start the engine of economic growth by encouraging growth-stage startups to lead the market.

News Source: PIB

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Neuralink has successfully implanted a brain chip in its first human patient.

Neuralink Telepathy

• Neuralink’s first product would be named Telepathy which would be beneficial for those who lost their limbs. 
• Neuralink has done various extensive tests on animals. In these tests, monkeys were able to play computer games using their brains.

What is a Brain Implant?

• Brain implants are intricate tools that directly connect the brain and external technology. 
• They function by turning signals from the brain into commands that can operate different devices, like computers, artificial limbs, or robots. 
• This connection happens through groups of electrodes strategically placed to catch brain activity and understand its messages.

Applications of Brain Implants

• Medical Treatment: Brain implants help treat neurological issues like Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy.
• Assistive Technology: Brain implants can give direct control over prosthetic limbs which in turn offers more independence to people with physical disabilities.
• Cognitive Enhancement: Implants may enhance memory, learning, and information processing.

Challenges 

• Opposition from Animal Rights Groups:
  • Animal rights groups such as the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, have raised concerns about tests on primates by Neuralink. 
• Safety and Reliability:
  • Its safety and reliability is also questionable. Glitches or malfunctions could have serious consequences, so rigorous testing is necessary.
• Privacy and Security:
  • Brain implants can create problems with data privacy.
  • Protecting neural information from unauthorised access is important to prevent privacy breaches.

News Source: Business standard

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An anti-piracy operation off the East Coast of Somalia was conducted by INS Sumitra recently.

INS Sumitra Carries Out Rescue and Anti Piracy Operations

• Rescue operation: INS Sumitra, in less than 36 hours, has rescued two hijacked Fishing Vessels along with 36 Crew (17 Iranian and 19 Pakistani) in Southern Arabian Sea approximately 850 nm West of Kochi
• Significance: It prevented  misuse of these Fishing Vessels as Mother Ships for further acts of Piracy on Merchant Vessels.
• INS Sumitra, Indian Navy’s indigenous Offshore Patrol Vessel had been deployed for Anti-Piracy and Maritime Security Operations East of Somalia and Gulf of Aden.
• The Indian Navy commenced anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden from October 2008.

Piracy in Indian Ocean

• Resurgence:  A rise in piracy attacks is witnessed with  the first successful case of Somali piracy since 2017 recorded in December 2023
  • Reason:  Israel-Hamas War: A  separate surge of attacks launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red sea and Gulf of Aden against Israeli-linked vessels
  • Security gap: International naval forces have been diverted north from the Gulf of Aden into the Red Sea, creating a security gap in the region.

Concern for India

• Trade: The Ministry of Shipping estimates that Indian imports through the Gulf of Aden route was valued at around $50 billion and exports at $60 billion  accounting  for only 13 per cent of India’s trade
• Indian crew:  India’s large seafaring community accounts for 6-7 percent of the world’s seafarers; the crew of several foreign vessels is Indian.

News Source: PIB

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First India-Saudi Arabia Joint Military Exercise ‘SADA TANSEEQ‘ officially began from January 29th to February 10th, 2024 in Rajasthan.

SADA TANSEEQ: A Joint Military Exercise Between India and Saudi Arabia

• The Royal Saudi Land Forces are represented by a contingent of 45 personnel, while the Indian Army’s contingent, also consisting of 45 personnel, hails from the Brigade of the Guards (Mechanised Infantry). 

Key Focus Area

• Objective: To train troops from both nations for Joint Operations in semi-desert terrain, aligning with Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter. 
  • During the exercise, both sides will exchange their expertise in tactics, techniques, and procedures related to operations in the sub-conventional domain. 
  • To enhance interoperability, foster camaraderie, and share best practices. 

News Source: PIB

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Several donor countries have recently announced a halt to their funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

• Allegations by Israel: The United States and eight other Western nations, responsible for over half of UNRWA’s 2022 budget, reduced their funding following Israel’s allegations that 12 UNRWA staff members were involved in the October 7 attack. 

