An interdisciplinary framework for using archaeology, history and collective action to enhance India’s agricultural resilience and sustainability

Dados Bibliográficos

ID15545487
AutoresA S Green (0000-0002-3324-5165, autor correspondente), Shikha Dixit (0000-0001-5618-5268), Kaushal K Garg (0000-0002-0570-9129, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics), NR Sandya (0000-0003-0759-7789, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics), Gurpreet Singh (0000-0002-2412-0520, INCLEN Trust International), Kamal Vatta (0000-0002-9306-0250, INCLEN Trust International), Anthony Whitbread (0000-0003-4840-7670, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics), M K Jones (0000-0003-0930-8012, University of Cambridge), Ravindra Singh (0000-0002-1102-4839, Banaras Hindu University), C A Petrie (0000-0002-2926-7230, University of Cambridge)
Ano2020
Volume15
Fascículo10
Páginas105021-105021
Data de publicação2020-07-20
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoEnvironmental Research Letters (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1748-9326 • E-ISSN: 1748-9326
EditoraIOP Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1088/1748-9326/aba780
OpenAlexW3043969865
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas6
Referências citadas45

South Asia has a deep history of agriculture that includes a range of past farming systems in different climatic zones. Many of these farming systems were resilient to changes in climate and sustainable over long periods of time. India’s present agricultural systems are facing serious challenges, as they have become increasingly reliant on the unsustainable extraction of groundwater for irrigation. This paper outlines an interdisciplinary framework for drawing on patterns from the past to guide interventions in the present. It compares past and present strategies for water management and use in semi-arid and temperate Punjab with equatorial Telangana. Structural differences in water use in these two regions suggest that a range of interventions should be adopted to expand the overall availability of surface water for agricultural systems in India, in combination with empowering local communities to create their own water management rules. Active interventions focus on the efficient use of water supplies, and increasing surface water availability through renovation of collective ponds and reservoirs. We argue that this conceptual framework has significant potential for guiding agronomic and economic interventions in the future

Agriculture · Archaeology · Arid · Economics · Environmental planning · Environmental resource management · Geography · Natural resource economics · Psychological intervention · Psychological resilience · Sustainability · Water resource management · Agriculture, Water, and Health · Environmental Science · Water Governance and Infrastructure · Water management and technologies · Ecology