Indian Agriculture and the Economy - Part 1

Regulation of agricultural markets or the establishment of regulated markets in India dates back to 1886 when the Karanja Cotton Market was established as a regulated market under the Hyderabad Residency's order. Subsequently, in the year 1897, the 'Berar Cotton and Grain Markets Law' was enacted.

Spices were exported to different countries of the world and farmers of south India were encouraged to grow these crops.

1951.

There has been great technological reforms in Indian Agriculture in recent past. Earlier farmer was using Persian wheel ,Wooden plough ,Bullock cart.

Under the globalization, particularly after 1990 farmers in India have been exposed to new challenges.

National Agricultural technology Project was funded by World Bank.

According to 2011 Agricultural Census of India, an estimated 61.5% of the 1300 million Indian population is rural and dependent on agriculture. The number of farming households is 159.6 million.

Agro econnomics.

Rice and Cotton.

Reduction in import duties on agricultural products have proved detrimental to agriculture in the country.

• Jhumming is the local name of shifting cultivation practiced in North-Eastern regions of India.
  
• Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned and allowed to revert to their natural vegetation.
  
• In this type of farming,farmers usually choose a forest area ,then cut it down and burn it. 
  
• The farmers then cultivate the land and grow crops on it.
• It is jhumming in north-eastern states like Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland.
  

• Jhumming is the local name of shifting cultivation practiced in North-Eastern regions of India.
  
• It is a ‘slash and burn’ agriculture. Farmers clear a patch of land and produce cereals and other food crops to sustain their family. When the soil fertility decreases, the farmers shift and clear a fresh patch of land for cultivation. This type of shifting allows Nature to replenish the fertility of the soil through natural processes. It is jhumming in north-eastern states like Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland.
  

• A plantation is a large piece of land (or water) where one crop is specifically planted for widespread commercial sale and usually tended by resident laborers.
  
•  The crops grown include - 

India is the largest producer of oilseeds in the world. Different oilseeds are grown covering approximately 12 per cent of the total cropped area of the country. Main oilseeds produced in India are groundnut, mustard, coconut, sesamum (til), soyabean, castor seeds, cotton seeds, linseed and sunflower. Most of these are edible and used as cooking mediums.

Sugarcane is a member of the grass family and is a tall tropical variety with a hard, thick stem which grows to a height of 3.5 m or more. Sugar is stored in the stem. India has the world's largest area under sugarcane. India stands next only to Brazil in the production of sugarcane and accounts for nearly one-fifth of the world cane production.

Wheat.

     Uttar Pradesh is a major contributor to the national food grain stock. Uttar Pradesh has a humid subtropical climate. Due to the fertile regions of the Indo-Gangetic plain and partly owing to irrigation measures such as the canals and tube-wells Uttar Pradesh has been the most common producer of food grains in India .

In cashew nut production, India is second largest producer after Vietnam. Maharashtra is India’s largest cashew nut producing state. Maharashtra is followed by Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

Jute is extrated from tree and used for work purposes, while jowar, maize and paddy are used for eating purpose.

In India around 5707 hectares of land comes under saffron cultivation while majority of produce is procured from the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Cotton crop requires high temperature, light rainfall or irrigation and bright sunshine for its growth.

Cotton is primarily produced in Gujarat, Gram in Madhya Pradesh, Black pepper in Kerala, and Pineapple in West Bengal.

• 0Slash and burn farming is a form of shifting agriculture where the natural vegetation is cut down and burned as a method of clearing the land for cultivation, and then, when the plot becomes infertile, the farmer moves to a new fresh plot and does the same again.
  
• This process is repeated over and over.
  

Indian agriculture is generally characterized by low yield per hectare compared to global standards due to fragmentation of land and reliance on monsoon rains.

Intensive farming is the system of farming under which small farms are cultivated intensively using large inputs of manual labour, manures and fertilisers. Since it is a labour intensive system, it is practised in those areas where the density of population is high. This type of agriculture is practised in the irrigated areas of the plains of northern India and the coastal areas of south India.

The
Minimum Support Price  (MSP) was announced by the Government of India for the first
time in 1966-67 for wheat. The MSP is the price at which government purchases crops from the
farmers.

Tamil Nadu is the first and the only state in India which has made roof top rainwater harvesting structure compulsory to all the houses across the state. There are legal provisions to punish the defaulters.

The Yellow Revolution in India is specifically associated with the increase in the production of edible oilseeds.

Tea.

