Climate change is a global threat to the food and nutritional security of the world. As greenhouse-gas emissions in the atmosphere are increasing, the temperature is also rising due to the greenhouse effect. The average global temperature is increasing continuously and is predicted to rise by 2 °C until 2100, which would cause substantial economic losses at the global level. The concentration of CO₂, which accounts for a major proportion of greenhouse gases, is increasing at an alarming rate, and has led to higher growth and plant productivity due to increased photosynthesis, but increased temperature offsets this effect as it leads to increased crop respiration rate and evapotranspiration, higher pest infestation, a shift in weed flora, and reduced crop duration. Climate change also affects the microbial population and their enzymatic activities in soil. This paper reviews the information collected through the literature regarding the issue of climate change, its possible causes, its projection in the near future, its impact on the agriculture sector as an influence on physiological and metabolic activities of plants, and its potential and reported implications for growth and plant productivity, pest infestation, and mitigation strategies and their economic impact.

The present study addresses the potential of marigold cultivation in terms of income and employment effects in the subtropical region of Jammu. Within the field research, we have surveyed 100 marigold farmers from Jammu and Kathua districts of Jammu Region. The region is of special interest in terms of economic development due to disproportional unemployment rate and high level of poverty. The study finds that marigold cultivation exhibits strong employment and income linkages. Marigold cultivation generates employment opportunities of 124.84 man-days (MD) in a season in comparison to 85.37 MD of rice and 49.58 MDs of wheat. Hence, marigold farming could create more and better-paid rural employment possibilities for peasants and lead to a substantial reduction of the poverty headcount ratios. Furthermore, the Cobb–Douglas production function-based econometric specification shows that farmyard manure (FYM), fertilizers, plant protection, and machine hours have a statistically significant positive effect on marigold yield. The second source of the growth of marigold cultivation is the replacement of subsistence farming with a focus on wheat and rice by marigold farming. We find that this kind of growth does not endanger food security in Jammu and Kathua districts. On the contrary, the growing level of income of the rural population could enhance market demand and a greater willingness to pay for the local agri-food sector and assure a greater level of food security.

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The paper synthesizes agronomic, technological, and policy options relevant to groundwater sustainability in north-western India, a region of international significance for food security. Since the advent of the Green Revolution, there has been a significant shift from traditional crops to high-yielding, water-intensive crop varieties that require substantially more water. This transition has led to a dramatic increase in the number of tubewells and the overexploitation of groundwater resources. In the northwestern states of India, namely Punjab, Rajasthan and Haryana, the rate of groundwater extraction far exceeds natural recharge rates. This issue is aggravated by subsidized or free electricity for agriculture, which encourages excessive groundwater extraction. This paper reviews various agronomic and technological interventions and finds that measures such as laser land leveling, zero tillage, the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), direct-seeded rice (DSR), micro-irrigation, and water harvesting can reduce water use while maintaining yields. However, their effectiveness for long-term groundwater sustainability remains mixed. Among these, water harvesting structures appear most effective, offering dual benefits by reducing groundwater extraction and enhancing recharge. Furthermore, government policies, institutional support, and agricultural extension services play a crucial role in promoting the adoption of water-efficient practices. Also, international development cooperation can reinforce these efforts through concessional finance, technical assistance, and data sharing that lower adoption costs and strengthen monitoring. Effective implementation of these measures can help mitigate unsustainable exploitation of groundwater resources in Indian agriculture.

Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) has emerged as a key strategy to address rising global food demand and persistent food insecurity while enhancing resilience to climate change. This study examines farmers’ perceptions of climate change and the socio-economic and institutional factors influencing the adoption of CSA adoption in Haryana, India, with a focus on Climate-Smart Villages (CSVs) as a community-based approach for scaling climate-resilient strategies. Using a purposive multistage sampling design, primary data were collected from 240 farmers across two agro-climatically distinct districts—Kurukshetra and Sirsa—including both CSVs and non-CSV areas. The findings reveal pronounced regional heterogeneity in both perceptions and adoption patterns. While awareness of climate change did not differ significantly between CSV and non-CSV farmers in Kurukshetra, significant differences were observed in Sirsa, particularly in perceptions of recent temperature and rainfall variability. Multivariate analysis identifies institutional membership, crop diversification, and livestock population as key determinants of CSA adoption. Overall, adoption levels were significantly higher among CSV farmers, with target farmers exhibiting 9.7–17.3% higher adoption rates and control farmers 4.0–8.0% higher rates than non-CSV farmers, indicating substantial spillover effects. The widespread uptake of resource-efficient technologies, coupled with greater access to climate information, enhances farmers’ capacity to anticipate and respond to climate risks. These adoption outcomes have important implications for food security. Higher adoption—particularly in Kurukshetra—is associated with improved yield stability, water-use efficiency, and income resilience, while lower adoption in Sirsa may constrain these gains. The results highlight the role of behavioural and institutional factors in shaping adoption decisions and underscore the effectiveness of CSV-based approaches in fostering climate-resilient farming systems. The study emphasises the need for context-specific, farmer-centred policies that integrate technological, behavioural, and institutional interventions to advance food security in vulnerable regions.