Tag: economics

Accounting profits refers to the profits which include implicit cost in them along with normal profits.It only excludes explicit cost from the overall revenue. 

The inputs of modern agriculture are very expensive. This resource-intensive approach has become unmanageable for marginal and small farmers as they have very meagre or no saving to invest in agriculture. To tide over these difficulties, most of such farmers have resorted to availing credit from various institutions and money lenders. Crop failures and low returns from agriculture have forced them to fall in the trap of indebtedness.

A large number of farmers produce crops for self-consumption. These farmers do not have enough land resources to produce more than their requirement. Most of the small and marginal farmers grow food grains, which are meant for their own family consumption. Modernisation and commercialisation of agriculture have however, taken place in the irrigated areas.

Land holding is shrinking further under increasing population pressure. Furthermore, in India, the land holdings are mostly fragmented. Decrease in the average size of landholding leads to low farm productivity. The small size fragmented landholdings are uneconomic.

As per Economic Survey of Maharashtra 2016-17, the share of agriculture and allied activities in the total Gross State Value Added (GSVA) was 12.2 % during 2016-17 against 15.3 % during 2001-02 which shows a declining trend over the period.

Indian peasantry had been exploited for a long time as there had been unequal distribution of land. Among the three revenue systems operational during British period i.e. Mahalwari, Ryotwari and Zamindari, the last one was most exploitative for the peasants. After independence, land reforms were accorded priority, but these reforms were not implemented effectively due to lack of strong political will. Most of the state governments avoided taking politically tough decisions which went against strong political lobbies of landlords. Lack of implementation of land reforms has resulted in continuation of inequitous distribution of cultivable land which is detrimental to agricultural development.

Both food crops and cash crops are grown in Maharashtra. Principal crops include rice, jowar, bajra, wheat, pulses, turmeric, onions, cotton, sugarcane and several oil seeds including groundnut, sunflower and soybean. The state has huge areas, under fruit cultivation of which mangoes, bananas, grapes, and oranges are the main ones.