Kisan Diwas 2025: How India’s Smallholder Farmers Are Driving Climate Resilience

Every year on December 23, India honours its farmers on Kisan Diwas, marking the birth anniversary of Chaudhary Charan Singh, the fifth Prime Minister and a lifelong advocate for farmers' rights. This year's 25th Kisan Diwas is more than a tribute – it’s a celebration of India’s smallholder farmers who have successfully made India the second-largest producer of food in the world.

Despite fragmented landholdings and climate uncertainties, smallholders have driven agricultural growth, strengthened rural economies and ensured food security for billions of people. Today, they are not just producers, but they are innovators, adopting sustainable practices and building resilience for the future. Their performance is truly inspiring. 

India has achieved remarkable progress in agriculture, but climate change continues to pose challenges. Over the past four decades, 30 % of districts experienced frequent deficient rainfall years, while 38 % dealt with excessive rainfall. These shifts have already reduced rice yields by 8% in South India and 5 % in East India. Climate projections indicate further warming and erratic weather ahead, making resilience critical.

Turning Fields into Climate Solutions

India has identified around 30 recognized Sustainable Agricultural Practices (SAPs). Significant ones such as crop rotation, agroforestry, rainwater harvesting, integrated pest management, and alternate wetting and drying - each cover between 5 and 30 million hectares.

Research by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) shows farmers using SAPs report higher incomes, healthier soils, and better nutrition security. SAPs build climate resilience through minimal tillage, crop rotation, and multi-cropping. These methods create healthy ecosystems that support root growth, balanced development, and lodging resistance.

Around the world, farmers are turning their fields into climate solutions - conserving water, revitalising soil health, protecting biodiversity, and reducing emissions. Techniques like no-till farming and agroforestry draw CO₂ from the atmosphere into the soil, creating massive

carbon sinks. In rice cultivation, alternate wetting and drying methods reduce methane emissions significantly while conserving water. India cultivates nearly 50 million hectares of rice, about one-third of the global area, producing 145 million metric tons annually. However, rice paddies are also major greenhouse gas emitters, averaging around 7,870 kg CO₂ equivalent per hectare per year, primarily from methane.

Programs focused on low methane rice production are helping farmers shift from traditional 120-day continuous flooding to 14-21 day drying intervals, achieving approximately 23 % reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, 40 % improvement in water use efficiency, and 5 % increases in both yield and profitability. These drying events are now being adopted collectively at the community level, enhancing impact and scalability while reducing the incidence of pests.

Biofuels from crops like sugarcane and corn cut greenhouse gas emissions and reduce fossil fuel dependence, with the added advantage that farmers can regrow these sources within months. Farming uses over 70 % of global freshwater, but methods like drip irrigation, rainwater harvesting, and soil-enhancing practices can reduce inefficient water use by up to 60%.

Stories of Transformation

In Andhra Pradesh, Bulliraju shifted from conventional paddy cultivation to climate-responsive practices. He learned to use water efficiently, improve crop health, and increase returns while reducing his fields' climate impact through alternate wetting and drying methods.

Satyavati, a woman farmer, adopted modern agronomy and training that transformed her approach and inspired others in her village. Her experience shows how empowerment extends from individual farms to entire communities.

Recognizing Farmers as Climate Heroes

Ahead of the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belém, Brazil, UPL launched the #AFarmerCan campaign, 'The hero you don't know you need' that celebrates farmers as climate heroes and calls on world leaders to recognize their role in building climate resilience. The campaign makes an appeal to policy makers that they must stand with farmers, and consumers must recognize and celebrate their strength, resilience and innovation. To strengthen farmer resilience, a four-pillar incentive framework was proposed that addresses the multifaceted challenges farmers face.

Pay: Reward farmers for adopting climate-smart practices.

Protect: Offer subsidies and insurance to guard against risks.

Procure: Strengthen farmer access to public markets for certified sustainable produce.

Promote: Scale digital tools, soil health data, and knowledge training.

The Path Forward

Resilient Farmers mean Healthier People. Healthier People mean Stronger Nations. When nations invest in inclusive and sustainable agricultural policies, they build resilient farming systems where both people and nature thrive. Empowered farmers are the foundation of a nation’s ability to face global challenges. Strategic investments in sustainable practices, digital tools and equitable financing can build an agricultural ecosystem that is productive, resilient and inclusive.

As we mark the 25th Kisan Diwas, let’s honour our farmers not only for what they produce but for what they enable: a food-secure, climate-resilient India. Let this celebration also be a commitment: to policies and partnerships that empower smallholders as true climate heroes.