While there are holistic legislations and authorities to protect India’s coastline, forests and wetlands, the same is not true in the case of agriculture. Declaring the Cauvery delta as a protected agricultural zone (PAZ) was a political masterstroke by Tamil Nadu’s government, for it managed to win the approval of people across all sections. Politics aside, the policy has rekindled the debate on conserving agricultural lands, which are under severe threat from industrialisation across India. It’s likely that TN’s model, if found successful, would be adopted by other states. Puducherry has taken the first step, by proposing to get Karaikal declared as a protected region.