Agroclimatic shifts and water stress adaptation in the agricultural landscape of the middle Gangetic plains: insights from Bihar, India

Agroclimatic shifts and water stress adaptation in the agricultural landscape of the middle Gangetic plains: insights from Bihar, India | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Agroclimatic shifts and water stress adaptation in the agricultural landscape of the middle Gangetic plains: insights from Bihar, India Abdus Sattar, Biswajit Pramanick, Ratnesh Kumar Jha, Santanu Kumar Bal, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8946700/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Agroclimatic shifts directly influence water availability, crop productivity, and food security in vulnerable regions. By characterizing rainfall variability, crop season onset, length of growing period (LGP), and water deficit in Bihar, this study provides actionable insights for optimizing water management and building climate-resilient agriculture in the Middle Gangetic Plains. The study analyzes rainfall data (1984–2003, 2004–2023) across 38 districts of Bihar (~7.95 mha cultivated area), integrating potential evapotranspiration and soil water-holding capacity using agroclimatic tools to evaluate spatial-temporal changes in key parameters. The results highlight substantial shifts in agroclimatic conditions of Bihar, including rainfall climatology, sowing onset, growing period length (LGP), and water surplus. During 2004–2023, compared to 1984–2003, most districts experienced delayed sowing onset and reduced LGP, with East Champaran recording the maximum reduction of 36 days. Water-stressed zones expanded considerably, particularly in northwestern Bihar, while even high-rainfall areas showed declining water surplus. Concurrently, water deficits increased across the state, signalling growing irrigation demand. These changes underscore the urgency of adaptive water management strategies to sustain agricultural productivity, enhance resilience, and ensure long-term food security in the Middle Gangetic Plains. Adaptation strategies in Bihar focus on diversified climate-smart cropping system revisions and water-smart technologies such as direct-seeded rice (DSR), alternate wetting and drying (AWD), precision land levelling, micro-irrigation, and residue mulching. The study highlights the urgent need to revisit and realign agricultural planning and policy decisions in light of the evolving agroclimatic realities. Climate variability Irrigation demand Length of growing period Rainfall dynamics Water stress Full Text Additional Declarations Tables 1 and 2 are available in the Supplementary Files section. Supplementary Files Tables.doc Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 13 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 25 Feb, 2026 First submitted to journal 24 Feb, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8946700","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":622078438,"identity":"57629745-9ad5-453c-b50f-972b75704060","order_by":0,"name":"Abdus 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