eChapters

The Tenth Five Year Plan (GoI 2002), for 2002 through 2007, has put emphasis on natural resource management through rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharging measures and controlling groundwater exploitation, watershed development, treatment of waterlogged areas. With regard to application of agricultural inputs like fertilizer and pesticides, the Plan stated that factors such as imbalanced use of nitrogenous (N), phosphatic (P) and postassic (K) fertilisers, increased deficiency of micronutrients and decreased soil organic carbon would be addressed through a holistic agri-environmental approach stressing Integrated Plant Nutrient and Pest Management. Further, the Tenth Plan document recognizes organic farming as a ‘thrust area’ in the sustainable use and management of resources in agriculture.

The trajectory of Indian agriculture and its associated environmental problems has brought about recognition that future agricultural growth and productivity will have to occur simultaneously with environmental sustainability. The environmental challenges, especially in terms of land degradation and groundwater depletion, water logging and excessive use of chemical inputs are posing problems for the future of Indian agriculture. To address the problems, policies have laid emphasis on promoting sustainable agriculture including organic farming. Differential approaches and policy instruments, however, will be required to address these problems. The shift from input-intensive to sustainable, particularly organic farming is a difficult task as it involves a number of policy measures dealing with a variety of issues ranging from the transfer of information and technology to the development of markets. Another difficult task, and perhaps more difficult, relates to marginal and small farmers – which comprise a substantial part of Indian agriculture. Although these marginal and small farmers have been considered organic by ‘default’, severe resource constraints make a shift to the modern sense of organic farming prohibitive.

The Indian government has been undertaking measures to promote organic farming with the aim to improve soil fertility and help to double the farmers’ incomes by the year 2022. The Prime Minister had visited Sikkim—which is India’s first organic state—and encouraged other states to replicate the “Sikkim model”. Some of the policy initiatives to promote organic farming and exports include development of an organic regulation for exports by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), removal of quantitative restriction on organic food exports, providing subsidies to farmers under the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) in partnership with the state governments, and other schemes such as the Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region. Despite these initiatives, a recent survey-based study covering 418 organic farmers across different states of India suggests that a move to organic farming methods may not be that easy and organic farmers are not getting the expected premium price for their produce.

Introduction

Sustainable agriculture focuses on practices that ensure the long-term well being of the environment, society, and economy. In India, the government has instituted various policies and initiatives to encourage sustainable farming practices and enhance farmers' income. Embracing sustainability is crucial for making agriculture both profitable and environmentally friendly for future generations, and technology emerges as the key enabler for achieving this goal. Technological advancements empower farmers to make informed decisions regarding optimal planting and harvesting times, as well as the judicious use of water and fertilisers. This leads to reduced waste, increased crop yields, and ultimately higher profits for farmers. Additionally, technology plays a significant role in mechanisation, encompassing the use of modern agricultural implements that multitask while minimising soil impact (McFadden et al., 2023). Addressing major challenges such as crop residue management through environmentally friendly technological methods not only enhances efficiency and productivity but also reduces the physical labor required, transforming farming into a less strenuous occupation.

The successful transformation of agriculture through artificial intelligence and digital technologies requires supportive policies, institutions, infrastructure, and farmer-oriented programmes. This chapter examines the role of government policies and institutional support in promoting smart farming and digital agricultural innovation. Effective policies can facilitate investment in research and development, digital infrastructure, farmer training, technology access, rural connectivity, data governance, and sustainable agricultural practices. Institutional mechanisms are particularly important for overcoming barriers faced by smallholder farmers, including high technology costs, limited digital literacy, and inadequate infrastructure. The chapter emphasizes collaboration among governments, research institutions, universities, private enterprises, and farming communities to promote inclusive technology adoption, strengthen resilience, and achieve sustainable food security.

India is a leading producer and exporter of onion, but its productivity, market stability and post-harvest efficiency remain constrained. Farmers face fragmented holdings, climate uncertainty, price fluctuations, inadequate storage, technological gaps and significant post-harvest losses. This chapter reviews government programmes and policies related to financial support, irrigation, infrastructure, crop insurance, market access, farmer organizations, storage, processing and agricultural research. It also discusses export-quality requirements, grading, packaging and pesticide-residue standards. Research priorities include stress-resistant varieties and hybrids, drip irrigation, fertigation, growth regulation, sprout control and non-thermal storage treatments. Coordinated policies and technological dissemination can improve farmer income, productivity, quality and market resilience.

Underutilized crops can be found in many different agricultural ecosystems, but they are mainly grown by small landholders in the marginal areas especially in hill agriculture. Some crops remain underutilized because they are in some way not competitive with other species in the same agricultural environment. They are usually characterized by having local importance in consumption and production systems, requiring relatively low inputs, adapting to specific agro-ecological niches, receiving scarce attention by national agricultural and biodiversity conservation efforts, mainly consisting of local types or landraces, and being cultivated with indigenous knowledge. Many underutilized species are adapted to low-input agriculture and depended on by a large number of people in marginal areas in hill agriculture of developing countries.

