Attitude of Farm Women towards the Effects of Climate Change in Agriculture and Allied Activities: A Study in Imphal, East Districts of Manipur, India

Farm women play a significant role in agricultural production across the world. Agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy and climate change significantly affects agriculture productivity due to the increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as droughts, floods, and cyclones. Manipur, a northeastern state of India, is highly dependent on climatic-sensitive sectors like agriculture, forestry, and fishing for their economy and livelihood. The present study was carried out in Sawombung Block and Heingang Block from Imphal East District of Manipur with a sample size of 100, which were selected randomly. The objective of the study was to assess the attitude of farm women towards the effects of climate change on agriculture and allied activities. The data were collected with the help of structured interview schedule and were analysed using statistical methods including percentage, frequency, category interval method and Pearson’s correlation coefficient. The study revealed that majority of the total respondents had moderately favorable attitude followed by 20 per cent of the respondents had a highly favorable attitude towards the effects of climate change in agriculture and allied activities. The correlation test revealed that from both the Blocks, age had a positive and significant relationship with the respondent’s attitude towards effects of climate change in agriculture and allied activities. Moreover, it was also found that from Block 2, education has a positive and significant relationship with the respondent’s attitude and from Block 1, farming experience has a positive and significant relationship with the attitude of farm women towards the effects of climate change in agriculture and allied activities. Thus, it is suggested that it is necessary to provide climate awareness, education and support of improved climate smart agricultural technologies to the farm women that can empower them to adapt to changing climate effectively.