ABSTRACT
Abstract: India is among the many countries that are likely to be extensively affected by climate change events, especially sea-level rise and changes in the precipitation patterns. Agriculture is the most important source of livelihood and is particularly vulnerable. This chapter provides a brief overview of the status of climate change-related activities in India at the national level and describes a case study of a bottom-up approach to empower a coastal deltaic agricultural community in Tamil Nadu state through participatory irrigation management as an adaptive response to the threat of climate change and sea-level rise. It is clear that, in coastal areas, planning for integrated management needs to take into account issues such as irrigation requirements for agriculture to ensure that the vulnerability of coastal communities to climate change-related factors is reduced. To achieve this, there is a need for a holistic approach, at the appropriate spatial scale, and greater interaction between the different institutional structures concerned.