This chapter attempts to provide a detail picture of one such underutilized crop i.e. Grain Amaranth. In an effort to explain the decrease in grain amaranth cultivation, fanciful myths have arisen. The mystery is especially intriguing when one considers that maize, with which amaranth co-evolved, was selected and developed into a major world crop. The small seed size of amaranth may have been a partial cause for the reduction in amaranth cultivation. A small seeded crop, such as amaranth, requires greater attention to detail in the early parts of the growing season than does a larger seeded crop, such as maize.

This chapter discussed all the factors related to its cultivation, the constraints in the production and importance of grain amaranth in the economy of hill agriculture etc.

Abstract
Grain legumes, also known as pulses, are vital to sustainable agriculture due to their roles in enhancing soil fertility, providing essential nutrition, and supporting environmental sustainability. By establishing symbiotic relationships with nitrogen fixing bacteria, legumes naturally enrich soil with nitrogen, reducing reliance on synthetic fertilizers and fostering sustainable farming practices. Their inclusion in crop rotations not only boosts soil health but also supports food security, especially in developing countries where they are a key source of plant based protein and nutrients. The impact of climate change, including rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and increased frequency of extreme weather events, presents significant challenges to agriculture. In this context, grain legumes demonstrate considerable climate resilience. Their drought tolerance, heat resistance, and ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen make them well-suited to withstand climate stress. Legumes exhibit mechanisms such as deep root systems, efficient water use, and adaptability to diverse environmental conditions, contributing to their robustness in the face of climate variability. To bolster the role of grain legumes in climate-resilient agriculture, climate-smart practices and technological advancements are essential. These include optimizing planting strategies, adopting water-efficient methods, and breeding for improved resilience traits. Addressing challenges such as climate variability, pest pressures, and resource limitations is crucial for maintaining the benefits of legumes. Future efforts should focus on developing robust management
practices and improved varieties to ensure the continued contribution of grain legumes to food security and environmental sustainability.
Keywords: Climate Resilience, Drought Tolerance, Grain Legumes, Heat Resistance, Sustainable Agriculture, Water Use Efficiency

Abstract
Grain legumes, a group of crops which belong to Fabaceae family, are primarily grown for their edible seeds. Pulses contain a high amount of protein (20-25%), vitamins, and minerals. Consumption of pulses can be beneficial for cardiovascular health, weight management, for diabetics, cancer management, bone health etc. So, grain legumes can play a significant role to address future global food security, environmental sustainability, and nutritional needs. The nutritional value of grain legumes can be significantly enhanced through biofortification, agronomic intervention, processing, and value addition. So, diversification of food habit with pulses and cereals can solve the prolong problem of malnutrition in developing countries including India. Despite such great importance, global food legume production has
been found to increase at a very slow pace. Keywords: Biofortification, Environmental sustainability, Food security, Grain legumes, Nutritional security
Introduction
Grain legumes or pulses are a group of crops which belong to family Fabaceae, are primarily grown for their edible seeds. The common examples of grain legumes include: bean (Phaseolus spp.), lentil (Lens culinaris), chickpea (Cicer arietinum), pea (Pisum sativum), soybean (Glycine max), lupin (Lupinus spp.), broad bean (Vicia faba), igeon pea (Cajanus cajan), grass pea (Lathyrus sativus), black gram (Vigna mungo), green gram (Vigna radiata). Grain legumes can play a significant role to address future global food security, environmental sustainability, and nutritional needs. Pulses are the second most important food crop after cereals and an important source of proteins, vitamins, and minerals. Pulses are popularly known as “Poor man’s meat” and “Rich man’s vegetable”. Pulses contain a high amount of protein (20-25%), which is almost double and triple of the protein content of wheat and rice, respectively and so can contribute significantly to the nutritional security of the country. Besides, they may serve the purpose of protein rich fodder and good quality green manure crop. Pulses can thrive well in low and marginal land with less external inputs. They act as erosion resisting crops because of its deep tap root
system, leafy growth, and close spacing. Pulses can also be grown as paira crop or inter-crop in different growing situations. Being a leguminous crop, it can fix atmospheric nitrogen with the help of its root nodules, resulting in low requirement of external fertilizer. Keeping the importance of pulses in mind, United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) also declared 2016 as the ‘International Year of Pulses’.

Cereals and pulses are the staple food in India, thus it has to be stored by producers in their homes and by traders and government agencies. Variations in the season i.e., warm and high humidity weather is highly conducive to proper development and rapid multiplication of storage insect pests. Almost all insect pests of stored grains have a remarkably high rate of multiplication and within one season, they may destroy 9-10% of the grains and contaminate the rest with undesirable odors and flavors. The type of insects infesting grains vary and include weevils, moths and beetles. Apart from this it is necessary to control or kill egg, larval, pupal and adult stages of the insect. After proper cleaning and drying the produce is stored where damage can be caused due to cross-infestation or infestation already left in the produce. Grains are stored in different types of receptacles and to protect it, different protectants are being used since from the early days. The success in the use of these protectants (organic, inorganic or inert) depends upon the effect on the grain, killing of the insects, practicability, period of storage and lastly the physical and chemical state of treated seeds.

