INDIAN AGRICULTURE – AN INTRODUCTION

1 1 COUNTRY REPORT: INDIA INDIAN AGRICULTURE AN INTRODUCTION Submitted to Fourth Session of the Technical Committee of APCAEM 10-12 February 2009, Chiang Rai, Thailand By MM Pandey Director Central Institute of agricultural engineering Bhopal, India 2 INDIAN AGRICULTURE an INTRODUCTION AGRICULTURE has been the backbone of the INDIAN economy and it will continue to remain so for a long time. It has to support almost 17 per cent of world population from per cent of world geographical area and per cent of world s water resources.

2 The economic reforms, initiated in the country during the early 1990s, have put the economy on a higher growth trajectory. Annual growth rate in GDP has accelerated from below 6 percent during the initial years of reforms to more than 8 percent in recent years. This happened mainly due to rapid growth in non- AGRICULTURE sector. The workforce engaged in AGRICULTURE between 1980-81 and 2006-07 witnessed a very small decline; from percent to 52 percent. The present cropping intensity of 137 per cent has registered an increase of only 26 per cent since 1950-51. The net sown area is 142 Mha.

3 The net irrigated area was Mha in 2004-05. Presently, the total net irrigated area covers per cent of the net sown area, the remaining per cent is rainfed. The degradation of land and surface as well as ground water resources results in fast deterioration of soil health. Losses due to biotic (insect-pests, diseases, weeds) and abiotic (drought, salinity, heat, cold, etc.) stresses account for about one-fourth of the value of agricultural produce. The storage, transportation, processing, value addition and marketing of farm produce need to be improved to enhance household food, nutrition and livelihood security.

4 INDIAN AGRICULTURE is characterized by agro-ecological diversities in soil, rainfall, temperature, and cropping system. Besides favorable solar energy, the country receives about 3 trillion m3 of rainwater, 14 major, 44 medium and 55 minor rivers share about 83 per cent of the drainage basin. About 210 billion m3 water is estimated to be available as ground water. Irrigation water is becoming a scarce commodity. Thus proper harvesting and efficient utilization of water is of great importance. Intensive cultivation as a result of INTRODUCTION of high yielding varieties in the mid 1960's required higher energy inputs and better management practices.

5 Land preparation, harvesting, threshing and irrigation are the operations, which utilize most of the energy used in AGRICULTURE . The share of animate power in AGRICULTURE decreased from 92 per cent in 1950-51 to 20 per cent in 2000-01. For desired cropping intensity with timeliness in field operations, animate energy sources alone were no longer adequate. Farmers opted for mechanical power sources to supplement animate power. Average size of farm holdings gradually reduced from ha to ha (Table 1). Small and marginal farmers have limited resources especially in rain-fed regions where only animate power is used resulting in low productivity.

6 Though agricultural production is high, the per hectare productivity is much lower than world average. There is an urgent need to increase productivity. * Country report presented in the Fourth Session of the Technical Committee of APCAEM, held during 1-3 December, 2008 at Chiang Rai, Thailand. ** Director, Central Institute of agricultural engineering , Bhopal, India. 3 Smaller the farm, greater is the need for marketable surplus, so that small farmers can have a reasonable income. Achieving this goal will be possible only if we develop and disseminate eco-technologies rooted in the principles of ecology, economics, gender equity and employment generation.

7 This is the pathway to an ever-green revolution in AGRICULTURE . The estimated food requirement in India and total production of major crops indicate that to keep pace with the present population growth and consumption pattern, food grain requirement has been estimated to be 240 MT by 2020 and 300 MT by 2025. Annual agricultural growth should be maintained at per cent to meet these demand projections. Table -1 Number and area of operational holdings by type of holding Major size classes Number, 000 Area, 000 ha 1981 1990-91 2000-01 1980-81 1990-01 2000-01 Marginal, <1 ha ( ) ( ) 76122 ( 19,735 ( ) 24,894 ( ) 30088 ( ) Small, 1-2 ha 16,072 ( ) 20,092 ( ) 22814 ( ) 23,169 ( ) ( ) 32260 ( ) Semi-medium, 2-4 ha 12,455 ( ) (13,923 ( ) 14087 ( ) 34,645 ( ) 38,375 ( ) 38305 ( ) Medium, 4-10 ha 8,068 ( ) 7,580 ( ) 6568 ( ) 48,470 ( ) 44,752 ( ) 38125 ( Large, >10 ha 2,166 ( ) 1,654) ( ) 1230 ( ) 37,705 ( ) 28,659 ( ) 21124 ( ) All size classes 88,883 (100) 1,06,637 (100)))

8 120822 (100) 1,63,724 (100) 1,65,507 (100) 159903 (100) Note : Figures within parentheses indicate per cent contribution Non-availability of manpower during peak crop season is many times a problem. The overall achievement in the creation of irrigation facilities has been relatively better in India with 63 per cent growth rate compared to the world average. There is a need to increase the utilization of rainwater to enhance the gross cropped area by 30 Mha as the yield of food grain in irrigated areas is almost twice that in rain-fed AGRICULTURE . Per capita availability of food grains has declined from 510 g per day in 1990 to 436 g in 2003 and this trend has to be arrested.

9 The infrastructure for agricultural diversification, reducing post harvest losses of perishables, value addition to agro-produce and branding system needs to be strengthened. agricultural Production and Productivity The nation is striving to find ways and means to keep its burgeoning population adequately fed. On the one hand it is facing the problem of declining productivity and on the other, challenges posed by liberalization. In such a scenario, leveraging the available natural resources and existing infrastructure is the only way to make the ends meet.

10 Management of the already built infrastructure in harmony with natural systems is the clarion call of the day. Knowledge of the extent of existing infrastructure and natural resources is one of the most basic pre-requisites to utilize them effectively and in a sustainable manner. The discipline of agricultural engineering endeavours to develop technologies for enhancing productivity and 4 reducing the cost of cultivation. Traditionally animate power was used for field operations and processing activities. As a result of INTRODUCTION of mechanical power, agricultural engineering activities have expanded considerably.