PATNA, 27 June 2025: In a groundbreaking step for sustainable agriculture, Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University (RPCAU), Pusa, has announced a strategic partnership with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to advance carbon farming in Bihar.
RPCAU Vice-Chancellor P. S. Pandey revealed the collaboration while inaugurating the university’s 19th general research council (kharif) meeting on Thursday. According to Pandey, official confirmation from ISRO arrived earlier the same day, with ISRO agreeing to fully fund the initiative.
As part of the project, ISRO’s Space Applications Centre (SAC) will install a high-resolution Eddy Covariance (EC) tower on the RPCAU campus. This advanced system will measure carbon dioxide and water vapour fluxes with high precision and frequency, providing crucial datasets to study land-atmosphere interactions.
Pandey explained that carbon farming — also known as carbon sequestration — includes farming practices designed to store more carbon in soil and vegetation while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. “It is a powerful tool for fighting global climate change, and this collaboration puts Bihar at the forefront of research in this vital area,” he noted.
The EC tower will support monitoring of gross and net primary productivity (GPP and NPP), surface evapotranspiration, and crop water-use efficiency. These insights will help develop climate-resilient farming strategies and support future space-based agricultural research missions led by RPCAU.
Experts believe the partnership will deliver significant benefits for both the scientific and farming communities in Bihar, offering real-time, precise environmental data that can help adapt agriculture to climate change challenges.
By combining RPCAU’s agricultural expertise with ISRO’s advanced space technology, the project aims to create a new era of sustainable and climate-smart agriculture in the region.
