eChapters

Initiatives for Promotion of Bioinputs presents government, institutional, state-level, NGO, and private-sector efforts supporting natural and sustainable farming. Central initiatives discussed include Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, Bharatiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati, National Mission on Natural Farming, ICAR initiatives, National Project on Organic Farming, Bio-Input Resource Centres, farmer incentives, CISS, MOVCDNER, and PM-PRANAM. State examples include natural-farming initiatives in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. The chapter also considers NGOs, voluntary organizations, farmer networks, startups, and private-sector participation. Together, these initiatives illustrate institutional pathways for scaling bioinputs and strengthening natural farming adoption. for adoption by farming communities.

Abstract

Agriculture is the backbone of India’s economic development and has experienced immense growth in the past few decades. Agriculture not only involves the participation of male workers but also experiences active participation of all family members, as well. Women, as part of the family, take up agricultural activities as an extension to their household chores. The Government and voluntary agencies have also recognised the need for women in the farming community to become self-reliant and active participants in the agricultural sector. Increasing awareness and educating themselves with the passage of time, farmers have made themselves aware of new techniques of farming and growing and established themselves as agricultural entrepreneurs in the long run. Many initiatives supporting women entrepreneurs and creating a supportive ecosystem for women to become agricultural entrepreneurs have been initiated by the state. The case of Anita Devi popularly known as the Mushroom Lady of Bihar has been taken up in this paper to substantiate with evidence how government initiatives have helped her gain success and grow as an agricultural entrepreneur. This study aims at disseminating how such initiatives help in creating an ecosystem that motivates agricultural entrepreneurs in general and women in particular.

Abstract

Sustainable development and success in any field, agriculture being one of them, goes hand in hand with Innovation. To tackle the current growing problems in the agricultural sector, and long-term sustainability of the agri-ecosystem, agricultural innovations are needed that might bring new products or processes or open up new markets, thereby optimising the use of the limited resources to attain maximum benefits. The authors discuss innovation from the perspective of two dimensions: Technology and Market to illustrate four different kinds of innovation - incremental, architectural, radial and descriptive. This paper deals with the concept of innovation in agricultural field [referred to as agri-innovation] using illustrations of two innovative products namely Dragon Fruit and Water Hyacinth, both of which have significant role in the agri-ecosystem of India. The introduction of Dragon Fruit in a new market is illustrated as an agri-innovation. Efforts by state and private sector of introducing Dragon Fruit, a popular production in South & South East Asia to Indian markets are an example of Architectural Innovation. Also the most common weed Water Hyacinth is considered to be used in news forms so that it can be modified as a new product for a new market. The paper thus documents the suitability of these innovative agri-products in the current Indian market scenario.

The professor of English Language, a figure known for their insightful questions and ability to illuminate the intricacies of the English lexicon, stood before the class. Their gaze swept across the eager faces of the students, finally settling on one in particular. With a gentle smile, they posed a seemingly simple yet profoundly layered question: “Can you tell me a single letter word that holds significant meaning within the vast realm of English literature?” A moment of thoughtful silence descended upon the classroom. Some students furrowed their brows in contemplation, others shifted in their seats, and one young scholar, feeling the weight of the query, offered an honest but perhaps unwittingly ironic response: “I don’t know, Sir.” The teacher’s smile widened ever so slightly. The very word the student used to express their lack of knowledge contained the answer itself – the solitary, yet immensely powerful, letter “I.” This single stroke of the pen, this lone character, stands as a fundamental pillar in the construction of narratives, the expression of self, and the exploration of individual consciousness throughout the entirety of English literature. From the simplest declaration to the most complex introspections, “I” remains an indispensable element. Just as this seemingly unassuming letter carries such profound weight in the world of language and storytelling, there exists a singular concept that serves as the indispensable foundation for any endeavor aspiring to achieve true and lasting success: Innovation. Think of innovation as the “I” of achievement. While it may appear as a single, core idea, much like the single letter, it encompasses an entire universe of possibilities, driving progress, shaping outcomes, and ultimately defining the trajectory towards triumph.

Significant Progress and Prospects

It is widely acknowledged that biofortification presents a promising and cost effective agricultural strategy to enhance the nutritional status of malnourished populations globally. Approaches to biofortification, including crop breeding, targeted genetic modification, and mineral fertilizer application, offer significant potential for combatting mineral deficiencies in human diets. The development of biofortified food crops with enhanced nutrient content such as iron, zinc, selenium, and provitamin A has shown promise in addressing micronutrient deficiencies prevalent in both developing and developed nations. Over the past decade, both national and international initiatives have made substantial contributions toward achieving these goals. These efforts have resulted in the release of biofortified varieties across various crops, including rice, maize, wheat, potatoes, vegetables, and millets. The majority of these varieties have been developed through conventional breeding methods without sacrificing crop yield, making them readily accepted by both growers and consumers.

One of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals is the cultivation of nutritionally rich crop varieties with heightened levels of micronutrients such as iron, zinc, calcium, total protein, lysine, tryptophan, anthocyanin, provitamin A, and oleic acid, coupled with reduced levels of anti-nutritional factors. In the past decade, 142 biofortified varieties, spanning rice, wheat, maize, pearl millet, small millet, lentil, chickpea, and other crops, have been developed under the auspices of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Biofortified varieties typically do not impact ecological conditions, soil, or water requirements differently from traditional varieties. Additionally, they do not incur extra cultivation costs, and their economic output is comparable to traditional produce, leading to their widespread adoption. In India, the scale-up of biofortified varieties has gained momentum, with substantial quantities of breeder seeds being produced and distributed to public and private seed agencies for further multiplication and dissemination to farmers. Over the past six years, approximately 10 million hectares of land have been cultivated with biofortified rice, wheat, pearl millet, mustard, and lentil varieties.

Introduction

India is predominantly an agricultural economy and about half of the workforce is engaged in agriculture sector. Around 48 per cent of households in the country are agricultural household and they derive the monthly income from crop cultivation. India is leading in production of many agricultural crops but finding a market for marketed surplus and getting fair prices have always been a major challenge. Long time ago, traditional market system was existed in India. Marketing implied greater magnitude as yields and production started rising after farmers embraced with advanced technologies such as high-yielding varieties, fertilizers, chemical inputs, block chain development, farmers business network, market linkages, diversification towards high value crops, integrated farming system approach, precision farming including digital agriculture, drones, GIS technology, remote sensing, soil health management, crop and livestock insurance, mobile apps, web portal, machine learning and many mores. These catered the need of efficient regulated marketing system to support the farmers and keep away from them getting manipulated in the market.

India has gained self-sufficiency in the agriculture production. There is need to translate this production into better remuneration for the farming community by focusing into agricultural marketing system. The agricultural marketing system is characterized by various short comings like heavy sale of commodities at primary level immediately after the harvesting period, absence of on-farm grading of produce, poor packaging, insufficient marketing infrastructure, long marketing channels, existence of various malpractices in the marketing of agri-produce, nontransparent price discovery mechanism, lack of market information system, low marketable surplus especially of small and marginal farmers, etc.

Rising population and increasing demand for food are prominent factors driving the digital farming market. Moreover, the growing demand to efficiently deal with pests, weeds, and other diseases is encouraging farmers to digitize their farm. In developing regions, cheaper internet data and strong penetration of smart devices (especially smartphones) are driving the digital farming market. Active participation of governments in digitizing farms through investment is also driving the digital farm market.

Introduction

India is one of the agriculturally important countries in the world and has strong net-work of agriculture education, research and extension. As per the historical record India is committed to thrive and excel independently. During 1965–66, India imported food grains from the US under PL-480 scheme, and the situation was “ship-to-mouth”. This condition was also exacerbated with the growing population which made India to increase its food production at most priority with commitment. With the introduction of high yielding semi dwarf varieties of rice from IRRI, The Philippines and wheat from Mexico which combined with right policies of government to provide essential inputs and market facilities, credit etc. revolutionized the Indian agriculture. In addition to these innovative ideas and policies the food production reached to the level of self-sufficiency until today. For instance the food production during 1950-51 was 54 million tonnes and reached to 285 million tonnes during 2018-19. After the fourth five year plan, India made its stand of self-sufficiency even affected by any year of worst drought. Later, the focus had been given on agricultural research and education in the country for sustaining self-sufficiency in agriculture sector at all times of change of conditions within the country and also globally. Although more than 65 per cent of rural population is depend on agriculture sector, the average monthly income is about Rs. 6500. It reveals that under employment and large population in India depend on agriculture which is unsustainable (Rena, 2003). Therefore, it is needed to books the rural economy, create new infrastructure and other innovations in this sector. India has been emphasizing for innovative techniques. The main advantage for India is the richest natural resources and need only planning and execution on innovation front.

