Rice, a high-water-consuming cereal crop that provides essential carbohydrates to nearly half of the world's population, faces significant challenges in sustainable production due to irrigation water deficits, climate change, and excessive groundwater extraction, all threatening global rice production and food security. Technologies such as drip irrigation and fertigation are effective in improving water and nutrient use efficiency, thereby enhancing productivity compared to traditional methods. In eastern India’s subtropical climate, a cereal-based cropping system features rice as the primary crop during the wet season, with vegetables grown in the dry season to boost food security and farmer income. Research on the combined effects of drip irrigation and nitrogen management in rice is limited. To address this gap, our study investigated the impact of various water stress levels following drip irrigation and different nitrogen fertilizer applications on rice growth, yield, and water productivity. Field experiments were conducted at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur in 2018 and 2019. This study investigated two nitrogen levels (50% and 100% of the recommended dose) and four water management conditions (rainfed, flooded, and drip irrigation at -0.6 bar and -0.8 bar soil water potentials) in a strip-plot design. The results showed that water stress beyond 0.6 bar during reproductive stages significantly reduced yield, with notable decreases under 0.7 bar stress around flowering. Limited irrigation at 0.6 bar improved water productivity to 1.0 kg/m³ compared to 0.58 kg/m³ under flooding. Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) was higher at 50% nitrogen application, with apparent nitrogen recovery (ANR) decreasing from 55% to 33% as nitrogen levels increased. Drip irrigation required only 7% of the water needed for flooding while maintaining similar yields. This study highlights the importance of water-efficient technologies for mitigating climate-induced challenges and ensuring food security in subtropical India.