What is UNRWA?

• Genesis: It was founded in 1949 to provide aid to about 700,000 Palestinians who were forced to leave their homes during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
• Region of Operation: The UN agency operates in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, as well as Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan where the refugees took shelter after their displacement. 
• Provision of Services: UNRWA plays a pivotal role in supporting the livelihoods of the residents of Gaza who have been forced into a humanitarian crisis following the outbreak of conflict.
  • The agency serves as the primary provider of essential provisions such as food, water, and shelter to the enclave’s civilians. 
• Funding: UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions by donor states like the US. 
  • It also gets a limited subsidy from the UN, which is used only for administrative costs.

News Source: Indian Express

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India has put “Maratha Military Landscapes of India” as its nominee for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List for 2024-25.

India Nominates ‘Maratha Military Landscape’ for UNESCO World Heritage List 2024-25

• The Maratha Military Landscapes of India, crafted between the 17th and 19th centuries, embody an exceptional fortification and military system conceptualized by the Maratha rulers.
• This nomination comprises twelve distinct elements, including 
  • Hill Forts: Salher, Shivneri, Lohgad, Raigad, Rajgad, and Gingee forts,
  • Hill-forest fort: Pratapgad,
  • Hill-plateau fort: Panhala, 
  • Coastal fort: Vijaydurg & 
  • Island forts: Khanderi, Suvarnadurg, and Sindhudurg.
  • Spread across varied geographical and physiographic regions, these components collectively highlight the strategic military prowess of the Maratha rulers.

About The Military Landscapes of the Marathas 

• The Maratha military landscape was established during the reign of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, in 1670 CE and persisted through successive rulers until 1818.
• Significance: 
• • Strategic Utilization of Terrain: These networks exemplify how the existing terrain was utilized by the Maratha army to develop guerrilla warfare strategies. 
    • These strategies were instrumental in countering the imperial might of the Mughals on the landward side and European coastal powers from the seaward side. 
  • A Unique Military Legacy: In the context of India’s military landscape, the Maratha Empire’s warfare strategy emerges as a unique and noteworthy example with the potential to be showcased to the world.

Criteria under World Heritage List Nomination by UNESCO: The nomination process for the World Heritage List involves two categories: Cultural and Natural criteria. 

• The Maratha Military Landscapes of India fall under the cultural criteria category. 
• There are six criteria (i to vi) for cultural sites and four criteria (vii to x) for natural sites to be considered for inclusion in the World Heritage List. 
• The Maratha Military Landscapes of India is nominated under three specific cultural criteria: 
  • Criterion (iii): Demonstrating a unique or exceptionally significant testimony to a cultural tradition or civilization, whether living or extinct. 
  • Criterion (iv): An outstanding example of a specific type of building, architectural or technological ensemble, or landscape that illustrates significant stages in human history. 
  • Criterion (vi): Directly or tangibly associated with events, living traditions, ideas, beliefs, or artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance.

UNESCO-Recognised Sites in India At Present

• India is home to 42 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, among these, 34 are designated as Cultural sites, 7 as Natural sites, and 2 as mixed sites, each acknowledged for their exceptional universal value to humanity.
• Recently UNESCO added Shantiniketan, the 41st UNESCO World Heritage Site in India and the inscription of the 13th-century sacred ensemble of temples of the Hoysala rulers — the famed temples of Belur, Halebid and Somananthpura in Karnataka — into the World Heritage list making India’s total sites on the World Heritage list as 42.

Also Read: Santiniketan World Heritage Site 

News Source: PIB

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Recently, the Department of Fertilizers (DoF) issued detailed guidelines for evaluating the “reasonableness” of the MRPs for all non-urea fertilizers covered under NBS.

