PS Gahlaut, MD of Indian Potash Limited: “Climate-smart farming is a mindset.”

Climate change has unlocked so many doors of uncertainty, including food and farming.
The ever-growing adverse changes impact so many aspects of farming practices every
year, which puts food security at risk. Amidst these frantic storms of changes, farmers
are left to figure out solutions to deal with crop failures, reduced productivity, disease
outbreak amidst many other issues.

However, it's not a one-sided battle. As much as climate is impacting agriculture, so
many facets of agriculture also end up deteriorating the climate as well. For instance, 19-
29% of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture. It also consumes large
amounts of natural resources, leads to the loss of biodiversity and when the farming
practices are unregulated, they all cumulatively affect climate in a detrimental manner.
"We are trapped in a cycle where farming is affecting climate and so is climate affecting
farming practices. The only way out of the loop is to go beyond the traditional practices.

We need to adopt innovative methods and ways to deal with the problem at hand. And
one of the key ways to a sustainable future is Climate Smart Farming," says Parvinder
Singh Gahlaut, Managing Director of Indian Potash Limited. As per United Nation
(UN), there might be a 70% increase in food production in 2050 to meet the growing
demand of the growing population. A massive increase in food demand in coming years,
makes it a pressing issue to address and move towards the adoption of Climate Smart
Farming.

Climate smart farming (CSF) is an integrated approach to secure the future in
agricultural sectors and make them resilient to climate change. It includes innovative
solutions, technological advancements, evolving agricultural practices and so on. It aims
at elevating productivity, ensuring food security, income, adapting to changes, reducing
the harmful effects of agriculture on the environment and so on.

However, there's no one way of practicing CSF. It manifests itself in everyday practices
in several ways. As the Managing Director of India Potash Limited, PS Gahlaut says,
"Climate Smart Farming is a mindset. It's not just a science or a textbook concept, but an
approach that can help us align all our visions to stay resilient in the face of climate
shocks."

One of ways to incorporate CSF is to relook at the crop varieties that have been
considered over the years. Adopting drought resistant crops to grow might be a great
practice to ensure food productivity during the course of climate change. Droughts are
one of the most severe outcomes of climate change, and strategizing how to practice
farming amidst conditions as dry, it's imperative to reconsider the cropping practices and
choose the varieties that can stand the test of climate change.

The next important way of CSF is to invest in the health of soil. Soil is what determines
the strength of crops to a large extent. In such a situation, it becomes important to
enhance soil health with organic matter as it will not only improve yields, but increase
water retention and also enrich biodiversity.

While talking about CSF, the impact of agroforestry practices cannot be overlooked.
Agroforestry practices are sustainable ways of integrating trees and shrubs in the same
piece of land where we're practicing agriculture. The idea behind these practices is to
mirror the natural ecosystem and boost productivity, resilience and biodiversity. It also
reduces the need for chemical pesticides, reducing the negative impact of agriculture on
the climate and resources. Not just this, but the presence of trees also serves as
windbreaks which reduces soil erosion and reduces heat stress on the crops. The trees
on agricultural landscapes also help in absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere,
thus reducing the negative impact of climate changes.

Climate Smart Farming would be incomplete without developing ways to manage one of
the key resources: water. Methods like drip irrigation, rainwater harvesting, contour
farming must be adopted to improve water use efficiency. Mastering ways to manage
water is one of the most important battles against climate change. According to
UNESCO, by 2050, more than 5 billion people may face water shortages due to climate
change. Thus, it becomes imperative to adopt ways to manage water sustainably as a
part of Climate Smart Farming.

Another essential pillar of Climate Smart Farming is diversification. Traditionally,
monoculture has always been promoted where we tend to grow a single crop over a
large area. While it has worked in the past, it relies on massive chemical inputs and

makes the farms more prone to diseases and less resilient to climate changes. However,
when you diversify, the variety of crops and farming systems offer enough space to
spread the risk and also enhance resilience to pests and unpredictable climate. Growing
multiple crops over one, also promotes biodiversity. It puts less pressure on the soil as
different crops need different nutrients.

Lastly, making precision agriculture should be a key strategy of CSF. Precision
agriculture is a technology driven farming approach to optimize crop yields in a
sustainable way. It collects and analyses data around crops, soil, weather and all the
variable factors and then provides with the best possible information to guide farming
practices. It involves remote sensing via drones and satellites, GPS guided machinery,
soil and weather sensors, geospatial technology and several other innovative solutions.
While drones and satellites detect issues early, GPS guided machinery can be used for
precise planting of seeds to reduce wastage; soil sensors provide real-time data on soil
health and lastly, geospatial technology allow farmers to track the performance of their
farms. All of these measures make their work more efficient and help them come up with
smarter ways to deal with any crisis well before time.

PS Gahlaut, one of the most impactful voices in the world of sustainability and
agriculture, shares with us, "As per World Bank data of 2021, farms that will implement
climate smart farming will be 40-60% more likely to recover from extreme weather
events. And that's what makes CSF one of the key practices in sustainable agriculture -
its ability to offer resilience to mitigate the severe impact of climate change. The future
isn't bleak, it's smart, if only one is adaptive enough to innovate."