Essay On Agriculture
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| Essay On Agriculture |
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Our country is an agricultural country, and agriculture is the foundation of our country's economy. Agriculture in our country is not just farming, but an art of living. The whole country depends on agriculture. People's hunger is satisfied only through agriculture. It is the backbone of our country's governance. Human civilization started with agriculture. Often schools are given to write essays etc. on agriculture. In this regard, some small and big essays based on agriculture are being given.
Preface
Agriculture in India was completely backward at the time of independence. Productivity was very poor due to the use of age-old and traditional techniques applied in agriculture. Talking about the present time, the amount of fertilizers used in agriculture is also very less. Due to its low productivity, agriculture can only manage subsistence for Indian farmers and due to low commercialization of agriculture, our country still lags behind many countries in terms of agriculture.
types of agriculture
Agriculture is one of the most widespread activities in the world, but it is not uniform everywhere. Following are the major types of agriculture around the world.
(i) Animal Husbandry – Under this system of farming, great emphasis is laid on rearing of animals. Unlike nomadic herders, farmers lead a settled life.
(ii) Commercial Plantation – Though practiced in a small area, this type of cultivation is quite significant in terms of its commercial value. The major products of this type of farming are tropical crops such as tea, coffee, rubber and palm oil. This type of farming has developed in parts of Asia, Africa and Latin America.
(iii) Mediterranean Agriculture – Typically the rugged terrain of the Mediterranean region has distinctive livestock and crop combinations. Wheat and citrus fruits are the major crops, and small animals are the major livestock reared in the area.
(iv) Rudimentary sedentary tillage – This is a subsistence type of agriculture and it differs from other types in that the same plot of land is cultivated continuously year after year. Apart from cereal crops, some tree crops like rubber tree etc. are grown using this system.
(v) Milk production – Market proximity and temperate climate are the two favorable factors which are responsible for the development of this type of farming. Countries like Denmark and Sweden have developed this type of farming to the maximum.
(vi) Jhum cultivation – This type of agriculture is generally practiced by people living in tropical regions like South East Asia, with major emphasis on grain crops. This type of farming is on the decline due to pressure from environmentalists.
(vii) Commercial grain farming – This type of farming is a response to farm mechanization and is the dominant type of farming in low rainfall and sparsely populated areas. These crops are affected by weather and drought.
(viii) Livestock and grain farming – This type of agriculture is commonly known as mixed farming, and originated in the moist regions of the mid-latitudes, except in Asia. Its development is closely related to market features, and it is a typically European type of cultivation.
Features of Indian Agriculture:
(i) Source of Livelihood – Agriculture is the main occupation in our country. It provides employment to about 61% of the total population. It contributes about 25% to the national income.
(ii) Dependence on monsoon – Our Indian agriculture mainly depends on monsoon. If the monsoon is good then agriculture is good, otherwise not.
(iii) Labor intensive farming – Due to increase in population the pressure on land has increased. Land holdings are fragmented and subdivided. Machinery and equipment cannot be used on such farms.
(iv) Unemployment – In the absence of adequate irrigation facilities and due to insufficient rainfall, farmers are engaged in agricultural work only for a few months of the year. Because of which the rest of the time remains empty. It is also called hidden unemployment.
(v) Small size of holdings – Due to large scale sub-division and fragmentation of holdings, the size of land holdings becomes very small. Due to small holding size it is not possible to do high level farming.
(vi) Traditional methods of production – Traditional farming is practiced in our country. Not only farming, but also the tools used in it are ancient and traditional, due to which advanced farming is not possible.
(vii) Low agricultural production – Agricultural production is low in India. India produces about 27 quintals per hectare of wheat, 71.2 quintals per hectare in France and 80 quintals per hectare in Britain. The average annual productivity of an agricultural laborer has been estimated at $162 in India, $973 in Norway and $2408 in the USA.
(viii) Dominance of food crops – About 75% of the cultivated area is under food crops like wheat, rice and millets, while about 25% of the cultivated area is under commercial crops. This process is due to backward agriculture.
Epilogue
Agriculture and business are two separate axes, but interrelated and complementary to each other, which includes the organization and management of production from the use of agricultural resources to harvesting, processing and marketing of agricultural produce.
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