New Guidelines On Non-Urea Fertilizers

• The guidelines basically extend the regime of detailed cost monitoring and price control currently applicable on urea to other fertilizers. 
• Effective: The guidelines to be effective retrospectively from April 1, 2023.
• Profit Margins: The guidelines have prescribed maximum profit margins that will be allowed for fertilizer companies:
  • 8% for importers, 10% for manufacturers and 12% for integrated manufacturers (those producing finished fertilizers as well as intermediates such as phosphoric acid and ammonia).
• Refunding: Companies earning “unreasonable profit”, in a particular financial year will have to refund the same to the DoF by October 10 of the following fiscal year. 
• Indirect Control on MRP: The new guidelines impose indirect MRP controls on non-urea fertilizers by capping the profits that companies can earn from their sales, on the basis of “total cost of sales”. 
• Self-Assessment: The fertilizer companies to “self-assess” unreasonable profits, based on the cost auditor’s report and audited cost data approved by their board of directors. 
• Punishment: If companies don’t return the money within  time limit, “an interest @12% per annum on a pro-rata (proportional) basis would be charged. 

News Source: The Indian Express

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A MoU was signed between Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti to implement the Modified Parbati Kalisindh Chambal ERCP Link Project.

• The project envisages integration of the PKC river link project with the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project, under the national perspective plan of interlinking of rivers (ILR) programme of the Government of India.

Parbati Kalisindh Chambal Link Project

• The Parbati Kalisindh Chambal link project is one of the 30 links included in the National Perspectives Plan
• Formulated by:  The Ministry of Water Resources  and the Central Water Commission in the year 1980.
• Preliminary  feasibility report: Of the Kalisindh-Chambal link canal project proposed diversion of water from river Newaj (a tributary of Kalisindh) and Kalisindh to the river Chambal at either the Rana Pratap Sagar dam or the Gandhi Sagar dam.

Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP)

• About: The project aims for intra-basin transfer of water within the Chambal basin, by utilizing surplus monsoon water available in Kalisindh, Parvati, Mej and Chakan sub basins and diverting it into water deficit sub-basins of Banas, Gambhiri, Banganga and Parbati.
• Purpose: To provide drinking and industrial water to 13 districts of eastern Rajasthan i. e.  Alwar, Bharatpur, Dholpur, Karauli, Sawai-Madhopur, Dausa, Jaipur, Ajmer, Tonk, Bundi, Kota, Baran, and Jhalawar.
• Need: As per The, State Water Resources Department
  • Rajasthan with a geographical area of 342.52 lakh hectares accounting 10.4% of the entire country’s land surface  holds only 1.16% of India’s surface water and 1.72% of groundwater.

Interlinking of Rivers

• The Government of India formulated a National Perspective Plan (NPP) for interlinking of rivers (ILR) in 1980 with 30 link projects  identified.
• Implementing Agency: National Water Development Agency (NWDA)
• Aim: To transfer  water from water surplus basins to water-deficit basins
• Components of NPP: Himalayan Rivers Development (14) and Peninsular Rivers Development Component(16)
• The Ken-Betwa Link project (KBLP) is the first ILR project under the NPP

News Source: The Indian Express 

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This article is based on the news “What is Humboldt’s enigma and what does it mean for India?” which was published in the Hindu. Explorers and naturalists have been curious about the biodiversity of different regions.

About Humboldt’s Enigma

• Proposed by: The concept of Humboldt’s Enigma was proposed by Alexander von Humboldt which explores the relationship between temperature, altitude, humidity, and biodiversity.
• Varying Biodiversity: The enigma or puzzle arises from the fact that mountains, even though located beyond the tropics, demonstrate considerable biodiversity.
• Illustration of Humboldt’s Enigma in India:
• • The tropical areas, south of the Tropic of Cancer passing through Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. These areas are supposed to be the most diverse in the country. 
  • However, the eastern Himalayas are much more diverse. Some scientists have even suggested this part of the mountain range is the second-most diverse area of perching birds in the world. For river birds, the eastern Himalaya may be the most diverse.

