Impact of climate change on agriculture and adaptation: Farmers’ experience in North-East India

Abstract

Climate has already changed. All sections of the society are going to be adversely affected by the changing climate but farmers and marginal section of the society is going to be the worst sufferer. The scientist community has already identified the impact of the change in climate but farmers and lay man may not be aware of it. Unless there is awareness, proper adaptation measures are not likely to take place. This will not only increase vulnerability but also aggravate the whole scenario. Therefore, it is necessary to understand to what extent farmers are aware of the impact of the changing climate and how they are coping with it. To carry out the study we conducted a field survey in the state of Assam, India. The sample was randomly selected and interviewed with the help of a pre-structured questionnaire. We find that the farmers are able to identify those impacts which are visible like reduced output, increased pests’ infestation, reduced fodder and reduced income from livestock etc. However, farmers are yet to identify the subtle impact of changing climate. In the name of coping strategies, they have not done much. By applying Chi square, we find that farmers’ perception and adaptation are often associated with their land size, education and frequency of crop loss. We recommend climate education and institutional support to strengthen adaptation because marginal farmers are more vulnerable but often fail to adapt to changing climate.