This document discusses sustainable agriculture. It defines sustainable agriculture as a form of agriculture that fulfills current needs without compromising future generations' ability to meet their own needs. The document outlines the goals of sustainable agriculture as environmental health, economic efficiency, and social/economic equity. It also discusses problems with modern agriculture practices and differences between modern and sustainable agriculture. Finally, it provides dimensions for adapting to and mitigating climate change in agriculture, such as improved seeds/livestock, water use efficiency, pest management, and more.

1. Sustainable Agriculture
BY
AJAY SIGROHA
M.SC (AGRONOMY)
SGT UNIVERSITY GURUGRAM

2. Sustainable Agriculture
 The word “sustain” comes from the Latin word sustinere(sus-, from below and tenere-
to hold) to keep in existence or maintain, implies long term support or permanence. It
is a form of agriculture in which to fulfil the needs of the present generation without
endangering the resource base of the future generations.it is the balanced management
of renewable resources including soil, wildlife, forest, crops, fish, livestock, plant
genetic resources and ecosystems without degradation and to provide food, livelihood
for current and future generations maintaining or improving productivity and
ecosystem services of these resources. Sustainable agriculture has to be economically
viable both in the short and long term perspectives. Sustainable agriculture is also
known as Eco farming or organic farming or natural farming or permaculture.it is
known as ecofarming as ecological balance is given importance. It is also called
organic farming as organic matter is the main source for nutrient management. But
some scientists consider that it is a misconception to think that sustainable agriculture
is farming without chemical inputs. It is considered by some as integrated, low input
and highly productive farming system.

3. Goals of sustainable agriculture
It have three main goals:
1) Environmental health
2) Economic efficiency
3) social economic equity (community)

4. Problems of todays agriculture
 The earth’s climate has been considered till recently as a remarkably stable, self–correcting
machine, taking care of all human misadventures and assaults on fragile biosphere.
 Decline in agricultural growth rate.
 Decline in factor productivity.
 Static or decline in food production.
 Increasing malnutrition
 Shrinkage in net cultivated area.
 Increasing environmental pollution.
 Depleting ground water table.
 Increasing cost of production.
 Low farm income.
 Increasing unemployment.

5. Challenges of Indian Agriculture
 Indian agriculture faces the challenge of ensuring of food security admit constraints such as stagnating net
sown area, deterioration in land quality, reduction per capita land availability etc. the challenges are :-
1. Need for more food : around 310 Mt of food grains in 2050.
2. Stagnating net sown area: 140+ - 2 M ha since 1970.
3. Land share under fallow : 38% increase since 1951.
4. Per capita land availability: from 0.91 ha in 1951 to 0.32 ha in 2001 and to 0.19 ha is projected by 2050
5. Per capita net sown area: 0.33 ha in 1951 to 0.14 ha in 2001

6. Differences between modern and sustainable
agriculture
Particulars Sustainable agriculture Modern agriculture
Plant nutrients Fym, compost, green manure,
biofertilizers and crop rotations are
used.
Chemical fertilizers are used.
Pest control Cultural methods, crop rotation and
biological methods are used.
Toxic chemicals are used.
Inputs High diversity, renewable and bio
degradable inputs are used.
High productivity and low diversity
chemical are used.
Ecology Stable ecology. Fragile ecology.
Use of resources The rate of extraction from forests,
fisheries, underground water sources
and other renewable resources do not
exceed the rate of regeneration.
The rate of extraction exceeds the rate
of regeneration. Falling of trees,
deforestation, overgrazing and pollution
of water bodies takes place.
Quality of food materials Food materials are safe. Food material may contain toxic
residues.

7. Dimensions for adaptation and
mitigation
 The key mitigation technologies in agriculture, as per National Mission for sustainable
agriculture(NMSA 210): Strategies for meeting the challenges of climate change, Department
of Agriculture and cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture New Delhi includes :-
1) Improved crop seeds, livestock and fish cultures.
2) Water use efficiency.
3) Pest management.
4) Improved agronomic practices.
5) Nutrient management
6) Agricultural insurance.
7) Credit support.
8) Markets.
9) Access to information.
10) Livelihood diversification.

8. Improved crop seeds, livestock and fish cultures
 Promoting use of bio-technology.
 Research and promotion of C4 pathways in C3 plants.
 Conserving indigenous genetic resources.
 Public private partnership (PPP) in R&D, management and dissemination of improved varieties.
 Conserving agricultural heritage.

9. Water use efficiency
 Promoting water use efficiency in irrigation.
 Research and development in the areas of energy efficient water system.
 Developing mechanisms for integrated management of rainwater, surface and ground
water.
 Policy instruments for PPP.
 Strengthen local institutions in managing water allocation and utilisation.

10. Pest management
 Efficient, safe and environmentally sound methods of pest management.
 Incentivising research, commercial production and marketing of bio-pesticides.
 Developing insect forecasting models.
 Decision and information support system for pest and disease surveillance.
 Institutional mechanism for quick response in case of disaster.

11. Improved agronomic practices
 Improved agronomic practices to reduce farm losses.
 Conservation and precision farming.
 Knowledge management.
 Soil conservation.
 Policy instruments for optimum land use.

12. Nutrient management
 Strengthening services for promoting production and use of bio-fertilizers.
 Developing nutritional strategies for managing heat stress in diary animals.
 Strengthening capacity of existing soil testing labs.
 Quality standards and quality control system for raising confidence among users.

13. Agricultural Insurance
 Developing various models for risk assessment.
 Designing user-friendly decision support system to help assess risks and develop region specific
contingency plans.
 Strengthening existing risk cover mechanism under NAIS and Weather Based Crop Insurance
Scheme.
 Implementing region-specific contingency plans based on vulnerability and risk senarios.

14. Credit support
 Developing new forms of credit assessment and risk management system.
 Promoting micro-finance.
 Developing mechanisms to enhance the flow of credit to critical infrastructure.
 Up-scaling the Kisan credit Card Scheme (KCCS).
 Designing customised credit policies and programmes to mitigate risks.

15. Markets
 To formulate market-aligned research and development programmes.
 Improving supply chain efficiency.
 Creation of new market infrastructure.
 Supporting community partnerships in developing food and forage banks.
 Strengthening access to quality and timely inputs by farmers for mitigating risks.

16. Access to information
 Minimising information asymmetry through ict-based system.
 Public private partnership to develop technology based solution for providing farmers with information on
price discovery , commodity arrivals, mandi prices etc.
 Building an information and communication technology enabled knowledge management network.
 To create, manage and develop national resource portal.

17. Livelihood diversification
 Mitigating risks by supplementing income form off-farm activities.
 Crop diversification.
 Crop-livestock-fisheries farming system.

18. Thank you