1. Inert dusts

Inert dusts are fine powders chemically inactive but cause considerable insecticidal activity by mechanical abrassing and physical absorption of moisture proofing layers of insect integument. The use of inert dust was initiated sometimes during World War II. Some common inert dusts are ashes, clays, gypsum, lime, magnesite, Nakki, silica, talk, phosphates, diatomaceous earth. It was reported that though most of the dust proved effective and convenient to use but it is difficult to remove it and clean as it goes inside the infested and damaged grains. The dust can only kill larvae and adults moving in between the grains. Once any stage of insects entered inside the grain, it is beyond the reach of the dust.

Solution:

Steps used for plotting the bar graph are as:

Step 1: Open Excel sheet and feed the above data as given in figure. 9.1.

Step 2: Select data and go to insert menu and select column chart. (figure 9.2)

Step 3: Select 2-D column, option first from dialog Box (figure 9.3).

Step 4: The desired output will be as shown (figure 9.4).

Remark The data labels, axis name, title of the graph etc. can be inserted through selecting option formatting chart area and add data labels by right clicking on the graph output (figure 9.5).

Green business, is enterprise that has no negative impact on the global or local environment, community, society, or economy—a business that strives to meet the triple bottom line. Often, sustainable businesses have progressive environmental and human rights policies. In general, business is described as green if it matches the following four criteria:

1. It incorporates principles of sustainability into each of its business decisions.

2. It supplies environmentally friendly products or services that replace demand for non-green products and/or services.

3. It is greener than traditional competition.

4. It has made an enduring commitment to environmental principles in its business operations.

A sustainable business is any organization that participates in environmentally friendly or green activities to ensure that all processes, products, and manufacturing activities adequately address current environmental concerns while maintaining a profit. In other words, it is a business that “meets the needs of the present world without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs.” It is the process of assessing how to design products that will take advantage of the current environmental situation and how well a company’s products perform with renewable resources.

Green energy can be classified as any form of energy resource that results in zero greenhouse gas emissions and zero toxic byproducts. These constitute the alternate source of energy such as Solar, Bio, Hydrogen, Wind, Water etc. Renewable Energy is energy that is not depleted or expen- ded. Previously the pressure to reduce CO2 emissions dictated the energy sourcing. With recent findings from experimental evidence, global warming may not be attributable to CO₂ emissions in relation to other over-weighing causes. However the pressures to develop renewable sources continue since the cost of Oil is increasing in many countries. It is desirable and a necessity to develop renewable non-toxic energy resources. The global economy and welfare of all earth depends on it even if CO₂ is not the cause of global warming (GW). There are some factors not in the control of even the most technologically advanced society. These are solar activity such as sun spots which have huge and tremendous influence on the Earth’s climate. However we should strive not to cause any undue imbalances in the proportion matter and composition of Earth’s atmosphere. Although CO2 is a small contributor to GW in comparison to H₂O, we still have responsibility to maintain the right balance of the gases in the atmosphere by not causing undue changes to the Carbon, Nitrogen and Oxygen cycles! We are far way off from a Oil-free technology. Most transportation is still petrol driven.

Introduction 
To fight climate change and lessen dependency on fossil fuels, the world urgently needs renewable and environmentally friendly energy sources. Hydrogen has become a promising energy carrier due to its versatility and capacity to generate energy from renewable resources without releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The world's demand for energy has been steadily increasing as a result of urbanization, economic expansion, and population rise. With an estimated 10 billion people on the earth by 2050, energy consumption is only expected to increase. Fossil fuels, which include oil, coal and gas have been widely used to generate energy and are predicted to do so at least until 2050 (see Fig.6.1) [1]. Figure 1. Global primary energy consumption is broken down by energy source [2, 3]. These fuels generate a large amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) during combustion, especially carbon dioxide (CO2), which is connected to climate change and global warming. In addition, burning fossil fuels releases particulate matter (PM), sulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and other pollutants that are harmful for human health. In addition, the unequal distribution of fossil fuel supply has led to increased instability globally and worries about energy security. Numerous nations started making investments in energy from renewable sources as concerns about the environment and energy security have grown. Because they emit little to no greenhouse emissions, renewable energy resources like hydroelectricity, wind, and solar power contribute to lowering the energy industry's overall environmental impact (see Fig.6.2) [4].

Introduction

In an era increasingly defined by environmental consciousness and the imperative for sustainable practices, the sports industry emerges as a pivotal arena where innovation in green intellectual property (IP) holds transformative potential. At the forefront of this movement are patents, which not only safeguard inventive ideas but also serve as catalysts for integrating eco-friendly technologies into sports equipment. This chapter explores the profound impact of green patents within the sports sector across four key dimensions, illuminating their role in driving sustainability initiatives and reshaping industry dynamics.

The integration of sustainable technologies in sports equipment represents a paradigm shift towards greener practices. From advanced materials in athletic apparel that reduce environmental impact to the design of energy-efficient stadiums, innovations in sports equipment are diversifying to align with global sustainability goals. Cutting-edge developments include biodegradable materials, solar-powered facilities, and water-saving technologies, each contributing to minimizing ecological footprints across the sports industry. By examining these advancements, we uncover how green patents not only spur technological advancement but also foster a culture of environmental stewardship among sports manufacturers and stakeholders.

Introduction

Green Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is a relatively new and evolving concept that emerged in response to the growing global environmental challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource depletion. It is an intersection between traditional intellectual property rights and environmental concerns, aiming to promote and protect innovation and technologies that have a positive impact on the environment and contribute to sustainable development.

