National Project on Climate Resilient Agriculture

Climate Change, caused by the increased concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere, has emerged as the most prominent global environmental problem. Most of the countries including India are facing the problems of rising temperature, melting of glaciers, rising of sea-level leading to inundation of the coastal areas, changes in precipitation patterns leading to increased risk of recurrent droughts and devastating floods, threats to biodiversity, an expansion of pest and a number of potential challenges for public health.

Realizing that the climate change is likely to have major impacts on agriculture, the Government through Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has assessed the impact of climate change on Indian agriculture under different scenarios using crop simulation models. 

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has conducted climate change impact analysis on crop yields through various centres in different parts of the country using crop simulation models (INFO-CROP and HAD CM3) for 2020, 2050 and 2080.

The results indicate variability in temperature and rainfall pattern with significant impacts on crop yields. These studies projected reduction in yields of irrigated rice by about 4% in 2020, 7% in 2050 and 10% in 2080. 

The Government through Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has initiated a network project on ‘National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture’ (NICRA) to enhance resilience of Indian agriculture through Strategic Research on adaptation and mitigation (covering crops, livestock, fisheries and natural resource management), Technology Demonstration, Capacity Building and Sponsored/Competitive Grant Projects.

Objectives:

To enhance the resilience of Indian agriculture covering crops, livestock  and fisheries to climatic variability and climate change through development and application of improved production and risk management technologies•  To demonstrate site specific technology packages on farmers’ fields for adapting to current climate  risks• To enhance the capacity building of scientists and other stakeholders in climate resilient agricultural research and its application.

XII Five Year Plan objectives related to the project are:• Strengthening the existing network research on adaptation and mitigation (food crops, horticulture, livestock and fishery) with more infrastructure and capacity building.• Setting up of high through put phenotyping platforms and temperature, CO2, ozone gradient facilities at identified locations/ institutions including North East region.• Strengthening research on  climate sensitive crops like cotton, maize, sugarcane, onion, etc. which are critical for India’s farm GDP/exports but not covered in the XI Plan.• Projected impacts on water availability at the river basin level and participatory action research at large number of sites on evolving coping strategies through water saving technologies.• Evolving a national level pest and disease monitoring system to assess the changing pest/disease dynamics under changed climate (both in crops and livestock).• Strengthening crop simulation and climate scenario down-scaling modeling capabilities at major Institutes and a dedicated unit at IARI, New Delhi.• Piloting the operationalization of the district/block level agromet advisory services through KVKs/district line departments and contingency plans during droughts and floods.• Expanding the technology demonstration and dissemination to 130 vulnerable districts of the country.

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Olive ridley Turtle

Efforts to conserve Olive Ridley Turtles:

• Wildlife authorities have launched a massive exercise to conserve Olive Ridley turtles in the Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary (KWS).
• An unprecedented number of over 10,500 eggs of the turtles have been collected since early March. They are being conserved in the rookeries set up within the KWS limits.
• 139 artificial nests have been arranged in the three rookeries set up at Sangameswaram, lighthouse area, and Jinkapalem of Nagayalanka mandal as part of the in situ conservation method.
• The incubation period ranges from 45 to 60 days
• Members of the Yanadi tribe are directly involved in the conservation bid. They have been given the task of collecting the eggs on the beach and maintaining the rookeries.

Threats: 

• Approximately 1 hatchling survives to reach adulthood for every 1000 hatchlings that enter the sea waters. 
• Olive-ridleys face serious threats across their migratory route, habitat and nesting beaches, due to human activities such as turtle unfriendly fishing practices, development and exploitation of nesting beaches for ports, and tourist centres. 
• these turtles and their products is banned under CITES Appendix I, still extensively poached for their meat, shell and leather, and their eggs, 
• Accidental killing of adult turtles through entanglement in trawl nets and gill nets due to uncontrolled fishing 
• To reduce accidental killing in India, the Orissa government has made it mandatory for trawls to use Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs), a net specially designed with an exit cover which allows the turtles to escape while retaining the catch. However, this has been strongly opposed by the fishing communities as they believe TEDs result in loss of considerable amount of the catch along with the turtle. 

