Nothing Special   »   [go: up one dir, main page]
Skip to main content

Advertisement

Springer Nature Link
Log in

Assessment of Agricultural Sustainability in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India: An Application of the Indicator Framework

  • Full-Length Research Article
  • Published:
Agricultural Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Although there is a consensus on the definition of agricultural sustainability, there is a dearth of empirical evidence because of methodological challenges. The analytical framework will require incorporation of economic and ecological dimensions of agricultural sustainability and policy environment to promote it or otherwise. This study is an attempt to capture these dimensions and develop a composite index of agricultural sustainability for the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India using the indicator framework. The identification of the sustainability indicators was based on the review of literature followed by their revalidation by the experts based on the criteria of relevance and objectivity. In total, 79 indicators relating to soil, water, agro-biodiversity and productivity were selected, representing the status of the sustainability, pressures on it, and policy response to address the concerns. The robustness of the sustainability index was checked by employing various normalization methods and weighting schemes. The benchmark method of normalization representing a desirable range of the indicators, was found to be superior due to its usefulness in spatio-temporal comparison of the sustainability index. The results showed a moderate level of agricultural sustainability with an index of 0.52 for Haryana and Punjab. The framework has a wider applicability to assess the sustainability across the agro-climatic regions of India.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. The original data along with their sources can be obtained from the authors on request.

References

  1. Byerlee D, Murgai R (2001) Sense and sustainability revisited: the limits of total factor productivity measures of sustainable agricultural systems. Agric Econ 26(3):227–236. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5150(00)00131-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. CGWB (2019) National compilation on dynamic ground water resources of India, 2017. Central Groundwater Development Board, Government of India, Faridabad

  3. Chand P, Sirohi S, Sirohi SK (2015) Development and application of an integrated sustainability index for small-holder dairy farms in Rajasthan, India. Ecol Indic 56:23–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2015.03.020

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Erenstein O (2011) Cropping systems and crop residue management in the Trans-Gangetic Plains: issues and challenges for conservation agriculture from village surveys. Agric Syst 104(1):54–62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2010.09.005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. FAO (1989) Sustainable development and natural resources management. In: Twenty-Fifth conference, Paper C 89/2—Sup. 2, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome

  6. GoI (2019) Policies and action plan for secure and sustainable agriculture. Committee report, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, New Delhi. https://www.psa.gov.in/psa-prod/publication/Report%20of%20Policies%20and%20Action_4-9-2019.pdf

  7. Grigorieva EA, Matzarakis A, de Freitas CR (2010) Analysis of growing degree-days as a climate impact indicator in a region with extreme annual air temperature amplitude. Clim Res 42(2):143–154. https://doi.org/10.3354/cr00888

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Harrington L, Erenstein O (2005) Conservation agriculture and resource conserving technologies: a global perspective. Agromeridian 1(1):32–43

    Google Scholar 

  9. Jat ML, Chakraborty D, Ladha JK, Rana DS, Gathala MK, McDonald A, Gerard B (2020) Conservation agriculture for sustainable intensification in South Asia. Nat Sustain 3:336–343. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-020-0500-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Kaiser HF (1960) The application of electronic computers to factor analysis. Educ Psychol Meas 20:141–151. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316446002000116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Kiran Kumara TM, Kandpal A, Pal S (2020) A meta-analysis of economic and environmental benefits of conservation agriculture in South Asia. J Environ Manag 269:110773. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110773

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Kumar S, Sharma DK, Singh DR, Biswas H, Praveen K, Sharma V (2019) Estimating loss of ecosystem services due to paddy straw burning in North-west India. Int J Agric Sustain 17(2):146–157. https://doi.org/10.1080/14735903.2019.1581474

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. López-Ridaura S, Masera O, Astier M (2002) Evaluating the sustainability of complex socio-environmental systems: the MESMIS framework. Ecol Indic 2(1–2):135–148. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-160X(02)00043-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Murgai R, Ali M, Byerlee D (2001) Productivity growth and sustainability in post-green revolution agriculture: the case of the Indian and Pakistan Punjabs. World Bank Res Obs 16(2):199–218. https://doi.org/10.1093/wbro/16.2.199

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Pal S (2017) The funding trend, institutional development and policy perspective of agricultural research in India. In: Pal S (ed) Agricultural R&D policy in India. ICAR-National Institute of Agricultural Economics and Policy Research, New Delhi

    Google Scholar 

  16. Shukla AK, Behera SK, Lenka NK, Tiwari PK, Malik RS, Sinha NK, Singh VK, Patra AK, Chaudhary SK (2016) Spatial variability of soil micronutrients in the intensively cultivated Trans-Gangetic Plains of India. Soil Tillage Res 163:282–289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2016.07.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Siebrecht N (2020) Sustainable agriculture and its implementation gap: overcoming obstacles to implementation. Sustainability 12(9):3853. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093853

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Simpson E (1949) Measurement of diversity. Nature 163:688. https://doi.org/10.1038/163688a0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Tripathi A, Mishra AK, Verma G (2016) Impact of preservation of subsoil water act on groundwater depletion: the case of Punjab, India. Environ Manag 58:48–59. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-016-0693-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Yıldız S, Karakuş CB (2019) Estimation of irrigation water quality index with development of an optimum model: a case study. Environ Dev Sustain 18:1–6. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-019-00405-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Zahm F, Viaux P, Vilain L, Girardin P, Mouchet C (2008) Assessing farm sustainability with the IDEA method–from the concept of agriculture sustainability to case studies on farms. Sustain Dev 16(4):271–281. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.380

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

Thanks are due to Indian Council of Agricultural Research for funding the study and to S K Chaudhari for his invaluable support. K Naik, Raman, B Raghav, and G Karad extended excellent research support.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. ICAR-National Institute of Agricultural Economics and Policy Research, New Delhi, India

    Suresh Pal & Prem Chand

  2. Department of Fertilizers, New Delhi, India

    Chhabilendra Roul

  3. DARE and ICAR, New Delhi, India

    Trilochan Mohapatra

Authors
  1. Suresh Pal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Prem Chand
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Chhabilendra Roul
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Trilochan Mohapatra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Prem Chand.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary Information

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (DOCX 18 KB)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Pal, S., Chand, P., Roul, C. et al. Assessment of Agricultural Sustainability in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India: An Application of the Indicator Framework. Agric Res 12, 126–134 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40003-022-00621-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40003-022-00621-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation