According to the projections from the World Population Review, India may have already surpassed China as the world’s most populous country [1]. With the rising population, the pressure on India’s agriculture and allied activities¹ will also increase. Besides being crucial for food and nutrition security, the agriculture and allied sectors are also critical for the country’s economic growth and the livelihood security of a large portion of the population.
The agriculture and allied sector accounted for 18.8% of the country’s total Gross Value Added at current prices [2]. Growth in allied sectors, including livestock, dairying, and fisheries, has been the primary engine of the sector’s total growth [3]. Additionally, the agriculture and allied sector employ over 50% of the workforce in India [4], and almost 70% of the rural households still rely primarily on agriculture for their livelihood [5]. For a large majority of agriculture households, the livestock sector is an essential aspect of their livelihood and accounts for around 15% of their average monthly income [6].
Other than playing an essential role in the country’s economic story, agriculture and allied activities are also significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions [GHGs]. India is the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China and the United States [7]. According to India’s third Biennial Update Report [BUR-3] to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [UNFCCC], the agriculture sector in India accounts for 14% of total greenhouse gas emissions, preceded only by the energy sector (44%) and the manufacturing and construction sectors combined (18%) [8]. The emissions within the agriculture sector are primarily due to the livestock sector in the form of methane emissions due to enteric fermentation (54.6%), rice cultivation (17.5%), use of nitrogenous fertilisers (19.1%), manure management (6.7%), and burning of crop residues (2.2%) [9]. According to a recent study that examined the carbon footprint of Indian agriculture, Uttar Pradesh was the state with the highest agricultural and livestock GHG emissions [10]. Andhra Pradesh had the greatest emissions from paddy rice cultivation, whereas Uttar Pradesh had the highest emissions from wheat production and buffalo production [11].
Given the significance of agriculture and allied sectors to India’s total emissions, these sectors must be prioritised for lowering GHG emissions while also meeting rising food demand. Given the emission hotspots in these sectors, there is a need to increase the efficiency of water use and fertiliser use. Furthermore, measures like zero-tillage agricultural farming and minimising crop residue burning aid in GHG mitigation. To achieve the goal of sustainable agriculture in India, stakeholders such as farmers’ groups, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), government authorities, and agricultural research institutions must collaborate and work together to scale the adoption of such emissions-reducing practices.