The concept of Green IPR gained momentum as the world recognized the need for sustainable practices and solutions to address the adverse effects of industrialization and economic growth on the environment. Intellectual property rights, such as patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets, have long been used to incentivize and protect innovations in various fields. However, the conventional application of IPR did not explicitly consider environmental considerations.

With the rise of environmental consciousness and the acknowledgement of the limited nature of natural resources, there was a call for integrating environmental sustainability into the intellectual property framework. The idea behind Green IPR is to encourage the development and dissemination of eco-friendly technologies, products, and processes while safeguarding the rights of innovators and creators.

Introduction

As a new decade begins, the effects of climate change are being felt all around the world. Storms, floods, droughts, and wildfires are examples of events that may already be linked to climate change and that are expected to occur more frequently and intensely as well as the destruction they inflict virtually every day. The state of the world’s climate is a serious issue that requires attention. In order to create a future that is more environmentally friendly, addressing this issue is urgently required, and everyone must take this into consideration as their shared goal. Since technology is increasingly being seen as a part of the outcome.

To this end, the strengthening of national innovation systems and ensuring that people have access to effective IPPI management programmes need to be stepped up with a view to improving research and development in technologies, products and services which are needed for transformation into a more environmentally sustainable future. This crisis can’t be solved, unless there is a breakthrough technology that will make the goals achievable. This is why innovation in the field of “green” technologies will be needed and intellectual property rights will play an important role. Intellectual property rights may ensure that technological progress can be sold to allow for the continuation of research and development investment but they could also cause problems and constraints. The impact and opportunities that “Green IP” can have are therefore considerable. Regardless of their distinctions, “Green IP” will have an impact on companies from different industries, sectors, and locations. The consumer goods sector needs to improve how they go about changing the specifications for designing products that can be easily recycled and repaired.

Green manure is defined as fresh organic matter/undecomposed plant material/ real organic matter, natural plant food added to the soil for the purpose of supplying plant nutrients.

CLASSIFICATION OF GREEN MANURES

Nonlegumes: Rape seed, buck wheat, niger, rye, oats and maize

Legumes:

Grain legumes: cowpea, mungbean, pigeon pea, soybean, khesari (Lathyrus sativus)

Dual purpose legumes: cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba). pillipesara, Sesbania speciosa.

Non grain legumes: sunnhemp, dhaincha, pillipesera (Phaseolus trilobus), stylosanthes and desmodium.

Introduction 
Nanotechnology has become a highly influential field in science, showcasing diverse applications and promising trends over the past few years. Nanoscience has been a source of inspiration for material science researchers, encouraging the exploration of innovative methods to synthesise novel structures with significant properties and applications(Kolahalam et al. 2019). Nanoparticles are the core of nanotechnology, with “nano” denoting sizes smaller than a billionth of a hair, specifically below 100 nm (Volath et al. 2008).The focus on small-sized nanoparticles (1–100 nm) has become a global research priority attributable to their remarkable applications in physical, chemical, and biological sciences (Jeevanandam et al., 2018). The term “nanotechnology” was coined by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman in his renowned 1959 lecture titled “There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom.”(Boverhof et al., 2015).Feynman proposed the advanceof smaller devices down to the molecular scale, asserting that it was not the laws of nature but rather the lack of appropriate equipment and approaches that limited progress in working at atomic and molecular scales(Clunan et al., 2014). In recent times, nanotechnology has transitioned into a mainstream and crucial innovation. When materials are manipulated at the nanoscale, their properties undergo significant transformations, leading to remarkable applications in physics, space science, chemistry, medicine, energy renewal, healthcare, environmental science, mechanics, electronics, civil engineering, optics, and more [Figure. 1](Mourdikoudis et al., 2018; Joshi et al., 2008; Suresh Kumar et al., 2019); AarthyePandian et al., 2019).

Biological synthesis of Zinc Oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles

Aim

To synthesize nano ZnO particles using fungal isolates.

Introduction

The ZnO nanoparticle are effective anti-bacterial and antiodur agent. Biological synthesis of ZnO nanoparticle is a new approach for environmentally benign protocol in context to green nanotechnology, (Raliya and Tarafdar, 2013).

Aim

To synthesize Zero valent (Fe) (nZVIs) iron using tea leaf extract.

Introduction

In this approach extracts of natural products (in most cases green tea leaves) with high antioxidant capacities are used. The compounds present in these extracts react with Fe (III) in solution to form nZVIs (Nadagouda et al., 2010).

Introduction

Soil is a non-renewable resource that sustains life, providing ecosystem services such as biomass production, contaminants filtration, raw material supply, nutrient, and hydrological cycle (Panagos et al., 2020). It contributes about 95% to global food production (Borrelli et al., 2020). Soil is a major global biodiversity pool and a large carbon pool on Earth. Therefore, it plays a crucial role in regulating energy and mass flow and their transfer between the biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere (Ferreira et al., 2021). Climate change and unsustainable management practices are threatening the soil’s natural capital resulting in soil degradation occurring simply from erosion to contamination and leading the soil to completely unproductiveness under severe conditions, leading to food insecurity (Ashoka et al., 2017; Syed et al., 2022)

Introduction

Western world started paying attention to climate change after the Industrial Revolution when collateral environmental problems began appearing with the development. But in India, many shastras gave philosophy of sustainable development before the evolution of many civilizations.

