The Indo-Gangetic Plain as a Vital Link - Prospects for India's Food Security

We are bound to face unprecedented competition for food due to the world’s increasing population. Feeding the world’s growing population is a great challenge of the present times. In this regard, Monika Kumari and Md Maroof Azam assess the present scenario of food security in India highlighting the current situation of the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) that not only fulfils the food needs of the vast majority of Indians but also generates employment and is a source of livelihood for millions of people. They analyse what needs to be done to mitigate the effects of global environmental change to ensure India’s food security.

 

 

Global population is on track to go from the current 7.4 billion to 8.5 billion by 2030, and 9.6 billion by 2050, making a larger part of the world food insecure. Food security is a situation that exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for active living and healthy life. Recognizing the importance and severity of food security, the United Nations has set a target to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture, as the second of its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says that for meeting the food demand, the world food production will need to rise by 70 per cent by 2050. Increasing global population will put pressure on the agriculture sector. The enormous increase in food demand will pose a direct challenge to farmers worldwide. Among many other problems faced by today’s farmers, the biggest challenge for them is to enhance crop productivity in a global environmental change (GEC) scenario. Adaptation strategies to global environmental change should be formulated to lessen the vulnerability of crop system. Containing almost 17 per cent of the world’s population, challenges to India’s food security need to be addressed prudently.

The Food Security Scenario in India