As the world faces mounting environmental challenges, resource scarcity, and the need to shift toward a low-carbon economy, sustainable waste management and alternative energy solutions are gaining critical importance. In this context, agri-biomass and organic waste valorization has emerged as a transformative area—addressing both the disposal of agricultural residues and organic waste, while enabling the generation of clean energy, bio-based materials, and high-value products.
Advanced Valorization Technologies
The field is rapidly evolving beyond traditional methods such as composting and combustion to adopt biochemical and thermochemical processes. Technologies like:
• Anaerobic digestion for biogas,
• Fermentation for bioethanol and organic acids,
• Pyrolysis for bio-oil and biochar,
• Gasification for syngas production,
Are increasingly supplemented by next-generation approaches like hydrothermal carbonization, microwave-assisted pyrolysis, and supercritical fluid extraction. These are tailored for India’s diverse agri-residues—rice straw,
sugarcane bagasse, coconut husk, and more—making them scalable across regions.
Importantly, these technologies now aim for value maximization, producing bioplastics, nutraceuticals, soil enhancers, and even sustainable construction materials.

Introduction

The food production in India has been on a rising trajectory and the country is among the top producers of several crops. It is the highest producer of milk and second highest producer of fruits and vegetables. Total food grain production in the country is estimated at record 291.95 million tonnes (MT; Second Advance Estimates for 2019-20) which is 6.74 MT higher over 2018-19. While enhanced field productivity is an essential component of agricultural sector, improved postharvest handling, marketing and processing is equally essential to reduce the waste, particularly in a country where such losses are substantial and add stress on limited farming resources, appropriate agrilogistic is needed. Post-production management and marketing infrastructure is therefore, not only vital but a priority. Such infrastructure and the services they provide are essential not only for the efficient performance of various marketing functions, but also for effective expansion of the size of markets which allows for growth.An efficient post-harvest logistics network not only ensures that produce will reach destination markets in quality and quantity, but should also trigger a steady reverse flow of market information to the source.

Introduction

Agriculture is the backbone of Indian economy. Good harvest helps in moving the economy in the right direction. The agriculture sector accounts for 17% of US$ 2.6 trillion economy of India (Anonymous, 2019a) and employs 54.6% of the country’s workforce (Anonymous, 2019b). India occupies first place in the production of pulses, jute and milk, and second place in rice, wheat, cotton, sugarcane, vegetables and fruits (FAO STAT, 2020). The agriculture export constitutes a fifth of total exports made by India and self-reliance in agriculture is required to become an economic superpower. The green revolution has paved the way from begging bowl to overflowing granaries in our country. The overall food production has increased from 52 MT in 1950-51 to 295 MT in 2019-20, which is a phenomenal growth of more than five times in seven decades span. Of the several factors that influenced the sea change in agriculture production and productivity, the quality seed of improved varieties occupies a crucial position. The green revolution was ushered in by the import of 18000 tonnes of seed of high yielding wheat varieties Lerma Rojo and Sonara 64 and rice variety IR-8. Till today, the quality seed alone contributes to 15-20% of total production (Chauhan et al., 2015), indicating its importance in agricultural production of the country. The problematic global scenarios like economic recession, climate change, water scarcity, population explosion, pollution or new pandemics drives the states to be more self-reliant. To be self-reliant is not to be altogether “self-contained”. We should be opened for the best material available anywhere in the world, and simultaneously we should develop our infrastructure and industry to cater to the needs of our population as well as export to other countries. Seed sector is one of the potential areas for boosting self-reliance as well as has a lot of export potential. The government push for self-reliance under the present COVID-19 pandemic situation by infusing INR one lakh crore as agricultural infrastructure fund that will help in developing several start-ups. The success of this movement mainly depends on innovations in every sector, including the seed sector and simultaneously, there is a need to extend it to the regulatory mechanisms. This chapter will discuss the possible areas of innovations that are already in the pipeline and those to be targeted in the areas of seed production, quality assurance, marketing and regulation along with policy interventions needed to boost the seed sector.

The introduction of high yielding varieties, additional irrigation facilities, a great input flow through fertilizers and pesticides, farm mechanization, credit facilities and other rural infrastructure facilities ushered in the green revolution. The food grains area under irrigation as a percentage to its total sown area has been increased from 20.9 to 51.2%, rice irrigated area from 36.5 to 58.3%, wheat from 43.1 to 93.4%, pulses from 9.4 to 18.6%, oilseeds from 3.7 to 28.6% during the period from 1965-66 to 2013-14 (DES, 2015). Despite the net sown area being stagnant around 140.80 M ha, gross cropped area has been increased significantly from 155.28 M ha in 1965-66 to 195.25 M ha in 2011-12 due to increase in net irrigated area from 26.34 to 65.26 M ha (Fig. 1), gross irrigated area from 30.90 to 91.53 M ha during the period. There has been a sharp decline in average size of operational land holdings. The scope for expansion of the area available for cultivation has become limited. The average size of holdings for all operational classes (small & marginal, medium and large) have declined over the years and for all classes put together it has come down to 1.16 ha in 2010-11 from 2.28 ha in 1970-71. Therefore, it is the urgent need to use the natural resource like water efficiently and in a sustainable manner.

