Agricultural water footprints: a study of agro-climatic zones in India

Purpose This study evaluates the determinants of agricultural water use, land use and primary crops production in five agro-climatic zones of India for the period 1991–2019. Design/methodology/approach Focusing on the consumption-based measure of agricultural water use, also known as agricultural water footprints, the aim is to provide a comprehensive quantitative evaluation of India’s crops production. Considering the contemporary economic decisions and procedures, this study adopts the production function framework to get better insight into how increased crops production affects agricultural water use. Findings The empirical results exhibit that water resources have been overutilized, especially in Northern and Southern agro-climatic zones, due to excessive production of primary crops, wheat and rice. The findings show that excessive consumption of fertilizers and pesticides significantly affects crops production and agricultural water use in India. Research limitations/implications This study suggests a need for strict national and state-level water policy implementation for adequate water supply to farmers during the cultivation period. Weak water supply governance leads to water scarcity in highly productive and populated states such as Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Social implications Sustainable development of the Indian agricultural sector prerequisite the integrated planning and management of water resources based on a scientific database. Originality/value This study explicitly investigates the role of exogenous factors (temperature and rainfall), agrochemical factors (fertilizers and pesticide use) and other economic factors to examine the determinants of agricultural water use in India. Peer review The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-04-2024-0300