Jowar near Bidadi on Bengaluru Mysuru road.
| Photo Credit: Bhagya Prakash K
The Indian School of Business (ISB) on Tuesday said that amid growing concern surrounding the temperature-sensitive wheat owing to climate change, a new research study has revealed sorghum (jowar) is an alternative to wheat as it is far more resilient to projected climate changes and also requires much less water.
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The latest research paper titled – ‘Climate resilience of dry season cereals in India’, published in Nature’s Scientific Reports, examined the sensitivity of Wheat and Jowar yields to increases in temperature and compared water requirements under different scenarios. The study was carried out by researchers from Columbia University, USA; Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China; Indian School of Business, India; University of Delaware, USA; Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India; Yale University, USA; and Washington State University, USA.
The ISB in a statement said the research revealed that wheat is highly sensitive to increases in maximum daily temperature in its multiple stages of growth during the post-monsoon, dry winter season. In comparison, jowar is able to handle increases in temperature with far less impact on yields. “In addition, wheat requires 1.4 times more water than jowar owing to the extension of its growth cycle into summer. With future climate projections, this study argues that without pragmatic changes in managing how wheat is cultivated in India, it is likely that the yields are likely to decrease by 5% coupled with a significant increase in water footprint by 2040. Jowar, in that case, is India’s best bet with its meager 4% increase in water footprint with the same climatic projections,” it said.
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Professor Ashwini Chhatre, co-author of the study and Executive Director of Bharti Institute of Public Policy at ISB said, “We have reached a critical turning point in India’s agricultural landscape. Our research highlights the urgent need for climate-smart agriculture interventions, particularly in the rabi (winter) season. The traditionally grown sorghum or jowar emerges as a game-changer, offering resilience to projected climate changes and requiring significantly less water than Wheat. Our study, reveals that wheat is highly sensitive to rising temperatures, while jowar maintains robust yields. Furthermore, wheat’s water footprint is 1.4 times higher than jowar’s, exacerbating concerns about water scarcity”.