CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION IN INDIGENOUS VEGETABLE FARMING: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACTS AND RESILIENCE STRATEGIES IN INDIA

Abstract

The cultivation of vegetables by indigenous peoples is an essential component of India's agricultural landscape, as it helps to provide food security, preserve agricultural biodiversity, and support rural lives. However, climate change has had a huge influence on this industry, bringing about issues like as irregular rainfall, lengthy droughts, and variable temperatures. These challenges have had a negative impact on crop yields, farmer incomes, and food security. The purpose of this article is to examine the socio-economic effects that climate change has had on indigenous vegetable cultivation and to assess the efficiency of the adaption measures that smallholder farmers have used. The study underscores the significance that traditional ecological knowledge plays in managing climate-related difficulties. This knowledge includes techniques such as agricultural diversification, drought-tolerant cultivars, and water conservation. It delves deeper into the potential synergy that might exist between ancient farming practices and contemporary agricultural technology, highlighting the ways in which the combination of these two approaches can result in farming systems that are both climate-resilient and sustainable. The paper also assesses the role of policy and institutional support in promoting resilience among indigenous vegetable farmers. Inadequate funding channels, gender disparities, and restricted access to extension services are among of the primary challenges that have been cited as important hurdles to effective adaptation. Enhancing targeted policy interventions, strengthening agricultural extension services, and ensuring the involvement of women in climate adaptation activities are some of the recommendations that are presented here. It is possible for stakeholders to develop sustainability and resilience in indigenous vegetable farming by addressing these gaps, which will ensure the agricultural industry's continued viability in the face of mounting risks posed by climate change.

Keywords: Climate change adaptation, indigenous vegetable farming, socio-economic impacts, traditional knowledge, agricultural resilience.