Drivers of Mountain Diversity

• Main Drivers: The history of the earth, geology, its geography, and the climate. 
  • Different biodiversity at different locations is the result of changes in how these factors have intermingled over time and space.
• Process of Biodiversity Generation: Mountains host two processes that generate biodiversity:
  • Cradles: The geological processes like uplifts, result in new habitats where new species arise, so the habitats are ‘cradles’. 
  • Museums: Species on some climatologically stable mountains persist there for a long time, so these spots are ‘museums’ that accumulate many such species over time.
    • Sometimes, the same mountain can be both cradle for some species and museum for others, depending on the species’ ecologies.
  • Examples: Coastal tropical sky islands like the Shola Sky Islands in the Western Ghats. Old lineages have persisted on the mountain tops as climates and habitats fluctuated around them in the lower elevations. 

Unresolved Queries

• Complexity of Biodiversity: Multiple factors drive diversification and Humboldt’s enigma in different regions, leading to over a hundred different hypotheses.
• Data Limitation: There is a lack of fine data on species occurrence. 

Way Forward

• Need for more Research and Modern Tools: India needs more research and modern tools like genetics to understand a region’s true biodiversity.
• National Programmes: The National Mission on Himalayan Studies, the National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem, and the National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Wellbeing should be implemented and monitored at their full potential. 

Conclusion

Humboldt’s enigma is perhaps one of many puzzles of mountain biodiversity, offering opportunities for study and insights into global climate and landscape change issues. To gain more, the national programmes need to be strengthened, bolstered by the will to support basic research on diversity.

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This article is based on the news “Launch of Framework for Voluntary Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector and Accreditation Protocol of Agroforestry Nurseries” which was published in the PIB. The Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare and Tribal Affairs launched the Framework for Voluntary Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector and Accreditation Protocol of Agroforestry Nurseries. 

Govt Launches Framework For Voluntary Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector

• Availing Carbon Credit Benefits: The framework will encourage small and medium farmers to avail of carbon credit benefits. 
• Enhancing Sustainable Agriculture: Introducing farmers to the carbon market will benefit them and accelerate the adoption of environment-friendly agricultural practices. 

• Accreditation Protocol of Agroforestry Nurseries: It will strengthen the institutional arrangements for large-scale planting material production and certification to promote agroforestry in the country. 
  • Quality planting material can provide assured returns and the objectives and goals of the National Agroforestry Policy can be achieved. 

About Carbon Market

• Genesis: The idea of a carbon market first emerged from the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 which operationalized the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change by committing countries to limit and reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions.
• Types of Carbon Markets: There are broadly two types of carbon markets: compliance and voluntary. 
  • Compliance markets are created as a result of any national, regional and/or international policy or regulatory requirement.
  • Voluntary carbon markets refer to the issuance, buying and selling of carbon credits, voluntarily.

Voluntary Carbon Market in Agricultural Sector

• About: Carbon credits, generated by adopting sustainable agricultural practices are sold in the global voluntary carbon market (VCM). Corporations can purchase these credits to offset their own carbon emissions.
  • Carbon credits are payments for implementing climate-friendly practices that reduce carbon emissions. 