All About Olive Ridley Turtles

1. The Olive ridley turtles (also known as the Pacific ridley sea turtle) are the smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in the world, inhabiting warm waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. 
2. These turtles, along with their cousin the Kemps ridley turtle, are best known for their unique mass nesting called Arribada, where thousands of females come together on the same beach to lay eggs. 
3. Though found in abundance, their numbers have been declining over the past few years. Classified as ‘Vulnerable’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) several Olive Ridley turtles lay eggs during this time of the year along the Visakhapatnam coast, considered a sporadic nesting zone.
4. Growing to about 2 feet in length, and 50 kg in weight, the Olive ridley gets its name from its olive colored carapace, which is heart-shaped and rounded. 
5. Olive Ridley Turtles take 25 to 30 years to reach adulthood but the survival rate of the young ones is abysmally low.
6. They are carnivores, and feed mainly on jellyfish, shrimp, snails, crabs, molluscs and a variety of fish and their eggs. 
7. Interestingly, females return to the very same beach from where they first hatched, to lay their eggs. During this phenomenal nesting, up to 600,000 and more females emerge from the waters, over a period of five to seven days, to lay eggs. 
8. They lay their eggs in conical nests about one and a half feet deep which they laboriously dig with their hind flippers. 
9. The coast of Orissa in India is the largest mass nesting site for the Olive-ridley, followed by the coasts of Mexico and Costa Rica. 
10. After about 45-65 days, the eggs begin to hatch, and these beaches are swamped with crawling Olive-ridley turtle babies, making their first trek towards the vast ocean. 
11. During this trek they are exposed to predators like jackals, birds, hyenas, fiddler crabs, and feral dogs lurking around, waiting to feed on them. 
12. WWF-India, along with the fishermen community, has been involved in protecting the Olive ridley rookery at the mass nesting site at Rushikulaya, in Orissa, by fencing off the nesting area and patrolling it till hatching and ensuring a safe passage for the hatchlings to the sea. 

NTPC, forest dept sign MoU to protect Olive Ridley turtles

• The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has joined hands with the state forest department to protect the endangered species along the nine districts of Andhra Pradesh.
• NTPC Shimhadri handed over a cheque for Rs 1 crore to the forest department for carrying out the conservation works in AP for the current financial year.
• As part of the conservation programme that will be spread over five years, NTPC will contribute Rs 4.6 crore under which inventory mapping of breeding sites of Olive Ridleys along with identification of nesting and breeding habits along the shore line will be undertaken.
• The conservation programme will also develop guidelines to safeguard and minimise turtle mortality apart from developing the local and national cooperative and taking collaborative action for turtle conservation. The conservation project envisages involving local communities, NGOs, forest department and other stakeholders in protection and conservation of in-situ and ex-situ of nests thus providing livelihood, construction and repairing of hatcheries, awareness campaigns and knowledge sharing in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam and Nellore districts.

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Carbon Footprint

A ‘carbon footprint’ is a measure of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with an activity, group of activities or a product.  Basically Carbon footprint is a measure of the impact of our activities on the environment, and in particular on climate change. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases we are producing in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, heating, transportation, etc.

Nearly everything that we do produces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions either directly or indirectly; whether it is getting to work, watching TV or buying our lunch. The most important greenhouse gas produced by human activities is carbon dioxide.  Direct GHG emissions sources are often easy to identify – for example burning fossil fuels for electricity generation, heating and transport.   It is sometimes less obvious that products and services also cause indirect emissions throughout their life-cycles.  Energy is required for production and transport of products, and greenhouse gases are also released when products are disposed of at the end of their useful lives.  

Thus a carbon footprint is the total set of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions caused by an organization, event or product. It is expressed in terms of the amount of carbon dioxide, or its equivalent of other GHGs, emitted.

Today humanity uses the equivalent of 1.5 planet (Earth) to provide the resources to humanity and absorb the waste produced by them. This means it now takes the Earth one year and six months to regenerate what we use in a year.

Moderate UN scenarios suggest that if current population and consumption trends continue, by the 2030s, we will need the equivalent of two Earths to support us. And of course, we only have one.

We are turning resources into waste faster than it (waste) can be turned back into resources. This put us in global ecological overshoot, depleting the very resources on which human life and biodiversity depend.

