**Executive Summary**
This report outlines the strategies implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare to protect Indian agriculture from climate change through research, technology, and policy interventions. Central to these efforts is the National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA) project, which has assessed 651 districts and developed contingency plans for weather aberrations. As of December 31, 2025, the government has facilitated the release of over 2,600 stress-tolerant crop varieties and disbursed ₹1.92 lakh crore in insurance claims to mitigate financial risks for farmers.
**Key Points / Main Content**
**Climate Vulnerability and Planning**
* **Vulnerability Assessment:** 651 agricultural districts were assessed; 310 were identified as vulnerable, including 109 "very high" and 201 "highly" vulnerable districts.
* **Contingency Plans:** District Agriculture Contingency Plans (DACPs) have been prepared for all 651 districts to recommend location-specific climate-resilient crops and management practices.
**Research and Technological Demonstrations**
* **Resilient Varieties:** Between 2014 and 2024, ICAR released 2,900 crop varieties, 2,661 of which are tolerant to biotic and abiotic stresses.
* **Field Demonstrations:** Climate-resilient technologies—including aerobic rice, direct seeding, and drought-tolerant varieties—have been demonstrated in 448 villages across 151 districts.
* **Infrastructure Support:** Capacity building under NICRA includes establishing village-level seed banks and community nurseries to ensure seed availability.
**Government Missions and Resource Management**
* **Water and Soil Efficiency:** The "Per Drop More Crop" scheme promotes micro-irrigation, while the Soil Health and Fertility scheme encourages judicious fertilizer use.
* **Sustainable Farming:** Organic and natural farming are promoted through the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana and the National Mission on Natural Farming.
* **Crop Diversification:** Initiatives such as the "Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses" and missions for edible oils and horticulture aim to minimize risks associated with climatic variability.
**Financial Risk Mitigation**
* **Insurance Coverage:** The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) and Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme provide financial protection against unforeseen natural calamities.
* **Claim Settlements:** From 2016 to the 2024–25 period, total insurance claims amounting to ₹1.92 lakh crore have been paid out to farmers.
**Impact Analysis**
**Farmers (Small and Marginal)**
* **Impact:** Farmers benefit from increased access to stress-tolerant seeds and financial stability through comprehensive insurance coverage against crop failure.
* **Action Required:** Farmers should adopt location-specific resilient technologies demonstrated by KVKs and utilize available insurance schemes to mitigate climate-related financial losses.
**Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and KVKs**
* **Impact:** These bodies are responsible for the ongoing research, vulnerability assessments, and the technical demonstration of resilient agricultural practices.
* **Action Required:** ICAR must continue extending technical assistance to vulnerable districts and facilitate training through the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA).
**State Governments**
* **Impact:** States receive support to implement integrated nutrient management and farming systems that enhance productivity in rainfed areas.
* **Action Required:** States must actively promote the District Agriculture Contingency Plans (DACPs) and oversee the implementation of central schemes like Soil Health and Fertility at the local level.
Key Entities Referenced
National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA): A comprehensive project implemented by ICAR to study climate change challenges and demonstrate location-specific resilient technologies across vulnerable agricultural districts.
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR): The primary research body responsible for implementing NICRA, conducting vulnerability assessments, and releasing thousands of stress-tolerant crop varieties.
Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY): A flagship crop insurance scheme that provides financial support and comprehensive cover to farmers against crop failure due to unforeseen natural calamities.
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare: The central ministry overseeing a wide range of missions and programs, including horticulture, agroforestry, and crop diversification, aimed at promoting climate resilience.
District Agriculture Contingency Plans (DACPs): Strategic planning documents prepared for 651 districts to address weather aberrations and recommend climate-resilient management practices.
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
Strategies to Protect Farmers from Climate
Change
Posted On: 27 MAR 2026 5:56PM by PIB Delhi
The Government through, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is implementing a project-
National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA) that studies the challenges posed by
climate change on agriculture. Under the project, vulnerability assessment to climate change has been
carried out for 651 agricultural districts as per Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
protocols. 310 districts were identified as vulnerable out of which 109 districts have been categorized as
‘very high’ and 201 districts as ‘highly’ vulnerable. District Agriculture Contingency Plans (DACPs) for
these 651 districts have also been prepared to address weather aberrations and recommending location
specific climate resilient crops and varieties and management practices. For enhancing the resilience and
adaptive capacity of farmers to climate variability, location-specific climate resilient technologies such as
system of rice intensification, aerobic rice, direct seeding of rice, cultivation of climate resilient varieties
tolerant to extreme weather conditions such as drought and heatetc. have been demonstrated under the
project through KVKs in 151 districts covering 448 Climate Resilient Villages. Capacity building for
establishing village level seed banks and community nurseries is undertaken under NICRA to enable
availability of seed in the adopted villages. Drought and flood tolerant climate-resilient varieties of rice,
wheat, soybean, mustard, chickpea, sorghum, gram, and foxtail millet were demonstrated in several
NICRA villages. Besides, training programmes are conducted under Agricultural Technology
Management Agency (ATMA) on various issues of agricultural practices. Under NICRA, technical
assistance for small and marginal farmers is extended to additional vulnerable districts beyond the 151
currently covered districts, to promote adoption of climate-resilient practices. To address the impacts of
climate change, ICAR has released 2,900 crop varieties during 2014–2024, out of which 2,661 are tolerant
to one or more biotic and/or abiotic stresses.
Further, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare is implementing various programmes to address the
challenges of climate change such as droughts and floods. Per Drop More Crop scheme is implemented to
promote water use efficiency at farm level through Micro Irrigation technologies i.e. drip and sprinkler
irrigation systems. Rainfed Area Development scheme is being implemented to promote Integrated
Farming System for enhancing productivity and minimizing risks associated with climatic variability. The
Soil Health and Fertility scheme assists states in promoting Integrated Nutrient Management through
judicious use of fertilizers. Organic farming is promoted through ParamparagatKrishiVikasYojana and
natural farming through National Mission on Natural Farming scheme. “Mission for Aatmanirbharta in
Pulses”, National Mission on Edible Oils – Oilseeds, and National Food Security & Nutrition Mission
promotes crop diversification. Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture, Agroforestry &
National Bamboo Mission also promote climate resilience in agriculture.
Pradhan MantriFasalBimaYojana along with weather index based Restructured Weather Based Crop
Insurance Scheme provide a comprehensive insurance cover against failure of the crop by providing
financial support to farmers suffering crop loss/damage arising out of unforeseen natural calamities andadverse weather incidence. As on 31.12.2025, since the inception of the scheme in 2016, total claims
amounting to ₹1.92 lakh crore have been paid under PMFBY (2016–17 to 2024–25).
This information was given by Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Ramnath
Thakur in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.
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