Need for Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector

• Huge Carbon Emissions from Agriculture: 
  • The Agricultural sector accounts for 18% of India’s cumulative GHG emissions, and consumes more than 50% of the country’s freshwater resources. 
  • It contributes to 73 per cent of the country’s methane emissions.
  • India has not signed the recent EU-US pledge to slash methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030 despite being the world’s third-largest emitter of methane.
• Impact of Nitrogen fertiliser Use: Agricultural soils are the national inventory’s largest single source of nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. 
  • Nitrous oxide emissions from the use of nitrogen fertiliser increased by approximately 358 per cent from 1980-81 to 2014-15, growing at a statistically significant rate of 5,100 tonnes per year.
• Greenhouse Gases (GHG) Emissions from Excess Buffer Stocks: Rice stocks with the Food Corporation of India (FCI) are seven times the buffer norms for rice, which store large amounts of GHG.
  • As per the national GHG inventory, rice cultivation is the third highest source (17.5 per cent) of GHG emissions in Indian agriculture after enteric fermentation (54.6 per cent) and fertiliser use (19 per cent). 
  • Paddy fields are anthropogenic sources of atmospheric nitrous oxide and methane, which are 273 and 80-83 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in driving temperature increase in 20 years’ (Sixth Assessment Report IPCC 2021)
  • Enteric fermentation is a part of the digestive process in ruminant animals such as cattle, sheep, and buffalo which produces large amounts of methane, which is a potent greenhouse gas.
• Water Intensive: Paddy fields require about 4,000 cubic metres of water per tonne of rice for irrigation. 
  • The surplus stocks of 46 million metric tons of rice contain approximately 92 billion cubic metres of water and 260 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
• Skewed Distribution of Agricultural research, development, education and extension (ARDE): The shares for animal husbandry, dairy development, and fisheries sectors in ARDE have decreased from 11 per cent to 8 per cent despite that 54 per cent of the GHG emissions within agriculture come from the livestock sector.
• Climate Change: With the increasing impacts of climate change, farmers face various issues like rising temperatures, water scarcity, and volatile market conditions.
  • The carbon market can help mitigate climate change through carbon sequestration, improved soil health resulting in increased crop yields and water retention, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable land use.
• Monetizing Sequestered Carbon: The creation of a carbon market will help monetise the carbon sequestered in agriculture and agroforestry systems and facilitate its transaction like any other commodity. 
  • Farmers adopting sustainable farming practices can generate income by selling carbon credits and improving soil health, crop yield, land productivity, and profitability. 
  • In India, the market price of one agriculture-based carbon credit is approximately ₹725. 
  • A farmer can generate 4 to 12 carbon credits per hectare depending on the type of improved farming practices adopted and thus can earn additional income of ₹3,000-9000 per hectare.  
• Backbone of Indian Economy: 54.6% of the country’s workforce is engaged in agriculture and allied sectors’ activities. 
  • The share of the agriculture sector in GDP is 18.6%, while the sown area is 139.3 million hectares, out of the country’s total geographical area.

Agricultural Carbon Credits

• Carbon credits can be generated in various ways. 
• Soils as large carbon sinks: Crops take in carbon dioxide from the air and fix carbon in the soil which is released back into the atmosphere when fields are ploughed to grow the next crop.
• Zero tillage practices help store organic carbon in the soil, making the soil healthier and reducing the use of nutrients.
• Lower use of nutrients like urea and farm machinery saves energy and fertilisers using natural gas as a feedstock during manufacturing. 
• Lower use of irrigation water also leads to energy savings since diesel or electric pumps usually pump water into fields.
• Sustainable practices include optimising water usage, adopting precision farming technology to minimise inputs, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and improving soil fertility. 
• Techniques such as managing crop residue in situ, optimising water usage in rice cultivation, employing farm mechanisation, drones, and satellite imaging can enhance productivity, prevent crop losses, and provide real-time insights for better land management. 
• Soil wellness programs focused on enhancing soil organic carbon content, practices that mitigate carbon emissions while promoting carbon capture, and water optimization measures using bio-stimulants or drip irrigation systems.

Challenges Related to Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector 

• Quantification:  The biggest challenge is quantifying and verifying the additional carbon retained in the soil due to adopting farming practices.
• Trade-off between Additional Revenue and Crop yield:  A farmer will adopt a carbon reduction practice if the revenue from the sale of carbon credits would compensate for the loss in crop yield due to its adoption.
  • Such a trade-off may be a disincentive to the large-scale adoption of carbon abatement practices.
• Lack of awareness among farmers: Farming communities lack awareness of the environmental, social, and economic benefits of carbon abatement practices and carbon markets due to the nascent stage of the market.
• Lengthy cash incentive Process:  Receipt of cash incentives for listed projects can take eight to 12 months for farmers and FPOs/nonprofits. This delay can be burdensome for farmers. 
• Small and Marginal landholdings: In India, agriculture is dominated by small landholdings, which usually differ in their cropping pattern and the adoption of carbon abatement farm practices. 
  • Of the total 146 million landholdings, over 86 per cent are less than two hectares in size, and the amount of carbon credits received may not be sufficient for them to adopt regenerative agriculture practices. 
  • Reaching out to such a huge number of smallholders means higher administrative and transaction costs for buyers of the carbon credits. 