Introduction

The arid regions in India occupy 38.7 million ha (Mha), comprising 31.7 and 7 Mha under hot and cold arid region, respectively. The major part (90%) of the hot arid region lies in Northwest (NW) India and the rest in geographically isolated pockets in South India. The NW arid region extends from 22°30” to 32°50” N and 68°50” to 75°45”E , bounded by Aravalli hills in the east, Thar desert in the west the irrigated Indus plain in the north and the alluvial plains of the Sabarmati river in the south. The region mostly lies in western Rajasthan covering 12 districts (196150 km², 68.7%) followed six districts in northwest Gujarat (62180 km² 21.8%), five districts in southwest Haryana in (12840 km² 4.5%), and six districts in southwest Punjab in (14510 km², 5.0%) (Fig.1). The region is characterized by low rainfall (100 to 400 mm yr-1), that is also erratic and highly unpredictable (coefficient of variation, CV = 30 to 70%); high evaporation (1600 to 2000 mm yr-1); temperature extremes (-5.7° C to 50°C); frequent droughts (once in 2.5-5.0 years); strong winds (20-50 km h-1) during summer; and short crop growing period (8 to 15 weeks) (Moharana et al., 2016). Despite the common characteristics of aridity and extremes of temperatures, there are enormous spatial variations in terms of rainfall pattern, physiography, soils, amount of available surface and ground water, and extent of vegetation cover (Joshi, 2012). Accordingly, the NW hot arid region has been classified in 4 sub-regions, 11 zones and 34 sub zones (Faroda et al., 1999).

Despite these intimidating conditions, the region supports a large human and livestock population and biodiversity. However, the ever-increasing human and livestock population and developmental activities exert enormous biophysical pressure on the slender natural resource base of the region. A major challenge is desertification due to wind erosion/deposition, water erosion, water logging and salinity. Degradation of permanent pastures has led to loss of fodder resources constraining livestock husbandry, the backbone of the economy of the region. Of late, industrial effluents and mining are also contributing to desertification.

Historical Perspective of Agricultural Education Policy in India

Pre-Independence Era

During the reign of the British Crown, vocational education and training suffered a great setback and there was a lack of emphasis on agricultural education, even though the Indian economy, to a great extent, depended on agriculture. In 1901, only five institutions were imparting theoretical and practical instruction in agriculture, but that education was not used in extension or fieldwork—it served only as an opening for government white-collar jobs (Crane, 1965).

Post-Independence Era

Prior to the establishment of agricultural universities, university-level education in agriculture, animal science, horticulture, agricultural engineering, and allied subjects were largely conducted by colleges affiliated with general universities that had no special commitment to the farming community. The University Education Commission of 1947, among other things, examined the state of agricultural education in India. The report of this Commission emphasized the need for having what was termed “Rural Universities.” In 1954, the First Joint Indo-American Team on Agricultural Research and Education fully endorsed the recommendations of the University Education Commission and strongly recommended the immediate establishment of agricultural universities in a few selected states. The U.S. agricultural advisors who began to arrive in India in the early 1950s were products of the land-grant university system, and many of them naturally believed India could benefit by creating a similar system (Goldsmith, 1988). The Government of India accepted this recommendation and the first agricultural university in Uttar Pradesh now named as Govind Ballab Pant of Agriculture & Technology was established in 1960, patterned on the land-grant university model of the United States. This was a significant turning point in the history of agricultural education in India. The Second Joint Indo-American Commission (1959) reiterated the recommendations of the First and recommended that at least one agricultural university be established in each state. Agricultural universities have now been established in 21 of the 28 states and the concept of the agricultural university now forms an essential part of the national policy on education.