It means that “All this is for habitation by the Lord, whatsoever is individual universe of movement in the universal motion. Man should use all resources by renunciation, he should not see them with feeling of lust”. Here, renunciation means controlled use of resources. It is known as Green Application of the resources nowadays.

Whenever the term ‘green’ is used as an adjective with certain phrases, the said phrase is considered to depict a friendly character with the environment. In this sense, the Cambridge Dictionary defines the word ‘green’ as “relating to or believing in the protection of the natural environment.” For instance, Green Technology, one of those concepts towards which this paper is concerned, will refer to those technologies which are environment friendly. But this won’t help us understand what green technology actually means.

Tourism is a phenomenon, which has taken off immensely in the past three decades. It concerns us all, be it by allowing us to travel long distances as tourists, or by forcing upon us a mass of visitors to our part of the world. In the past, people did not travel half as much. Financial obstacles and responsibilities to land and animals stopped them from doing so. Only in 1845 did Thomas Cook of Leicester, England, organize the first package tour, making this experience available to people outside of the privileged classes by cutting down on expenses. By 1939, an estimated one million people were traveling abroad each year. Nowadays, the population of the Mediterranean swells to double over the summer, from 130 million resident inhabitants during the winter to 260 million in high season. There were about 698 million international tourist arrivals worldwide in 2000. All regions in the world grew, and the fastest developing region continued to be East Asia and the Pacific. Tourism has become the largest industry in the world. And just like all thriving industries, though it has a lot to give, it also takes a lot in turn. Unfortunately, the toll that we pay for it has been rising steadily. While the prospect of people traveling less in the future seems improbable, to say the least, a new idea has already sprung up: If we cannot stop tourism, let us at least travel sensibly.

Mungbean is one of the most important pulse crops. It is grown in almost all parts of the country. Mungbean is primarily a crop of rainy season; however, with the development of early maturing varieties, it has proved to be an ideal crop for spring and summer seasons. Middle of March to last week of June is the most suitable growing period where there is a plenty of life-giving sunshine. During this period high temperature and low humidity keep insects and disease infestations at their lowest. Summer season offers an excellent opportunity for raising short duration pulses.

1.1 Introduction

Greenhouse effect, regulated by the presence of greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere, is a natural process that plays a major part in shaping the earth’s climate. A continued rise in concentration of the greenhouse gases has led to enhanced greenhouse effect resulting in global warming and global climate change. The impact of human activities on greenhouse gases (GHGs) emission through fossil fuel burning, agriculture and industrial processes is important and familiar to people. This chapter addresses basic principles and physics of greenhouse effect and the role of Indian agriculture in GHG emissions. Agriculture is a potential source and sink to GHGs in atmosphere. It is a source for three primary GHGs: CO₂, N₂O and CH4 and sink for atmospheric CO₂ . Management of agricultural land, land use change and forestry has a profound influence on atmospheric GHGs concentration. The two broad anthropogenic sources of GHGs emission from agriculture are the energy use in agriculture (manufacture and use of agricultural inputs and farm machinery) and the management of agricultural land. Large sections of the India’s population depend on biomass resources like wood, crop residues and cattle dung for energy. In the agriculture sector, besides the CO₂ emissions due to burning of crop and animal waste, India’s large ruminant population and rice fields are significant contributors to CH₄ emissions. An understanding of GHG emissions by sources and removal by sinks in agriculture is important to take appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies and to estimate and create inventory of GHGs.

Introduction

Precise and continuous measurement the greenhouse gases (GHGs) fluxes/ emissions in agricultural systems are required for accounting and budgeting of carbon. Further, the long-term measurements of GHGs fluxes are equally important as precise measurement. Therefore, high frequency and long-term measurement of GHGs across the cropping systems are essential for chalking out the GHGs emissions mitigation strategies. Various technologies with definite working principles are used for estimation of GHGs emissions in agriculture.

Greenhouse Gases Estimation Techniques

Two basic principles are followed to estimate greenhouse gases in agriculture. One is the collection of GHGs from the field and subsequent analysis of the concentration of gases through gas chromatography (GC). Another principle is based on sensors measurement with the help of infrared gas analyze (IRGA). The two techniques used for the measurement are (i) ‘closed chamber method’ (manual/automatic), and (ii) ‘sensor-based method’. Generally, the GHGs fluxes in agricultural crop field are estimated by ‘closed chamber method’ for methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O). And for carbon dioxide (CO₂) measurement either soil respiratory chamber or canopy chamber is used that measures CO₂ with the help of infrared gas analyzer (IRGA).

1.1 Introduction

Increased emission of greenhouse gases results in climate change which becomes one of the most prominent environmental issues to the world today. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the major greenhouse gas whereas nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) are other substantial contributors to climate change (IPCC, 2014, Tongwane et al., 2016). However, these gases are emitted in minimal quantities in comparison to carbon dioxide but impart more global warming effect by absorbing more infrared radiations (Oertel et al., 2016). The warming potential of one kg of CH4 is 23 times more than one kg of CO2 while  in the case of N2O, it was nearly 300 times more than CO2 (Ramaswamy et al., 2001, Bharti et al., 2019; Biswas et al., 2010). Around one-third of methane and two –thirds of nitrous oxide come from soil (Prather et al., 1995, Tubiello et al., 2015, Smith, 2016).

