Green-Ag project

Subject – Agriculture

Context – The switch to chemical-based farming and other faulty agricultural practices have imperilled Odisha’s Similipal biosphere reserve.

Concept –

The continuous exposure to faulty agricultural practices has garnered policymakers’ attention, and Similipal is among the five landscapes chosen for the Food and Agricultural Organisation’s Green-Ag project which was announced in 2018 and launched in Similipal in October 2021.
Funded by Global Environment Facility for six years, the project primarily aims to transform agricultural practices while ensuring conservation of biodiversity and forest landscapes.
The other four regions include Chambal in Madhya Pradesh, Dampa in Mizoram, desert areas in Jaisalmer and Barmer in Rajasthan and Corbett-Rajaji Tiger Reserve, Uttarakhand.
Organic farming and agrobiodiversity conservation are among a portfolio of nature-based solutions proposed in the Green-Ag project.
The Green-Ag project is looking to build a multi-sectoral approach to develop synergy between the agriculture and allied areas with forest and environment, at the national, state and the district level.
Key missions that will be targeted for strengthening include the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture; National Livestock Mission; National Food Security Mission; National Initiative on Climate-resilient Agriculture, National Mission for Horticulture and Rashtriya KrishiVikasYojana.