Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Policy Preferences: A Snapshot of Farmers’ Perceptions in India

Abstract

Climate change is now considered as a major issue by the researchers, governments, civil society organizations, farmers and general public. It is a focal point of discussions at community to global levels. With respect to agriculture, there is a need to evolve a strategy containing technologies, policies, investments and interventions that help communities and governments prepare for the adverse impacts of climate change in terms of adaptation on one hand and those measures that will help mitigation by slowing down the emission of GHGs on the other. It is desirable that any such strategy considers farmers’ beliefs, perceptions, responses, policy preferences, etc. Since Indian agriculture is diverse and climate change is complex, the nature of problem and the farmers’ responses will be diverse and heterogeneous. Understanding what farmers think with respect to climate change is also essential for mainstreaming adaptation into development planning which is considered as key to enhancing resilience. Thus, there is a need for formulation of policies that are regionally differentiated and acceptable to farmers. Therefore, an effort was made to understand farmers’ perceptions as part of the ICAR-led scheme ‘National Initiative (now Innovations) on Climate Resilient Agriculture’ (NICRA) launched during 2011.