A SOCIOLOGICAL EXPLORATION OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND ITS’ IMPLICATION FOR AGRICULTURAL ADAPTIVE STRATEGIES IN PUNJAB

Abstract

Agriculture plays vital role in economic growth, food security, employment generation and poverty alleviation. It contributes 19.2 percent to the GDP and provides employment to 38.5 % of labor force. More than 65% to 70 % of the population depends on agriculture for its’ livelihood. The purpose of this study is to analyze the current situation of climate change and its implications’ for agricultural adaptive strategies in Punjab. Three districts were selected randomly from the Central, North and south zone of the province by using multistage sampling technique. Qualitative information was collected through the key informant interviews from three selected districts namely Bahawalnagar, Chakwal and Faisalabad. An interview guide was used to collect the in-depth information from progressive farmers, agricultural officers, environmental officers and Ph.D. scholars. The farmers and experts were on the same page as the effects of climate change had been observed in the study area. On the basis of findings, it was concluded that climate change was accelerated by human interventions, and negative implications were observed in the form of decline in production and increase in the input cost of agricultural operation. Different agricultural adaptive strategies were used to cope with the issue of climate change. There were various behavioral and structural constraints in the process of adaptation to climate change.

Key words: Climate Change, Adaptive strategies, Implications, Vulnerable, Food security, Production