National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA)
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has launched the National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture to enhance the resilience of Indian agriculture covering crops, livestock and fisheries to climate variability and climate change through development and application of improved production and risk management technologies and to demonstrate site specific and integrated technology packages on farmers’ fields in one village of each district. The technology demonstration component is initiated through 100 Krishi Vigyan Kendras in the country, coordinated by CRIDA and Zonal Project Directorates. In Kerala, Allappuzha is the only district covered in the project where Muttar village of Veliyand block in Kuttanad region was selected for implementation (Fig.2). The village is prone to high vulnerability to climate changes with below mean sea level geographical setting, and frequent monsoon floods (June to September). Salinity and acidity problems are also faced by the farmers. Agriculture, livestock, poultry and duck rearing forms the major vocations practised. Rice is the main crop followed by coconut, banana and vegetables. Due to flood and unseasonal rains, only one crop of paddy is possible in the village.
Technology Demonstrations
KVK – Alappuzha implements the technology demonstration component of NICRA focusing on integrated farming system as a climate adaptation and mitigation strategy. An integrated farming system model incorporating the prevalent and potential production systems of the region viz., paddy, coconut, banana, vegetables, dairy, poultry, duck rearing, fisheries and mushroom was conceptualised with appropriate interventions (Fig.3). The component activities were Fig. 2 Location of the project area envisaged as technology demonstrations and formulated under four modules viz., natural resource management, crop production, livestock and fisheries, and institutional interventions. A systematic and programmatic approach was followed for introducing and implementing the technology demonstrations. Awareness creation followed by capacity building activities was taken up and in certain cases the demonstration partners were given the freedom of taking up trials before actually taking up the demonstrations.
