Strategies for Boosting Rice Yield in the Face of Climate Change in India

Abstract

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is an important staple crop in Asia, including India. During the era of the Green Revolution, the rate of growth in rice production was higher than the population growth and thus production was in the surplus. But now, with climate change, production and productivity gains of rice are a question mark. Rice contributes to global climate change through the emission of greenhouse gases, such as methane and nitrous oxide, which are responsible for global warming, and, in turn, suffers the consequences of climate change. To cope with the anticipated impact of this change, mitigation and adaptation strategies need to be evaluated. Mitigation of the causal factors and adaptation of the crop to changing climate are two broad strategies to restrain and cope with the changing climate; mitigation strategies aim at reducing the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, whereas the adaptation strategies aims at enabling the plant to perform optimally under adverse climatic conditions through cultural and genetic approaches.