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Mineral and power resources 003
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-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Output and Growth
"¢ As per 2nd advance estimates for 2011-12, total foodgrains production is estimated at a record level of 250.42 million tonnes, which is 5.64 million tonnes higher than that of the last year production.
"¢ Percentage share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) originating from agriculture has fallen from about 30 percent in 1990-91 to 14.5 percent in 2010-11.
"¢ Out of the total share of 14.5 per cent that agriculture and allied sectors had in GDP in 2010-11, agriculture alone accounted for 12.3 per cent, followed by forestry and logging at 1.4 per cent and fishing at 0.7 per cent @@
"¢ As a result of openness policy of the government, the ratio of agricultural exports and imports as a percent of agricultural GDP increased from 4.9 percent in 1990-91 to 12.7 percent in 2010-11.
"¢ Agricultural production and growth in agriculture and allied sectors reached 7.0 per cent in 2010-11, the highest growth rate achieved during the last six years @@
"¢ Agricultural GDP witnessed a growth rate of 4.8 per cent during the Eighth plan period (1992–97), which fell to 2.5 percent during the Ninth plan period (1997–2002) and further to 2.4 percent during the Tenth plan period (2002–07). Growth rate during the first four years of Eleventh Plan (2007-12) was 3.5 percent.
"¢ During the 11th Five Year plan, agriculture growth is estimated at 3.28 per cent against a target of 4 per cent.
"¢ During 2000-01 to 2008-09, the growth performance of agriculture in Rajasthan (8.2%), Gujarat (7.7%) and Bihar (7.1%) was much higher than that of Uttar Pradesh (2.3%) and West Bengal (2.4%).
"¢ The key indicator in drivers of agri-growth is GCF in agriculture as a percentage to agri-GDP. As a proportion of the value added by agriculture to GDP, Gross Capital Formation (GCF) in agriculture and allied sectors rose to 20.1 per cent in 2010-11 from 13.5 per cent in 2004-05 at 2004-05 prices @@
"¢ In the early 1980s, the share of the public sector and private sector (including household sector) in gross capital formation (GCF) in agriculture was roughly equal, but by the early 2000s, the share of the private sector was four times larger than the share of the public sector at 2004-05 prices.
"¢ During 2010-11, foodgrains production was 244.78 million tonnes, comprising 121.14 million tonnes during Kharif season and 123.64 million tonnes during the Rabi season.
"¢ Of the total foodgrains production, production of cereals was 226.54 million tonnes and pulses 18.24 million tonnes during 2010-11.
"¢ As per the 2nd Advance Estimates, the area coverage under foodgrains during 2011-12 stood at 1254.92 lakh ha compared to 1267.65 lakh ha in 2010-11.
"¢ Despite inconsistent climatic factors in some parts of the country, there has been a record production, surpassing the targeted production of 245 million tonnes of foodgrains by more than 5 million tonnes during 2011-12.
"¢ As per 2nd advance estimates for 2011-12, production of rice is expected at 102.75 million tonnes, Wheat 88.31 million tonnes, coarse cereals 42.08 million tonnes and pulses 17.28 million tonnes.
"¢ The productivity of rice has increased from 1984 kg per hectare in 2004-05 to 2314 kg per hectare in 2011-12. The productivity of wheat which was 2602 kg/hectare in 2004-05 has increased to 3057 kg/hectare in 2011-12. The productivity of coarse cereals has increased significantly from 1153 kg per hectare in 2004-05 to 1572 kg per hectare in 2011-12
"¢ Oilseeds production during 2011-12 is estimated at 30.53 million tonnes, sugarcane production is estimated at 347.87 million tonnes and cotton production is estimated at 34.09 million bales (of 170 kg. each).
"¢ The productivity of pulses has significantly increased from 577 kg per hectare in 2004-05 to 679 kg per hectare in 2011-12.
"¢ By 2011-12, almost 90 percent of cotton area is covered under Bt cotton, production has more than doubled (compared to 2002-03), yields have gone up by almost 70 percent, and export potential for more than Rs 10,000 crore worth of raw cotton per year has been created.
"¢ All the major coarse cereals display a negative growth in area during the two periods-1990-91 to 1999-2000 and 2000-01 to 2010-11, except for maize, which recorded an annual growth rate of 2.68 per cent in the period 2000-01 to 2010-11. The production of maize has also increased by 7.12 percent in the latter period.
"¢ During 2010-11, maize was grown on an area of 8.55 million hectares with an all time record production of 21.73 million tonnes. About 88 % of cultivated maize is Kharif rainfed.
"¢ During 2011-12, the area under fruit crops is at 6.58 million ha with a production of 77.52 million tonnes, which contributes to a 32% share in total production.
