ECONOMIC IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON LIVELIHOOD STATUS OF DAIRY FARMERS IN MANDI DISTRICT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH
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Date
2023-12-23
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UHF Nauni
Abstract
The current research examined the “Economic impact of Climate Change on the livelihood status of dairy
farm households in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh” during the year 2022-23. The study employed a multistage
random sampling method to choose participants from four randomly chosen blocks, namely Balh, Sundernagar,
Dhanotu, and Gohar, out of a total of six blocks. Subsequently, three panchayats were randomly selected from each
of these chosen blocks, and ten dairy farming households were randomly selected from each of these villages,
resulting in a sample size of 120 for gathering primary data. To facilitate data analysis, all dairy producers were
categorized into three groups: small category (1-3 SAUs), medium category (4-6 SAUs), and large category
(>6 SAUs). According to the socioeconomic data, the farmers in the region were found to have an average family
size of 5.13 members, an 89.21 per cent literacy rate, and a literacy index of 2.73. The dependency ratios for both
family members and all workers were 0.41. The majority, 87.92 per cent, of the total landholding consisted of
cultivated land. The study area exhibited a crop intensity of 161.33 per cent. On average, there were 5.03 cattle units
per household, comprising 4.80 per cent local cows, 41.01 per cent crossbred cows, 33.75 per cent buffalo, 13.21 per
cent young stock, and 7.23 per cent heifers. This study looked at how climate change affects dairy farm households
in Mandi district by using weather data from 1981 to 2021 provided by the Indian Meteorological Department in
Shimla. The results showed that climate change has an impact on these households, and there is a nonlinear
relationship among climate change and net revenue. When maximum temperatures rise, it reduces the income of
dairy farms, but when minimum temperatures and annual rainfall increase, it can boost their income. To explain it
further, for every 1ᵒC increase in minimum temperature and 1ᵒC decrease in maximum temperature, dairy farm
income could drop by Rs. 40.44 and increase by Rs. 3.40 per day, respectively. The study also used a Binary
Logistic Regression model to figure out why some farmers choose to adapt to climate change while others don't. It
found that factor like farm income and their experience in farming influence their decision to adapt. In the study
area, the biggest problem faced by dairy farmers was a lack of better fodder crops (64.82%), and the least
concerning issue was a shortage of veterinary facilities (34.27%). In order to adapt with climate change suitable
adaptation practices should be followed like improving feed practices and use of well acclimatized breeds and
following the crop livestock diversification method.