Climate change is among the most pressing global challenges, exerting profound impacts on rural agriculture and threatening food security, livelihoods, and economic stability. Smallholder farmers in India, heavily reliant on stable weather patterns, face heightened vulnerability due to rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, water scarcity, soil degradation, and the spread of pests and diseases. Crop simulation models project significant declines in yields of major staples—rainfed rice (–20% by 2050, –47% by 2080), irrigated rice (–3.5% by 2050, –5% by 2080), wheat (–19.3% by 2050, –40% by 2080), and kharif maize (–18% by 2050, –23% by 2080). Beyond production losses, climate change exacerbates socio-economic challenges through reduced farm incomes, rising input costs, migration, and deepening rural poverty. Adaptation and mitigation strategies such as crop diversification, climate-resilient varieties, sustainable water management, and conservation agriculture offer potential pathways for resilience. Government initiatives—including the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) and its associated missions, Green India Mission, and Green Hydrogen Mission—are pivotal in promoting adaptation, mitigation, and sustainable development. Strengthening farmer capacity through policy support, technology dissemination, and international cooperation is critical to ensure long-term agricultural resilience and food security in the face of a changing climate.

Keywords: Climate change, Rural agriculture, Food security, Crop yield decline, Adaptation strategies, India