"¢ Vegetables occupies 8.49 million ha with a total production of 149.61 million tonnes having a productivity of 17.42 tonnes per ha.
"¢ Milk production is estimated to be around 121.8 million tonnes during 2010-11 as compared to 53.9 million tonnes in 1990-91. Per capita availability of milk at national level has increased from 176 grams per day in 1990-91 to 281 grams per day in 2010-11.
"¢ Total meat production from cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat, pig and poultry at the all India level increased from 1.5 million tonnes in 2000-01 to an estimated 4.83 million tonnes in 2010-11.
"¢ The total egg production for the year 2010-11 was an estimated around 61.45 billion as compared to 21.1 billion during 1990-91. As per FAOSTAT latest production data for the year 2010, India ranks 3rd in egg production in the world.
"¢ The total fish production during 2010-11 is estimated at 8.29 million tonnes with a contribution of 5.07 million tonnes from the inland sector and 3.22 million tonnes from the marine sector.
Source: State of Indian Agriculture 2011-12, http://agricoop.nic.in/SIA111213312.pdf
@@ Economic Survey 2011-12, Ministry of Finance, Government of India, http://indiabudget.nic.in/es2011-12/echap-08.pdf
Interesting facts about Indian agriculture #
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using HYV or hybrid (improved) seeds is 59%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using fertilizers is 81%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using manure is 74%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using pesticides is 47%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using weedicides is 22%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using irrigation is 66%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using tractors and power tillers is 54%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated using harvestors and harvestor combines is 6%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated with improved seeds in the case of paddy (kharif) is 51%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated with improved seeds in the case of paddy (rabi) is 66%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated with improved seeds in the case of wheat is 63%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated with improved seeds in the case of other cereals is 64%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops cultivated with improved seeds in the case of pulses is 47%
"¢ Percentage of area under field crops located in villages with Govt. irrigation canals is 25%
"¢ Percentage of mechanically-tilled area using hired tractor/ power-tiller is 72%
"¢ Percentage of rural households engaged in field-crop cultivation is 61%
"¢ Percentage of field-crop cultivator (FCC)* households owning 1 hectare or less of land is 62%
"¢ Percentage of irrigated area hiring irrigation services from other households in canal areas is 40%
"¢ Percentage of irrigated area hiring irrigation services from other households in non-canal areas is 49%
* The category 'cultivator households' includes also those households who were reported to have some area under orchards or plantations but none devoted to cultivation of seasonal crops. As distinct from a cultivator household, a field-crop cultivator (FCC) household is defined as one which reported cultivation of at least one field crop during the agricultural year.
# Cultivation Practices in India, Report No. 451(54/31/3), NSS 54th Round, January 1998 – June 1998:
Farmer suicides in India, currently estimated at over 200,000 between 1997 and 2011.
The dramatic increase in food prices in recent times might also lead one to believe that farming is a profitable business. However, in India, while large farmers are net sellers of food grains, small farmers who constitute a major percentage of the farming population are net buyers. This means that as food prices increase, large farmers make bigger profits while smaller farmers are forced to shell out more money for their food.
Numerous reasons have been cited for this decline, one of the most interesting being the after-effects of the Green Revolution in India. In the 1960s, High Yielding Varieties (HYV) of crops, most importantly rice and wheat, were developed by international agricultural research centres and introduced in Latin America and Asia. In India, these crops were rapidly adopted and led to increased productivity. Although these crops required higher input of fertilizers and irrigation, they had much higher output than traditional varieties. Furthermore, the Indian Government promoted these crops by subsidizing inputs such as fertilizers and electricity for irrigation. However, the investment in irrigation has been gradually declining with the result that only 35% of the total agricultural area is currently irrigated. Moreover, the input subsidies have placed a heavy fiscal burden on the government.
For example, the state of Punjab in India was at the forefront of the Green Revolution and underwent substantial modernization of the agricultural sector. There was consolidation in the land holdings and the subsidization of electricity for irrigation by the government. Per hectare consumption of fertilizers increased, and water intensive crops like cotton, rice and wheat were adopted. Singh has shown that the total operational cost of rice and wheat increased by around 50% between 2000-01 and 2005-06, while rice yields increased by only 12%, and wheat yields actually declined by 8%. (Singh, Karam. 2010. "Agrarian Crisis in Punjab: High Indebtedness, Low Returns and Farmer Suicides". Agrarian Crisis in India. Edited by Narasimha Reddy and Srijit Mishra. Oxford University Press. 261 – 280.) This means that while farmers spend more money on growing their crops, their total output, and therefore their profit, has continued to decline. Moreover, excessive dependence on these crops has made farmers extremely vulnerable to a number of factors ranging from volatility of commodity prices to increasing changes in weather patterns due to climate change. Had they maintained their crop diversity and not solely depended on these HYVs, they might have been better shielded from these factors.