Introduction

It is known and well documented that ‘biological diversity’ (i.e. diversity within species, between species and within ecosystems) has been declining at a much faster rate than earlier time in human history. The current rate of extinction is tens to hundred times higher than the average over the past 10 million years and it is accelerating (IPBES, 2019). The estimates of the number of species getting extinct every year vary from low (200 to 2,000) to high (10,000 and 100,000) (Bar-On et al., 2018). The delicate balance of clean air, water and biodiversity in nature which helps in survival on earth, is rapidly being destroyed due to humans’ activity like growing of food, producing energy, dispose of waste and consume resources (IPBES, 2019). The current human population of the world (7.6 billion) represents only 0.01% of all living creatures and attributed to be instrumental in causing loss of 83% of all wild mammals and half of plants (IPBES, 2019). These unprecedented changes in important components of biodiversity are likely to continue or increase in the foreseeable future, unless we take active corrective measures (IPBES, 2019).

Whilst all biodiversity has intrinsic economic or social value, it is the ‘agricultural biodiversity’ (‘agrobiodiversity’ in short) that has the greatest importance for food nutrition and health security of humans. The FAO has recently defined biodiversity for food and agriculture (BFA) as a subset of biodiversity that contributes primarily to agriculture and food production (FAO, 2019). It includes the domesticated plants and animals raised in crop, livestock, forest and aquaculture systems, harvested forest and aquatic species, the wild relatives of domesticated species, other wild species harvested for food and other products. It also encompasses “associated biodiversity”

Introduction

Climate change effect is global and one of the most pressing issues of the 21^st century. It has now emerged as a significant global environmental challenge affecting crop, animal, fish, egg and milk production, water availability, human health, and terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Evidences of changes in climate, particularly to the spatial and temporal variability of precipitation and temperature are many and as a result, uncertainty, risks and farmers distress have increased manifold over the current years. India, a developing nation and primarily an agriculturally based country will be highly affected due to greater dependence on agriculture for livelihood of larger proportion of population (Johnson and Hutton, 2014). Anthropogenic forces like rise in population, economic activities, consumption patterns, social behaviour, energy resource utilization and land-use changes in terms of deforestation, use of fossil fuels, industrialization, and race towards development, high concentration of green house gases (GHG) has been released resulting in global warming, a major factor leading to climate change. This heat of climate change has been experienced globally and has affected all forms of life on earth in many ways (Campbell-Lendrum et al, 2015).

As per the fifth assessment report of IPCC (2014), proportional sharing in GHGs emission of various sectors are energy production (34%), and agriculture, forestry and land-use (AFOLU) (24%), mainly contributed by biomass burning and resource intensive agronomic activities (Houghton et al., 2012; Tubiello et al., 2015). Global food security has been threatened by climate change more so in developing nations through changes in soil properties, and is one of the most important challenges in the 21^st century to supply food for the increasing population.

Since climate change is inevitable, we must consider how best we can adapt it, so as to minimize its harmful consequences on the society. For subsistence farmers in India, adaptation in response to changes in climate patterns can be the difference between survival and calamity. There is a need to bring innovations on climate smart agriculture and also necessary agricultural reforms for emerging of a self-reliant India.

Introduction

Agricultural Extension is as ancient as agriculture itself. When it moves in agricultural trends, the importance on extension has also been transformed. Firstly, agricultural extension was the component of the research-extension-farmer approach. In the Training and Visit (T&V) period, communication of innovation was the crucial concept and the role of extension was to successfully disseminate the technological interventions. However, after the green revolution, the gap between resource rich and resource poor farmers widened with information and extension reaching only a few of them. With the conceptualization of new models, like Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems (AKIS), the focus of extension has changed to formation of groups and collective farming. In time, the private sector has also entered into the agricultural arena, introducing the concept of pluralism in extension. Emphasis on mass media has also increased. More recently, Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) is introduced within the innovation systems framework. It focuses on the actors, their interactions, the institutions, and the policy environment to support or hinder it. Communication for innovation is the key AIS concept tried to identify the actors in systems, their core activities and bring them into an innovation platform for effective service and successful innovations (Saravanan, 2017).