The result is collapsing fisheries, diminishing forest cover, depletion of fresh water systems, and the buildup of carbon dioxide emissions, which creates problems like global climate change. Overshoot also contributes to resource conflicts and wars, mass migrations, famine, disease and other human tragedies—and tends to have a disproportionate impact on the poor, who cannot buy their way out of the problem by getting resources from somewhere else.

A carbon footprint is made up of the sum of two parts, the primary foot print and the secondary footprint.

1. The primary footprint is a measure of the direct emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels, including domestic energy consumption and transportation (e.g. car and plane).

2. The secondary footprint is a measure of the indirect CO2 emissions from the whole lifecycle of products we use - those associated with their manufacture and eventual breakdown. 

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AGROFORESTRY

The land management patterns in India vary from region to region depending upon the land characteristics and the climate. Land use options that increase livelihood security and reduce vulnerability to climate and environmental change are necessary in today’s scenario. Agroforestry is the system of land use that combines growing and raising of crops and/or livestock along with plants that belong to the forest. Agroforestry system holds promise to provide sustainable land management. The production of food grains, fruits, fodder, fuel-wood, timber etc. can be obtained simultaneously through this system. The total production-mix can be selected depending upon the area, climate, demand etc. Agro-forestry practices can increase farmer’s annual income. VARIOUS FORMS OF AGROFORESTRY • Agri-silviculture system: Concurrent production of agricultural corps & forest trees. • Silvipastoral System: Forest based livestock production system where production of wood and rearing of domestic animals are done simultaneously. • Agro-silvipastoral system: Land is utilized simultaneously for the production of agricultural crops, forest trees and rearing of domestic animals. • Multipurpose forest tree production system:  In this system trees are grown not only for wood but also for leaves, fruits, fodder and other useful by-products, including soil cover crops and intercropping with high value spices in man-made plantations. BENEFITS OF AGROFORESTRY SYSTEM A) Environmental benefits • Reduction of pressure on natural forests. • More efficient recycling of nutrients by deep rooted trees on the site. • Better protection of ecological systems. • Reduction of surface run-off, nutrient leaching and soil erosion through impeding effect of tree roots and stems on these processes. • Improvement of microclimate, such as lowering of soil surface temperature and reduction of evaporation of soil moisture through a combination of mulching and shading. • Increment in soil nutrients through addition and decomposition of litter fall. • Improvement of soil structure through the constant addition of organic matter from decomposed litter. B) Economic benefits • Increment in the output of food, fuel wood , fodder, fertilizer and timber; • Reduction in incidences of total crop failure, which is common to single cropping or monoculture systems; • Increase in levels of farm income due to improved and sustained productivity. C) Social benefits   • Improvement in rural living standards from sustained employ¬ment and higher income. • Improvement in nutrition and health due to increased quality and diversity of food outputs. • Stabilization and improvement of communities through elimination of the need to shift sites of farm activities.

