Adopting regenerative agriculture to help farmers to build climate farm

Punjab is about to “water” because of the non -regulated and excessive use of water stocks.

This year’s devastating floods in Punjab served as a grim memory of how climate change threatens the food safety of India and the livelihood of millions of farmers. The state, as soon as the poster of the green revolution is now confronted with serious environmental stress – that cross groundwater levels, soil gradation, stubble burning and rising peasant debt. These composite crises require urgent solutions that can restore the ecological balance and at the same time guarantee the profitability of the farm. Regenerative agriculture offers a path ahead by directly tackling three major challenges in the field of climate change – exclusive water resources, poor soil health and air pollution.

Punjab’s deeper water crisis

Punjab is about to “water” because of the non -regulated and excessive use of water stocks. The total annual groundwater production of Punjab has been assessed on 18.84 billion cubic meters (BCM). One cubic meter is equal to 1,012 liters of water. The annual groundwater extraction of the state is 27.8 BC – an extraction percentage of 163.76 percent. Most districts in Punjab are now classified as “over -exploited”, and predictions indicate that groundwater springs in Punjab can be exhausted in the next 14 years.

Currently, the way we use water, the total annual water demand from Punjab is 66.12 bcm, but the available water is 52.85 BCM. There is an urgent need to set a policy objective to lower the demand for water to 46NBCM. The target of saving 20 BCM per year would balance the availability/demand from water to all sectors and help to restore the exhausted groundwater aquifers/reserves. The purpose of saving 20 BCM water can be achieved by implementing the proposed policy measures in various sectors such as agriculture, industry and households.

Stubble burning and air pollution

The air quality crisis of Punjab is known. Stoppel burning and unintentionally consequence of intensive rice wedel farm-brings massive amounts of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, particles and axle. The burning of a ton of paddy straw only bumps around 1.5 tonnes of CO₂ and distributes soil feed substances such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Combined with methane emissions of water searched paddy fields, these practices worsen climate change and public health.

Breathing polluted air causes breathing complaints, cognitive impairment in children and reduced productivity. Tackling stubble burning by better residue and regenerative techniques is not only crucial for the environment, but also for human health.

Poor soil health and farming complaints

Punjab uses more chemical fertilizers than any other state – 247.6 kg per hectare against the national average of 139.8 kg/ha. This has led to the general toxicity of the upper crust of the ground, making the microflora and fauna essential for soil health. Insourcing and large -scale combustion of biomass, both rooted and loose, farmers has also constantly harmed the health of the land. The passage of paddy-cultivation has led to the development of hard pan (a dense and compact layer of soil), which hinder the current of nutrients, air and water in the soil, reducing fertility.

Low agricultural yields in turn lead to farmer’s cabinet. Farmers struggle with rising debts due to high input costs and falling profitability. Between 2000 and 2015, more than 16,000 farmers and farm workers in Punjab reportedly committed suicide due to financial stress. Rice-Tarwen Monocropping has imprisoned farmers in a vicious circle of decreasing returns, rising input costs and increased vulnerability for environmental stressors such as climate change. These figures emphasize the in -depth human costs of this non -durable agricultural model.

Regenerative agriculture as a climate action

Punjab must urgently shift to regenerative agriculture – a holistic approach that restores the health of the soil, retains water and reduces dependence on chemical inputs. These practices not only rebuild natural ecosystems, but also make farms more resilient for floods, drought and market shocks. Punjab can restore its natural resources and secure a sustainable agricultural future by shifting to diversification of crops, implementing better water management and reducing harmful practices such as stubble.

Roundglass Foundation, a not-for-profit, promotes regenerative agricultural agricultural methods in the state, and more than 1,000 farmers are trained in these different and sometimes new ways to grow crops that will lead to better results for water retention, ground regeneration and air quality. Below I share some proven interventions under regenerative agriculture that benefit the water, soil and air.

Water retention

Restoration of soil health

Air quality improvement

A path to climate feud

Punjab is at a crossroads. Continue with water-intensive, input-heavy agriculture, the state will push to ecological collapse and deepen rural leaders. By embracing regenerative agriculture, Punjab can restore its soil, supplement groundwater, clean its air and give farmers a profitable, sustainable livelihood.

This year’s floods must be a wake-up call for everyone’s climate change is not a distant threat but a grim reality. Stakeholders-or now the government, non-governmental agencies, NGOs, individuals, civil society wilds are to insert hands to tackle the increasing environmental need in Punjab and the rest of India by bundling ideas, resources, time and effort. Collective action, reinforced with a sense of responsibility towards a sustainable future, has the power to shift with acceleration and to delay the ruthless march of climate change.

The author, a leading authority in the field of sustainable agricultural practices and a former IAS officer, is currently on his way to the regenerative agricultural program of Roundglass Foundation

Published on 27 September 2025