Government Measures to Promote Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector

• Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2022: It has been enacted in India to develop domestic carbon markets, avoid carbon debt risks, and position the country as the world’s largest exporter of carbon credits. 
• An Agroforestry project in collaboration with The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI) was initiated by the Uttar Pradesh Government in April 2023. 
  • The project aims to integrate nature-based systems into agriculture, leveraging carbon sequestration to mitigate climate change and generate additional income opportunities for farmers.

Way Forward to Promote Carbon Market in Agriculture Sector

• Standardisation of Quantification Method: A transparent process of quantifying and verifying additional carbon generated by different farm practices needs to be evolved. 
  • Artificial intelligence and remote sensing will help assess the quantum of sequestered carbon and provide real-time data for more accurate estimation of carbon sequestration. 
  • Collaborations with research institutions and carbon verifiers can help develop standardised protocols and guidelines, simplifying the measurement and verification process.
• Streamlining Regulatory Network: Streamlining the regulatory framework, minimising transaction costs, and creating incentives and subsidies for sustainable farming practices and carbon sequestration can stimulate demand for carbon credits. 
  • The regulatory framework should provide clear guidelines and support for farmers and other stakeholders.
• Collective Action: Selling carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market can be difficult for individual farmers. 
  • Thus, their participation in carbon trading can be facilitated through Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and cooperatives that can organise farmers to adopt carbon reduction practices and sell the earned carbon credits on their behalf. 
• Collaboration with Agro-tech Companies: They can facilitate their participation in voluntary carbon markets.
  • Considering the projected 15-fold increase in demand for carbon credits by 2030, agritech companies should equip farmers with the necessary tools and facilitate the acquisition and sale of carbon credits.
  • A few agro-tech companies, for example, Boomitra and Nurture organise farmers through intermediaries to facilitate their participation in voluntary carbon markets. 
• Awareness Creation: Encouraging widespread adoption of sustainable practices requires grassroots-level initiatives that educate farmers about the benefits of sustainable farming, and facilitate knowledge sharing within communities.
  • Educational programs, extension services, workshops, and training sessions can be organised to inform farmers about sustainable farming practices, carbon sequestration, and the potential monetization of carbon credits. 
  • Collaboration with FPOs and cooperatives can facilitate awareness and enable individual farmers to participate in carbon markets collectively.
• Focusing on ARDE: Research at ICRIER indicates that investing in agri-R&D yields much greater returns (11.2) compared to every rupee spent on say the fertiliser subsidy (0.88), power subsidy (0.79), education (0.97), or roads (1.10). 
  • Thus, increased emphasis on ARDE can help achieve higher agricultural production despite climate change.
• Reorienting Agriculture Policies: Although paddy cultivation has helped India achieve food security, it has over-exploited the groundwater resource, particularly in the northwest and some parts of south India.
  • There is a need to revisit policies of  subsidising power and fertilisers, MSP and procurement and reorient them towards minimising GHG emissions. 
  • Farmer groups and the private sector can reward farmers for switching from carbon-intensive crops to low-carbon-intensive crops or improving farming practices in rice systems to lower GHG emissions. 

Conclusion

• Adopting a 3F Framework by prioritising Facilitation (of education and training to farmers), Fostering collective efforts and knowledge sharing, and Framing supportive policies and regulations will enable the agriculture sector to make substantial contributions to India’s climate goals while ensuring the well-being of farmers and rural communities.

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