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SOCIAL FORESTRY

The history of exploitation and destruction of forests in India goes back to the British period when the forests wealth was consumed for commercial gains. The trend continued even after independence and the forests were used not for imperative economic growth but for other various reasons. The denudation of forest land, however, has now slowed down in recent years despite human and commercial pressures due to efforts made by various agencies.
The Government of India and other agencies have launched promotional scheme “Social Forestry” all over the country for afforestation and fresh plantations to increase the forest cover in which the participation of local people has also been encouraged.
Social forestry as an instrument of sustainable development has the potential of resolving the three basic issues of rural poor simultaneously i.e. to provide food security, fuel security and livelihood security with eco-friendly approach to development.
Social forestry is a programme governed by the principle-of the people, for the people, and by the people.
The objectives of the programme are:
• Afforestation in lands outside forest areas.• Increasing the number of trees in India.• Promoting the participation of institutions and people in the field of growing of trees.• Increasing the yield of timber and other non-timber forest produce like fruit, firewood, fodder, etc to ensure easy supply to people.• Putting less fertile and unproductive land to productive use• Augmenting the income of people by tree planting.• Increasing the employment opportunities of rural poor.
Social forestry scheme can be categorized as:
a) Farm forestryUnder this programme individual farmers are being encouraged to plant trees on their own farmland to meet the domestic needs of the family. In many areas this tradition of growing trees on the farmland already existed. Non-commercial farm forestry is the main thrust of most of the social forestry projects in the country today. It is not always necessary that the farmer grows trees for fuelwood, but very often they are interested in growing trees without any economic motive. They may want it to provide shade for the agricultural crops; as wind shelters; soil conservation or to use wasteland.
b) Community forestryAnother scheme taken up under the social forestry programme, is the raising of trees on community land and not on private land as in farm forestry. All these programmes aim to provide for the entire community and not for any individual. The government has the responsibility of providing seedlings, fertilizers but the community has to take responsibility of protecting the trees. Some communities manage the plantations sensibly and in a sustainable manner so that the village continues to benefit. Some others took advantage and sold the timber for a short-term individual profit. Common land being everyone’s land is very easy to exploit. Over the last 20 years, large-scale planting of Eucalyptus, as a fast growing exotic, has occurred in India, making it a part of the drive to reforest the subcontinent, and create an adequate supply of timber for rural communities under the augur of 'social forestry'.
c) Extension forestryPlanting of trees on the sides of roads, canals and railways, along with planting on wastelands is known as ‘extension’ forestry, increasing the boundaries of forests. Under this project there has been creation of wood lots in the village common lands, government wastelands and panchayat lands.
d) Agro- forestryPlanting of trees in and around agricultural boundaries, and on marginal, private lands, in combination with agricultural crops is known as agro-forestry.
Social Forestry was conceived as people-centred programme, a programme to empower the rural poor for their fuelwood, fodder and other timber needs. Major funds of social forestry were used in protected and reserved forests, and the only benefit to the poor was in terms of employment; it is sad to observe that even here, in some instance it was found that minimum wages were not paid. 
Lack of appropriate policies, regarding access of land to the poor for afforestation purposes, defunctional Acts and laws, which hinder rather than motivate people, resulted in vested interests controlling the social forestry programme. Instead of fuelwood and fodder, social forestry has largely provided raw materials to paper, pulp and building industry, bypassing the rural poor.
Social forestry and massive afforestation by the people cannot be a programme of a single government department. Social forestry must be a people’s movement. Schools, colleges, municipalities, government departments, and other identified institutions should share the responsibility to plant trees and maintain them either directly or through a contract system with local people.

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Biodiversity and its conservation