3.1 Chemistry of greenhouse gases (ghgs)

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are atmospheric-gases that have capabilities to absorb and radiate-back the infrared (IR) radiation in the earth-atmosphere system (Figure 3.1). In this process the atmospheric-gases absorb and radiate- back IR radiation in lower atmosphere effectively emitting and absorbing heat energy heat energy. They maintain the heat budget of earth-atmosphere and keep our plant warm. If we typically see the chemistry of those gases, the key point is that they should have dipole moments. This is the property which makes them capable to absorb and radiate-back the range of IR radiation. In a molecule when valence-electrons are not equally shared in a bond between the two atoms, a slight positive charge is developed above one atom and a negative charge on the other atom. That charge difference of the different atoms in a molecule generates the dipole moment. For instance, in water vapour (H₂O- vapour), an unequal sharing of electrons and or separation of charge causes dipole moment. In H₂O, the centre has a positive charge at the hydrogen atoms and negative charges are located on the oxygen atom. The magnitude of dipole- charges, vibration and stretching of O-H bond generates certain frequency of the oscillating dipole moment that actually regulates the absorption capacity of IR radiation by H₂O vapour.

Naturally Greenhouse gases are cover as blanket on the Earth and kept it about 33⁰C warmer than it would be without these gases in the atmosphere. This is called as the “Greenhouse Effect”.

Over the past century, the Earth has increased in temperature by about 0.5⁰C and many scientists believe that this is because of an increase in concentration of the main greenhouse gases viz., carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and fluorocarbons. People are now calling this climate change over the past century the beginning of “Global Warming”.

Fast increasing population, changing climate, shrinking land and water resources are the major challenges before us to meet the food and nutritional security of the population at global level. Improvement in the production and productivity of crops are the immediate need to boost the availability of food and improvement economic conditions of the farmers. Greenhouse technology has shown tremendous potential in improvement in production and productivity of crops even under uncongenial soil and climatic conditions. The farmers having very small farm holdings in countries like Japan, Holland and South Korea have improved their income and living standards by adopting protected cultivation technologies. However, India is yet to trap the potentials of the technology. Modern green houses require uninterrupted huge electric power for control of environment (heating/cooling/air circulation etc), which is considered one of the major cause for global warming. High installation and running (energy) cost, high cost of production; poor government support and lack of farmers’ friendly/cost effective greenhouse technology are some other challenges. Low cost zero energy based solar greenhouse technology popularizes the green houses in small and marginal farmers of remote areas. Such greenhouses are specifically design using local resources and also to trap the natural solar radiation/ heat and maintain it for longer period. The designs do not require electric power which ultimately reduces the installation/running cost and also does not have the adverse effects on the environment. This will not only improve the economic status of the farmers but also provide nutritive food to their families and also enhance production and productivity of various crops in the country without deteriorating the environment.

Introduction

The recognition of environment as the desired precondition for human existence and development both by Millennium Development Goals (MDG) as well as Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDG) unquestionably shows its importance and necessity. The impact of climate change is fast getting into our understanding and are realizing the enormity of the situation. Consequently, global environmental issues are a growing concern among the people and communities of various regions today. The impending ecological disasters have forced the right-thinking people and organizations to seek an alternative in the form of managing natural resources without jeopardizing the developmental activities. The challenge is to enhance the standard of living compatible with ecology and environment. This underlines rather unquestionably the need to pursue a line of lifestyle and development design that is compatible with nature and the issue of the environment cannot left to languish at the bottom of priorities.

Landscaping is both science and art and is an aspect of the environmental impact of a hotel that needs to be addressed. Understanding and blending the elements of both nature and construction is effective landscaping. Whether Landscaping is extensive or small consumes a large amount of water, fertilizers and herbicides and generates solid waste.

Ecogreen’s Greenscaping Operation provides cost-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for landscaping. Greenscaping operation deals with two aspects:

1. Solid Waste Management, and

2. Water Conservation

This chapter deals with the findings of the study along with the discussion based on the analysis. This study tried to represent its findings as per the objectives of the study. At the end of this chapter, interrelation has been made, an explanation has been tried to put out down and an attempt has been done to reveal the cause behind it. The results and their pertaining discussion are presented according to the specific objectives of the study.

Ground truth links image data with actual physical features and materials on the Earth’s surface. Gathering this type of data is crucial for calibrating remotesensing systems and enhancing the interpretation of the collected imagery. In artificial intelligence (AI), ground truth refers to data that has been confirmed as accurate and is used to train, validate, and test models. In data science, ground truth serves as the benchmark for accuracy, allowing data scientists to measure how well a model performs by comparing its output to verified real-world data. This ensures that machine learning (ML) models generate reliable, reality-based results. Ground truth is particularly vital in supervised learning, where algorithms rely on labeled data to learn how to classify inputs or make predictions. Proper data labeling or annotation is essential—without it, the data cannot be trusted as a standard for representing the real world.
UNDERSTANDING THE GROUND TRUTH
Ground truthing is the process of gathering on-site digital data about the condition of crops and the overall state of a field. This information is recorded at specific locations and complements the remote sensing data obtained through drones. Collecting ground truth data in the field is crucial for calibrating remote sensing outputs and supports the interpretation and analysis of the imagery. Obtaining reflectance spectra directly from the surface materials in their natural setting—commonly referred to as ground truth data—is vital for identifying unknown materials in multispectral and hyperspectral imagery, and for assessing the accuracy of the sensors. Since removing samples for lab testing can alter or destroy their surface characteristics, and because lab analysis isn’t feasible for large or remote areas, researchers rely on portable field instruments. These tools must deliver lab-quality measurements in the field, with lighting and viewing conditions that closely match those of satellite or aerial sensors.

