Characteristics and Problems in Indian Agriculture
India is a developing country. Agriculture plays major role in the overall growth and development of the country. It depends on the Indian farmers. There are three major categories of Indian farmers:
- Marginal farmers.
- Small farmers.
- Big farmers.
The characteristics of Indian ageiculture depend on the categories of farmers. The first part of this post points about the characteristics of Indian agriculture, while the second part lists the problems of Indian agriculture.
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| Contents |
|---|
| (1). What are the characteristics of Indian agriculture? |
| (2). What are the problems in Indian agriculture? |
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(1). What are the characteristics of Indian agriculture?
Low productivity
- Land productivity is low.
- It is due to low soil productivity.
- The average productivity is lower than the developed countries.
Labour productivity
- Labour productivity is low.
- Low labour productivity leads to low production.
Uncertainity
- Indian agriculture is uncertain.
- Agriculture is rainfed.
- Failure of Monsoon means failure of entire crop season.
Subsistence farming
- It is due to uncertainity of agriculture.
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Dominace of food grain crops
- Food grain covers more area.
- Food grain such as rice is a stable food.
- High population is the cause of dominace of food grain.
Traditional agriculture
- Indian agriculture still depends on traditional agriculture.
- It is dominant in Indian villages.
Labour dominance
- Indian agriculture depend on labour.
- Farm mechanisation is less.
Small land holdings
- Marginal and small farmers are more than the big farmers.
- Indian states such as Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh etc have more number of marginal and small farmers.
Uneven distribution of land
Mixed farming
- Crop failure is a potential threat in India.
- Farmers adopt mix-farming to avoid the risk of crop failure.
Crop pattern
- Chhattisgarh: Rice (rice bowl of India Chhattisgarh).
- Punjab: Wheat.
It depend on Monsoon.
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(2). What are the problems in Indian Agriculture
Monsoon
- It is uncertain.
- Heavy rainfall causes crop failure.
- Poor Monsoon results in low production.
Irrigation
- Indian agriculture depends on rain.
- Every Indian farmer doesn’t have irrigation facility.
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Population
- Population pressure is high.
- Partition of land among family members.
Land take-overs
- Land take-over by others.
- Illegal land ownership.
Uneven land distribution.
Marginal farmers.
Small farmers.
Small landholdings.
Soil fertility is low.
Soil productivity is low.
Crop production is low.
Natural hazards.
Lack of formal and informal education.
Indian agriculture is unorganized.
Lack of capital
Most of the Indian farmers live below poverty line. They lack intial capital too.
Problem of loan
Indian farmers face many problem related with loans, such as indebtedness.
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Best quality seed
There is lack of good quality seed materials. Many farmers uses low quality seed.
Traditional agriculture
India is far behind in compare to developed countries. Adoption of modern agriculture is less.
Manures and fertilizers
High cost of manures and fertilizers in India.
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Lack of production technique.
Agricultural research
- Lack of agricultural research is a major constraint.
- No quality research work in the field of agriculture.
Marketing system
- Marketing system is faulty.
- No proper marketing channel.
No proper planning before starting cultivation practice.
Price problems
- Price up and down is a major problem.
- Example: Price range of tomato is 2.00 INR per kg to 85.00 INR per kg.
Lack of storage units.
Lack of processing units.
Electricity problem.
Lack of good quality cattle.
Lack of creativity in Indian farmers.
Indian farmers depend of their fate.
This post: Characteristics and problems in Indian Agriculture
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