Another factor that has an important impact on agriculture in India is the Agreement on Agriculture (AOA) under the World Trade organization (WTO). This was formed in order to enforce the policies of economic liberalization and promote free trade. Under this system, it was believed that developing countries would have the comparative advantage over developed countries. However, the opposite has often been the case, mainly because of its distorting effects on market access and relationships.
For example, the first tenet of the AOA required enabling market access. Developing countries could no longer have import bans and prevent other countries from importing commodities into their markets. Instead, they had to replace them with tariffs. However, Gulati found that while India's peak tariff rate in the dairy sector was zero percent in 1998, those of the EU, South Korea, Canada and Japan were 99%, 211%, 213% and 336% respectively, thus preventing or at the least making it extremely difficult to gain access to their markets. (Gulati, Ashok. 2001. "Agriculture and the New Trade Agenda in the WTO 2000 Negotiations: Interests and Options for India." Prepared for The World Bank's Integrated Program of Research and Capacity Building to Enhance Participation of Developing Countries in the WTO 2000 Negotiations)
The combined result of the AOA is that markets in developing countries are flooded with cheaper commodities from developed countries. Although AOA essentially allows developing countries to put in place their own mechanisms to reduce the price of their commodities, they simply cannot afford to do so.
In today's world, a farmer in rural India is inevitably linked to a banker on Wall Street. Professor Jayati Ghosh, an eminent economist from India, has shown how speculation and futures trading in commodities by large banks adversely affected the price of crops and directly contributed to the global food crisis. In an interestingly titled paper "The Unnatural Coupling: Food and Global Finance", she argues that deregulation of commodities trading in the United States and elsewhere resulted in extreme volatility of food markets.
The problem with agriculture in India, as in many developing counties today, does not lie with demand-supply imbalances, a decline in net food production, or excessive demand caused by population growth. The problem does not even lie completely with the actual farming itself, but rather the political economy of the society in which it takes place.
Agriculture in India intersects with almost every development agenda—be it poverty elimination, rural development, environmental protection or human development—because of the huge number of people it employs. It is therefore very important that agricultural development successfully keep pace with the progress other sectors have made. Teaching farmers how to better invest their money and grow crops using advanced scientific techniques is no doubt important, but there are a number of extremely complex factors at play that determine the profitability of agriculture. If India were to achieve the status it wishes on the world stage, it would do well to understand this and protect the sector that is a big source of livelihood for a huge percentage of its population.
I just heard a fact cited in a radio program that only 3% of US population is involved directly with agriculture. What percentage do you suppose it is in India or Pakistan?Agriculture is most important sector of economy
Majority of the population.I just heard a fact cited in a radio program that only 3% of US population is involved directly with agriculture. What percentage do you suppose it is in India or Pakistan?
I thought it would be, but the contrast to me is astounding.Majority of the population.
In 1961 India was on the brink of mass famine.[3] Borlaug was invited to India by the adviser to the Indian minister of agriculture C. Subramaniam. Despite bureaucratic hurdles imposed by India's grain monopolies, the Ford Foundation and Indian government collaborated import wheat seed from CIMMYT. Punjab was selected by the Indian government to be the first site to try the new crops because of its reliable water supply and a history of agricultural success. India began its own Green Revolution program of plant breeding, irrigation development, and financing of agrochemicals.[4]
India soon adopted IR8 – a semi-dwarf rice variety developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) that could produce more grains of rice per plant when grown with certain fertilizers and irrigation. In 1968, Indian agronomist S.K. De Datta published his findings that IR8 rice yielded about 5 tons per hectare with no fertilizer, and almost 10 tons per hectare under optimal conditions. This was 10 times the yield of traditional rice.[5] IR8 was a success throughout Asia, and dubbed the "Miracle Rice". IR8 was also developed into Semi-dwarf IR36.
Wheat yields in developing countries, 1950 to 2004, kg/HA baseline 500. The steep rise in crop yields in the U.S. began in the 1940s. The percentage of growth was fastest in the early rapid growth stage. In developing countries maize yields are still rapidly rising.[6]
In the 1960s, rice yields in India were about two tons per hectare; by the mid-1990s, they had risen to six tons per hectare. In the 1970s, rice cost about $550 a ton; in 2001, it cost under $200 a ton.[7] India became one of the world's most successful rice producers, and is now a major rice exporter, shipping nearly 4.5 million tons in 2006.