3.1. Ground water development

3.1.1. Rain water harvesting

Collecting and using precipitation water from a catchments surface.

Extensive rain water harvesting apparatus existed 4000 years ago in the Palestine and Greece.

In ancient Rome, residences were built with individual cisterns and paved courtyards to capture rain water to augment water from city’s aqueducts.

As early as the third millennium BC, farming communities in Baluchistan and Kutch impounded rain water and used it for irrigation dams.

17.1. Introduction

Grounded Theory (GT) is a systematic methodology in the social sciences that involves the construction of theories through methodical gathering and analysis of data. Developed by Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss in 1967, GT is widely used in qualitative research to generate theories that are grounded in empirical data. Unlike traditional research methods that test hypotheses, GT allows theories are to emerge from the data itself, making it a valuable tool for exploring complex social phenomena.

This chapter provides an in-depth exploration of Grounded Theory, including its origins, key principles, methodologies, applications, and criticisms. By the end of this article, readers will have a thorough understanding of GT and its significance in qualitative research.

Oilseed crops are crops which are rich in fatty acid, cultivated for the production of vegetable oil. They are used either for edible or industrial or medicinal purposes. The important oilseeds are groundnut or peanut, sesame or gingelly, sunflower, rapeseed and mustard, soybean, castor, linseed or flax, niger and safflower.

ABSTRACT

The over extraction of water from the coastal environment, results in reduction of groundwater resources which has reflected in lowering of water level. In general, the depletion of water level enhances the landward migration of saltwater wedge. Pondicherry is one such region with recent alluvium as the major litho unit. A study has been attempted to calculate the extraction of water and to estimate the amount of recharge into this alluvial aquifer. The monthly water level fluctuation was observed for the study period in eighteen locations (20002002). The highest water level observed during 2000 was taken as the initial water level for the study and the subsequent decline in water level up to 2001 was monitored monthly until the rising trend was noted. This was taken as the fall in water level due to extraction. Keeping this as the initial value increasing trend was studied until there was a notice of decline in water level. This was taken as the rise in water level due to recharge. The spatial representation of these data in the above said eighteen locations were carried out by using GIS and the area occupied by different water level contours were calculated and the amount of water withdrawn was estimated. The maximum recharge was noted in the central and the northern part of the study area when compared to the other regions. Similarly, the maximum discharge was noted in the northern and the southern part of the study area.

Keywords: Rainfall, Recharge, Groundwater Budget, GIS.

Introduction

Large scale exploitation of groundwater using modern deep well boring technology and powerful pumps is the order of the day in India and elsewhere. Increase in agriculture area and year around cultivation of water intensive crops, frequently failing monsoons (Fig.5.1) all have led to drying up of surface water and increased dependence on groundwater.

Thus, given the scenario of over exploitation of the available groundwater, it is essential that proper storage and management of available groundwater resources be identified.

Introduction

The science of hydrogeology is defined as hydrology with emphasis on geology. This chapter is to refresh your geology knowledge. The key words are highlighted to assist a quick review.

The Crust and its Composition

The thin outermost layer of the earth is called the crust and ranges in thickness from about 8 km under the oceans to about 25 km on land. It extends under both oceans and continents, and forms the source for all the soils, vegetation, and gases in the atmosphere.

The crust is primarily composed of two elements: silicon and oxygen which account for 75% of the earth’s crust. Note that these are the two elements found in quartz (e.g., sand), which suggests this is the most common of all minerals.

Introduction

Groundwater investigation has a long history. In the past a waterman in the village would walk around the investigation area with a Y shaped wooden fork and identify the location for digging the wells. Certain trees and organic landforms like termite mounds were considered as indicators. The native intelligence of local topography should have played a role in identifying potential location. Successful or otherwise the method can be said to lack scientific objectivity. The optimal groundwater surveying method is no doubt drilling. This method ensures that all necessary information is being brought up from the geological formations. However, in order to obtain a desired degree of information from the subsurface of an area, drilling alone is normally not a feasible alternative.

There are a number of efficient and inexpensive geophysical surveying methods available to the hydrogeologist. It is worth noting at this point that these are, without exception, indirect methods. This implies that no method measures directly what we are actually looking for. With geophysical surveys, the target features are therefore invariably associated features. This implies that unless we understand the water context of these features, our geophysical surveys will be less than meaningful.

Objective methods of investigating groundwater are discussed in this chapter.

