Environment and Disaster Management › Conservation initiatives
हिन्दी — Read in HindiSustainable agriculture
Farming that saves soil, water and fertiliser: natural farming, new fertilisers, soil health, rice grown with less water, millets and agroforestry. Agriculture and its environment is part of the GS3 syllabus.
Foundation note: Farming practices and inputs a question tests: natural farming, nano urea, SRI and the rest
All 2 articles shown; the 0 that changed from 1 to 30 September 2026 are marked.Show only these
Heat stress and milk yield
Copy link to Heat stress and milk yieldPrelims and Mains
Heat stress in dairy animals is the fall in milk yield that comes when heat and humidity act together.
- It cuts milk yield in buffaloes and crossbred cattle, while indigenous breeds such as Sahiwal and Hariana hold their yield.
- That makes breed choice part of adaptation in livestock.
What changed
6 Jul 2026BriefA study in north western India finds that temperatures above 38°C with humidity above 70 per cent in July and August cut milk yield in buffaloes and crossbred cattle by 20 to 30 per cent. Mains: adaptation in Indian agriculture has to include livestock breeds and not only crops. The Hindu, 6 Jul 2026: Milk production in Gangetic plains has nosedived due to climate change (opens in a new tab)
Fertiliser registration and nutrient use efficiency
Copy link to Fertiliser registration and nutrient use efficiencyPrelims and Mains
New fertilisers are registered under the Fertiliser (Control) Order, 1985: a dossier, two season bio efficacy trials by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and State universities, and Central Fertiliser Committee review.
- Water soluble fertilisers have needed only general specifications since 2015.
- Urea and diammonium phosphate (DAP) have the lowest nutrient use efficiency, nitrogen being lost as ammonia and as nitrate into groundwater and phosphorus locking into insoluble compounds; controlled release and water soluble fertilisers do far better.
- Under the Nutrient Based Subsidy the subsidy is fixed per nutrient and retail prices of phosphatic and potassic fertilisers follow world markets, while urea stays price controlled.
- Cheaper urea encourages excess nitrogen and unbalanced soils.
Nutrient use efficiency by fertiliser type
| Fertiliser | Share of the nutrient the crop takes up |
|---|---|
| Urea | 30 to 40 per cent |
| DAP | 15 to 25 per cent |
| Controlled release | 60 to 70 per cent |
| Water soluble | 80 to 95 per cent |
What changed
12 Jun 2026
- The fertiliser subsidy for 2026 to 2027 is set to far exceed the amount budgeted.
- The Agriculture Ministry agreed in principle to exempt fertilisers meeting quality and safety standards from mandatory field trials.
The Indian Express, 12 Jun 2026: Why government is looking to issue faster approvals for new fertilisers (opens in a new tab) · The Indian Express, 15 Jun 2026: Urea price crash opens window for reforms in India (opens in a new tab)
Also filed elsewhere
- Pollinators and beekeeping · on Plants, insects and newly described species
Pollinators are infrastructure for farming: the Food and Agriculture Organisation credits bee pollination with almost a third of global crop output.
- Stubble burning and crop residue management · on Air pollution
Stubble burning is the burning of paddy residue in the fields of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh after harvest, in October and November.