As agriculture provides employment to over 65 - 70% of our population, we need to promote sustainable agriculture by making optimum use of the available resources to ensure food security and minimise the threats associated with climate change. Sustainable agriculture calls for greater efforts on soil and water conservation, efficient use of available water resources, use of certified seeds of superior varieties, judicious use of agricultural inputs with preference for eco-friendly organic manure, bio-fertilizers, bio-fungicides and bio-pesticides to ensure food security.

Development Alternatives (DA) is working in the drought prone Bundelkhand region of Central India to help rural communities cope with climate change vulnerabilities by promoting natural resource management systems, sustainable agriculture, efficient resource use, afforestation, climate adaptive planning and climate change communication. Some of the innovate practices to ensure food and water security are as follows:

Agroforestry based Wadi Model: The wadi model has helped tribal communities of Bundelkhand use their under-utilised resources for sustainable small farm based livelihoods. ‘Wadi’ is a tree based farming system that consists of an agri-horti forestry arrangement of beneficial plant species covering around one to two acres of land. Fruit species such as amla (Indian gooseberry), guava, lemon, custard apple and jackfruit and timber species such as teak, shisham and bamboo are some of the species planted in the wadis as they are fairly resistant to drought. Two or more tree crops are selected in the wadi model to minimise climatic, biological and marketing risks. Major interventions under this agri-horti farming model include horticulture plantation, soil conservation, water resource management, development programmes for women and drudgery reduction activities for increased resilience against variable climatic conditions. The wadi model improves farm production, natural resource management, promotes social mobilisation and boosts incomes of tribal families.

Watershed and Integrated Farming Systems: The watershed model demonstrates integrated infrastructure and technologies that conserve soil and water through a ridge to valley approach and structures such as field bunds, farm ponds, gabions, check dams, stop dams etc. Over the years, our watershed works have enabled groundwater recharge, rejuvenated 25,000 hectares of agricultural land, reduced soil erosion and water wastage. The objectives of the watershed management programme are conserving and developing degraded natural resources such as soil, water and vegetative cover; prevention of soil run off; rain water harvesting and recharging of ground water table; production enhancement; introduction of multi-cropping and diverse agro-based activities; creation of agri based enterprises, promoting sustainable livelihoods and increasing household incomes. Some of the sustainable agriculture practices promoted with the watershed model include Dry Sowing, Green Shade Net Technology, Farm Land Improvement, Line Sowing, Raised Bed Technique, Mixed Farming, Coco-pit Technology, Drip/Sprinkler based Irrigation etc.

India can prosper only if food security of the rural population is ensured by increasing agricultural production and by enhancing the purchasing power of the poor. DA’s experiences from Bundelkhand provide an adequate platform for designing adaptation strategies to address climate induced risks for food and water security. q