Groundwater is a precious renewable resource which gets replenishment from the precipitation. Total water resources of the world are estimated at 1.37 x 10⁸ million ha-m. Of these, about 97.2% is salt water, mainly in oceans, and only 2.8% is available as fresh water. And, out of this 2.8%, about 2.2% is available as surface water (2.1% is fresh water in glaciers and icecaps, 0.1% is available in lakes and reservoirs, 0.0001% in streams) and 0.6% is available as groundwater. Only 50% of groundwater resource is economically extracted with available technology. Presently, 1.3 x 10⁴ million ha-m fresh water in reservoirs and 41.1x10⁴ million ha-m groundwater is theoretically available to provide usable water for drinking, domestic use, irrigation, etc., to mankind. Groundwater is the largest source of fresh water excluding the polar icecaps and glaciers. The amount of groundwater within 800 m from the ground surface is over 30 times the amount in all fresh water lakes and reservoirs, and about 3000 times the amount in stream channels, at any one time.

Introduction

Fresh water, a renewable but not an infinite resource, is becoming increasingly scarce. The amount available for use to the world today is almost the same as it was 4500 years ago but global demand has been increasing exponentially. Since 1950, the renewable supply per person has fallen 58 percent as world population has swelled from 2.5 billion to 6 billion. Moreover, unlike oil and most other strategic resources, fresh water has no substitute in most of its uses. It is essential for growing food, manufacturing goods, and safeguarding human health.

According to a World Policy Forum report, the largest and most combustible imbalance between population and available water supplies will be in Asia, where crop production depends heavily on irrigation. Asia today has roughly 60 percent of the world’s people but only 36 percent of the world’s renewable fresh water. China, India, Iran, and Pakistan are among the countries where a significant share of the irrigated land is now jeopardized by groundwater depletion, scarce river water, a fertility-sapping buildup of salts in the soil, or some combination of these factors. Groundwater depletion alone places 10 to 20 percent of grain production in both China and India at risk.

Introduction

All models are but approximations of reality. When we approximate there is always room for uncertainty. The preference of a particular model over the other is the relative degree of uncertainty acceptable to the objective and budget of the study. With the advent of computers, hosts of modeling software promising a lot to the researcher have arrived on the horizon. It is not in the scope of the book to enumerate all the techniques of hydrogeological modeling. Physical modeling using sand tanks was the earliest attempted modeling technique, about 107 years ago. Most recent and significant modeling technique practiced by many in groundwater potential identification is Geographic Information System (GIS) based modeling. After a brief treatment of physical models, concepts of mathematical models and GIS modeling are elaborated. The modeling techniques have involved mathematics and or software specific instructions. Hence it is recommended that relevant text books for individual techniques be referred. This chapter deals more on modeling concepts.

Key words : Groundwater Modelling, GIS, PMWIN, ArcInfo Interface Con2grid, Interface Programme, ArcMacro Language.

Introduction

Groundwater is an important source of irrigation in India and has played a major role in increasing the food production. About 50 per cent of total irrigated area in the country is dependent on groundwater (Central Water Commission (CWC), 2000). Productivity of groundwater is normally more than the surface water due to the fact that it is available at the point of use, requires minimum conveyance infrastructure, is available on demand and maximizes the application efficiency. However, in past few years, excessive and unplanned groundwater pumping in certain parts of the country has resulted in depletion of groundwater resources. Water table in these region is going down day by day and making it beyond the reach of poor farmers. Therefore, keeping the water table in the desirable range is a major concern. This can be achieved by adopting proper pumping rate and pumping schedule. Groundwater modelling has successfully been used for deciding the pumping rate and pumping schedule. Groundwater modelling refers to simulation of groundwater behaviour under varying pumping and recharge conditions. A groundwater model is simply a set of equations, which describe the physical processes active in the aquifer subjected to certain assumptions. While the model itself obviously lacks the detailed reality of the groundwater systems, the behaviour of the validated model approximates that of the aquifer.

Introduction

Water is one of the most complex natural resources demanding a comprehensive understanding of its inherent features in occurrence and distribution for an integrated planning aimed at optimum development for agriculture, health, industry, power, etc. The well being and development of our society is dependent on the availability of water. An increase in groundwater development and utilization for industries and urban water supply has created improper disposal of liquid waste. Defective well constructions, sewage and waste disposal in man made lakes within city, open quarries with water and failure to seal the abandoned wells in city area have provided possible openings for downward movement of polluted water into subsurface formations without undergoing the process of natural filtration.

Abstract

Water is an essential and vital component for our life support system. Drought and floods are the extreme events of rainfall and the vagaries of monsoon and hydrogeological framework in the country are highly variable from place to place. The water resources available in the country are also not uniformly distributed. The changing Landuse pattern and population growth and the resultant water resources development has lead to water stress at many places. In such areas, the extraction of excessive quantities of groundwater has resulted in the drying up of wells, damages of ecosystems, land subsidence, salt-water intrusion and other related problems. Agricultural, urban & industrial wastes are increasingly threatening the groundwater quality, which is likely to become a more serious issue in the coming years. Considering the seriousness of the groundwater contamination, Central Ground Water Board has carried out detailed studies in few hot spots in the state of Tamil Nadu. The issues related to the water resources contamination and the findings of the studies in parts of Tamil Nadu are summarized in this paper.

Technical Term       Definition

Groundwater         Water present in the zone of saturation (below water table) is called groundwater