The word "biodiversity" is an abbreviated version of "biological diversity". The Convention on Biological Diversity defines biodiversity as: "the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are a part; this includes diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems."
Thus, Biodiversity refers to the variety of forms - the different plants, animals and micro-organisms. It also includes the genes they contain and the ecosystem they form.
One of the most pressing environmental issues today is the conservation of bio-diversity.  Conserving biological diversity involves restoring, protecting, conserving or enhancing the variety of life in an area so that the abundance and distribution of species and communities provide for continued existence and normal ecological functioning, including adaptation and extinction.
In-situ conservation of biodiversity includes:a) Biosphere reserves: Biosphere reserves are areas of terrestrial and coastal ecosystems promoting solutions to reconcile the conservation of biodiversity with its sustainable use. They are internationally recognized, nominated by national governments and remain under sovereign jurisdiction of the states where they are located. Biosphere reserves serve in some ways as 'living laboratories' for testing out and demonstrating integrated management of land, water and biodiversity. 
Each biosphere reserve is intended to fulfil 3 basic functions, which are complementary and mutually reinforcing:  • a conservation function - to contribute to the conservation of landscapes, ecosystems, species and genetic variation;  • a development function - to foster economic and human development which is socio culturally and ecologically sustainable;  • A logistic function - to provide support for research, monitoring, education and information exchange related to local, national and global issues of conservation and development. 
Biosphere reserves are organized into 3 interrelated zones: • Core Areas: These areas are securely protected sites for conserving biological diversity, monitoring minimally disturbed ecosystems, and undertaking non-destructive research and other low-impact uses (such as education).• Buffer Zones: These areas must be clearly identified, and usually surround or adjoin the Core Areas. Buffer Zones may be used for cooperative activities compatible with sound ecological practices, including environmental education, recreation, ecotourism and applied and basic research.• Transition or Cooperation Zones: These areas may contain towns, farms, fisheries, and other human activities and are the areas where local communities, management agencies, scientists, non-governmental organizations, cultural groups, economic interests, and other stakeholders work together to manage and sustainably develop the area's resources.
b) National parks: A national park is a reserve of natural or semi-natural land, declared or owned by a government, which is restricted from most development and is set aside for human recreation and environmental protection.
A national park was deemed to be a place• With one or several ecosystems not materially altered by human exploitation and occupation, where plant and animal species, geomorphologic sites and habitats are of special scientific, educative and recreative interest or which contain a natural landscape of great beauty.• The highest competent authority of the country has taken steps to prevent or eliminate exploitation or occupation as soon as possible in the whole area and to effectively enforce the respect of ecological, geomorphological, or aesthetic features which have led to its establishment.• Visitors are allowed to enter, under special conditions, for inspirational, educative, cultural, and recreative purposes.
c) Wildlife sanctuaries:  An area, usually in natural conditions, which is reserved (set aside) by a governmental or private agency for the protection of particular species of animals during part or all of the year. An area designated for the protection of wild animals, within which hunting and fishing is either prohibited or strictly controlled. It is maintained by the State government.
Ex-situ conservation of biodiversity includes: Ex situ conservation, using sample populations is done through establishment of 'gene banks', which include genetic resource centres, zoos, botanical gardens, culture collections, etc.
ZOO and BOTANICAL GARDENS are the most conventional methods of ex-situ conservation. These facilities provide not only housing and care for specimens of endangered species, but also have an educational value. They inform the public of the threatened status of endangered species and of those factors which cause the threat, with the hope of creating public interest in stopping and reversing those factors which jeopardize a species' survival in the first place. They are the most publicly visited ex-situ conservation sites.
Endangered plants may also be preserved in parts through SEED BANKS or GERM PLASM BANKS. The term seed bank sometimes refers to a cryogenic laboratory facility in which the seeds of certain species can be preserved for up to a century or more without losing their fertility. It can also be used to refer to a special type of arboretum where seeds are harvested and the crop is rotated. For plants that cannot be preserved in seed banks, the only other option for preserving germplasm is in-vitro storage, where cuttings of plants are kept under strict conditions in glass tubes and vessels. 
Endangered animal species are preserved using similar techniques. The genetic information needed in the future to reproduce endangered animal species can be preserved in gene banks, which consist of cryogenic facilities used to store living sperms, eggs, or embryos.

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National Green Tribunal

National Green Tribunal Act (NGT) was established in 2010, under India's constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India, the right to a healthy environment.
The enactment of the law takes into account the (i) United Nations Conference on the Human Environment which took place at Stockholm in June, 1972 and also the (ii) United Nations Conference on Environment and Development which took place at Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, in both of which India was a participant.
It has been established under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources, including enforcement of any legal right relating to environment and giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. NGT is a specialized body equipped with the necessary expertise to handle environmental disputes involving multi-disciplinary issues. The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice.
The Tribunal would have four circuit Benches. It would deal with all environmental laws on air and water pollution, the Environment Protection Act, the Forest Conservation Act and the Biodiversity Act. With this effort, India would join Australia and New Zealand, which have such specialized environment tribunals.
The Government has appointed four Expert Members and two Judicial Members in the National Green Tribunal (NGT). 
The members are:• Sitting Judge of Supreme Court nominated by the Chief Justice of India in consultation with Ministry of Law and Justice will act as a Chairperson of the NGT• Secretary to Government of India, M/o Environment & Forests        Member• Director, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur                           Member• Director, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad                   Member• President, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi                          Member
The Tribunal is mandated to make and endeavour for disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same. Initially, the NGT will be set up at five places of sittings and will follow circuit procedure for making itself more accessible. New Delhi is the Principal Place of Sitting of the Tribunal and Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai shall be the other 4 place of sitting of the Tribunal.
With the launch of National Green Tribunal Act, 2010, the National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995 and the National Environment Appellate Authority Act, 1997 have been repealed. The cases pending before the National Environment Appellate Authority at the time of establishment of the National Green Tribunal have been transferred to the National Green Tribunal.

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