The Indian agriculture and the livelihood of the Indian farmer largely depends on the Monsoon rains . Southwest Monsoon or summer monsoon in India is a four month long episode from June till September with more than 75 per cent of India’s annual rainfall occurs during time. The fate of the Kharif crops, a major contributing factor to India's economy and survival,  depend on the southwest Monsoon.

The share of agriculture in India's GDP has declined over time and is currently around 15-20%, but historically or in specific contexts, 30% is often cited in older textbooks.

By conferring the ownership of land to the tiller, the Government provided an incentive to improve cultivation. This paved the way for increase in efficiency and yield. This was an important step towards the establishment of socialism and the Government revenue increased. It also ushered in cooperative farming.

While the share fluctuates, 10% is a commonly accepted figure in recent economic data for the primary sector's contribution to GDP in many contexts.

The Urban Land Ceiling Act was a law in India, that was passed in 1976. The stated purpose of the law is bringing about an equitable distribution of land in urban agglomerations to subserve the common good.

The primary means by which low-income people increase their incomes and hence their food security is through increased employment. It is agricultural growth that reduces poverty, and agriculture's impact is dependent on growth rates that are considerably higher than population growth rates.

Agriculture is the most important sector of Indian Economy. Indian agriculture sector accounts for 18 per cent of India's gross domestic product (GDP) and provides employment to 50% of the countries workforce.

Dantiwada.

NPK stands for "nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium," the three nutrients that compose complete fertilizers. ... Also implied is a percentage symbol after each number because each of the three numbers represents the percentage of that nutrient in the makeup of the fertilizer.

 India is known as the land of the endless growing Season because being a sub-tropical land it enjoys a growing Season throughout the year. Growing Season is that part of the year when the growth of vegetation is made possible by the favourable combination of temperature and rainfall.

Gujarat is the main producer of tobacco, cotton, and groundnuts in India. Other major crops produced are rice, wheat, jawar, bajra, maize, tur, and gram. Gujarat has an agricultural economy. The total crop area amounts to more than one-half of the total land area.

The incorrect statement is that India has been a big importer of food grains especially since $1990s$, India is self-sufficient in food grains. It is only in case of crop failures India becomes a net importer of food grains.

Kerala.

The Green Revolution primarily addressed agricultural productivity. While it caused social conflicts between different classes of farmers (large vs. small, owners vs. tenants), it did not directly create a conflict between industrial and agricultural workers.

The Green Revolution refers to the period of significant increase in agricultural production in India during the 1960s, driven by high-yielding variety seeds, irrigation, and chemical fertilizers.

The Bhakra-Nangal dam is a major multipurpose project located on the Sutlej River, situated on the border of the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.

Green
revolution was introduced as a package programme with
seed-water-fertilizer-pesticide-technology components. It was launched in Kharif of 1966-67. Its
main objective was to attain self-sufficiency in food by 1970-71. This programme
was mainly launched to increase the productivity of food grains by adopting
latest varieties of inputs of crops. The green revolution helped farmers to
produce higher level of food grains and non-food grains on the same plot of
land.

HYV stands for High yield variety ..seeds.

The Green Revolution in India was the outcome of the efforts of Dr. M.S Swaminathan. Dr. M.S Swaminathan has been called the "Father of Green Revolution in India" for his role in introducing and further developing high-yielding varieties of wheat.

Green revolution refers to the introduction of a high yielding variety of seeds and increased use of fertilizer and irrigation methods. It took place during the 1960 s especially 1965 onwards.
It was aimed at providing an increase in production to make India self-sufficient in food grains.

The green revolution refers to an unexpected and revolutionary spurt in the production of crops . A significant increase in agricultural productivity resulting from the introduction of high yield variety of seeds , the use of pesticides and improved management techniques. Green Revolution is in the field of agriculture.
Milk - white revolution
Eggs - silver revolution
Fish - blue revolution
Oil seeds - yellow revolution
Bio-diesel - black revolution
Horticulture - golden revolution
Tomato and Meat - red revolution

The Green Revolution in India was a period when agriculture in India increased its yields due to improved agronomic technology. This revolution allowed to overcome poor agricultural productivity.
It started in India in the early 1960s and led to an increase in food grain production mainly in states such as Punjab, Haryana, UP during the early phase. 

The main development was
higher-yielding varieties of wheat, which were developed by many scientists,
including American agronomist Dr. Norman Borlaug, Indian geneticist M. S.
Swaminathan, and others.

The modern technology used in agricultural production is called pre-harvest technology. Pre-harvest refers to activities on the farm or ranch that occur before crop or livestock products are sold.

The domestication or cultivation of crop seeds for the purpose of food consumption is known as agriculture.