Agriculture is the source of livelihood for nearly two-thirds of the population in India. A major part of the agriculture is rainfed (~80 out of 142 million ha net cultivated area) and will remain so for at least for a foreseeable future.

Rainfed Agriculture extends over 87.5 m.ha of net sown area in different agro-climatic zones of our country and contributes over 40 percent to our food basket. Rainfed agriculture in turn supports 40 percent of human and 60 percent of livestock populations.