Introduction and Background

Agriculture at present has the trend of using an industrialized production model, where crops and animals are produced in systems that are increasingly specialized, simplified and concentrated, to address growing food, feed and fibre demands. Within this model, external inputs (e.g. irrigation, synthetic fertilizers chemical pest control, feeds, and growth hormones) have been utilized to achieve production goals, often at the expense of environmental quality and key ecosystem services. Continuation of this model of agricultural production has resulted in loss of ecosystem services, increased ecosystem simplification and species extinction. Responses to future challenges in agriculture should include the development of novel systems that are highly productive, minimize damage to the environment and effectively utilize renewable resources. Achieving these multiple goals will be a momentous task, as it will require development and implementation of more complex, diverse and management-intensive production systems than currently employed. Furthermore, future agricultural production systems will need to be adaptable to respond to unforeseen environmental challenges. Integrated agricultural systems have been purported to possess attributes to address these challenges. Agro-chemicals, fuel-based mechanization and irrigation operations are the heart of industrial agriculture which is derived entirely from dwindling and ever more expensive fossil fuels. Intensification of agriculture by the use of high yielding crop varieties, fertilization, irrigations and pesticides are impact heavily on natural resources with serious health and environmental implications. Practice of monoculture in some parts of the country and the world has an adverse environmental impact due to lack of ecological regulation mechanisms and heavily dependent on external inputs.

Introduction

Majority of the India’s population (about 70%) depend directly and indirectly on agriculture for a living, and thus, the sector must attain self-reliance for their future survival. The North Eastern Region (NER) of India comprising the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim covers a total area of 26.2 million hectare (7.97% of the India’s total geographical area). Of this area, hill and mountain region accounts for about 70% area that excludes Assam plains. The region is characterized by unique geophysical socio-cultural and environmental features. Drought and floods are the two miseries for the farmers of North Eastern Region of India (NER). The poorest people are likely to be the hardest hit by impacts of climatic factors and its change because they rely heavily on climate-sensitive sectors such as rainfed agriculture and fisheries. They are also less capable to respond due to limited human, institutional and financial capacity and have very limited ability to cope with climate impacts and adaptation options in agriculture sector to a changing hazard burden (Ngachan and Das, 2018). The NER of India is endowed with enormous water resources potential that accounts for about 34% of the country’s total water wealth. In spite of the abundant water resources, the ratio of percent irrigated area to net sown area varies from 5% in Assam to 28% in Arunachal Pradesh with an average of 10.6 % in NER. This is less than one-fourth of the national average of net irrigated area which currently stands at 43.2% (Sharma et al., 2010). The water scenario in the region is skewed and is characterized by plenty and scanty syndrome, i.e. excess water during rainy season and severe scarcity during post- and pre- monsoon season. There is wide variation of rainfall in space and time. It is projected that by 2021, an additional 15 million population will be added to the current 45 million in the region (Choudhury et al., 2012). Hence, adequate planning and management of these bountiful but most vital resources are required for overall sustainability of agriculture in NER.

Edible oil scenario

Vegetable oil or edible oil is the main source of energy in humans and it also supplies nutrients for growth and maintenance of human body. Edible oil demand in India has been increasing progressively since last one decade, primarily due to population growth, improved standard of living and also changes in food habits. Presently, the area under oil seed production is between 26 and 27 million ha with an average yield of 1000 to 1100 kg ha^-1. This accounts to 7.5 to 8.0 million tonnes of vegetable oil production locally, as against the current demand of 22.5 to 23 million tonnes per annum.

Introduction

Coastal zone represents a broad transitional zone between land and sea which is strongly influenced by both the shoreline ecosystems and the near shore sub-littoral land-based ecosystems. The coastal areas of the country occupy about 10.8 million ha of land and are spread over the 7517 km long coastline along the Bay of Bengal in the East coast, Arabian sea in the West coast and two islands territories. The coastline of the country in its journey covers 9 states (West Bengal Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat Goa) 2 union territories (Puducherry and Daman and Diu) and 2 groups of islands (Andaman & Nicobar group in the Bay of Bengal and Lakshadeep and Minicoy group in the Arabian sea) in the country. The region has varied geomorphic and topographical features of mountains, valleys, coastal plains, riverine systems climatic conditions, soil conditions, water budgets and a wide range of cultivated crops. It also supports diverse vegetation ranging from rich tropical rain forests to coastal mangroves and highly rich in biodiversity. The entire coastal ecosystem is highly fragile and vulnerable to climate change and highly endangered by the sea level rise following global warming. Agriculture is the major occupation of the people in the rural areas of coastal regions of the country but it is highly complex risk-prone and entirely dependent on the vagaries of nature.

Since, the problems of coastal agriculture are widely variable there is no universally applicable remedial measure for self-reliant coastal agriculture and it is likely that the remedial measures or the technological interventions will be variable according to the problems associated with the concerned area. It is highly necessary that technological improvement aimed at enhancement of the productivity of coastal agriculture and the livelihood of the farming communities must be simple in use to suit the skill and resource poor farmers and, to be operative at small scale farming as the majority of the farmers are in marginal and small categories with very poor landholdings.