In the third week of March, unseasonal rains and hailstorm destroyed more than half of his almost ready wheat crop.

Climate change is adversely affecting the Indian agriculture sector.

Perception and adaptation of farmers to rapidly changing climatic conditions are considered important policy measures to deal with these adversities.

Ashok Kumar Singh, director and agricultural scientist of the country's largest agricultural research institute 'Indian Agricultural Research Institute', has had an exclusive conversation with NDTV regarding the impact of climate change in the agriculture sector.

Ashok Kumar Singh said that according to the average temperature trend between 1990-2010, there could be an increase of up to 1 degree Celsius during the wheat growing season by the year 2040.

Ashok Kumar Singh, director of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, said, “If the temperature rises by 1 degree Celsius, it will reduce the yield of wheat by 5%. If Climate Resilient Agriculture is adopted, the yield of wheat can also increase by 10% to 15%. 

First in February, concern about the effect of above average temperature on the wheat crop, then in March, rain and hailstorm... Farmers are scared of the change in the weather.

Mahendra Singh, a farmer from Gadana village of Modinagar, sowed wheat in his 1 acre land in the Rabi season this year.

In the third week of March, unseasonal rains and hailstorm destroyed more than half of his almost ready wheat crop.

The change in the weather has scared Mahendra Singh.

After the heat wave in April, now the Kharif season is about to come.

Mahendra Singh told NDTV, "The yield should have been 12 maunds (40 kg) of wheat, but only 6 maunds came out as the crop got damaged in the rain. The change in weather is making farming difficult. Don't know in the kharif season." What will happen?".

Shyamuddin is harvesting the ready wheat crop at a distance from Mahendra Singh's farm.

Half of the wheat crop of this field was also destroyed in the rain and hailstorm of March.

Now the yield of wheat has remained half of the expectation.

Shyamuddin says, "The yield was expected to be 50 maunds (40 kg) of wheat, but only about 25 maunds of wheat would be able to come out due to crop failure in the rains".

Agricultural scientist Ashok Kumar Singh told NDTV- "In March, due to hailstorm in some states of the country, the wheat crop definitely fell, but due to the rains, the weather was overall favorable for the wheat crop." 

According to him, in 2022, due to high temperature between March 25 and 28, wheat production was 107.7 million tonnes, but in 2023, the wheat crop is expected to increase by about 5% to a record 112.1 million tonnes.

However, Ashok Singh believes that climate change may have an impact on wheat production within the coming two decades, as temperatures during the wheat season are expected to rise during this period.

Ashok K Singh said, “According to the average temperature trend between 1990-2010, there could be an increase of up to 1 degree Celsius during the wheat growing season by the year 2040. If the temperature increases by 1 degree Celsius, then it will lead to 5 There will be a reduction in the yield of wheat by %. But if climate adaptation techniques and climate resilient agriculture are adopted during this time to deal with the change in weather, then the yield of wheat can also increase by 10% to 15%".

At present, farmers are in trouble due to change in weather between February and April this year... Uncertainty on the farming front is also increasing and the challenge to deal with it is also increasing.

The concern of the farmers is increasing due to the change in the weather.

They are apprehensive that if the trend of change in weather continues during the coming monsoon season, it will affect the production of important kharif crops.

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