The scope of regenerative agriculture in India

India became a signatory to the Paris Agreement in 2015, reiterating its determination to achieve sustainable development. Taking this resolve further, the Union Budget 2023 proclaimed India’s mission of reaching net zero emissions by 2070.

- PANKAJ DWIVEDI

This entails widespread infrastructural changes across all sectors of the economy. A sum of Rs 35,000 crore is allocated towards capital investments targeted at the net zero transition and energy security. These changes have also encompassed the agricultural sector in India.

For example, the green credit programme is launched to incentivise green business models and initiatives. The PRANAM scheme and bio inputs centres promote adopting sustainable and regenerative agricultural practices. These proclivities include efforts to prevent climate change by reducing polluting methods and replenishing soil quality to enhance fertility. Given the importance of regenerative agriculture in helping India achieve its objectives, an analysis of its current status is warranted.

The need for regenerative agriculture

The focus of regenerative agriculture is to counter the effects of intensive farming methods that have led to soil erosion and overall degradation of the quality and fertility of the soil. The pressures of feeding an increasing population using limited resources have forced farmers to adopt practices like excessive use of fertilisers or irrigation, indulgence in conventional land tillage, mono-cropping, and overgrazing.

In addition to detrimental soil quality, these methods lead to threats like desertification, decarbonisation, and biodiversity loss. Land degradation can negatively impact rural employment and income generation, and in extreme cases, it has forced communities to relocate in search of cultivable soil. Estimates suggest that the cost of land degradation amounts to approximately $40 billion annually. The opportunity cost of this money is huge -- these are funds that could otherwise have been used for the upliftment of marginalised communities and to strengthen existing systems of empowerment.