India’s rice and wheat output is projected to dip by 6-10 per cent due to climate change, impacting access to affordable food for millions, senior officials have said.Another effect of climate change is that sea water is becoming warmer along the coast forcing fish to move away to cooler water in deep sea, which has also hit the fishing community, the officials said.
India’s wheat production had touched 113.29 million tonnes in the 2023-24 crop year, which was about 14 per cent of the global output, while rice harvests topped 137 million tonnes. Rice and wheat form staple diet for the country’s 1.4 billion population, 80 per cent of which relies on subsidised food grains supplied through various government schemes.