Types of Agriculture in India



Subsistence Farming

» In this type of agriculture, farmers work hard to grow enough food to survive only.
» In this type of farming the produce is consumed mainly by farmer and his family
» There remains no surplus to sell in the market.

Mixed Farming

» The combination of agriculture and pastoral farming is called mixed farming.
» In this type of farming, cultivation of crops and rearing of animals are done together on the same farm.

Shifting Cultivation

» This is a primitive form of agriculture, in which a plot of land is cultivated for a few years and then is deserted.
» This slash and burn method of farming is carried on in jungles of north-eastern part of India e.g. in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram etc.
» A plot of land is cleared for cultivation. As the yield decreases after two or three years, the plot is abandoned and a fresh clearing is made.

Extensive Farming

» This is a system of farming in which the cultivator uses a limited amount of labour and capital on relatively large area.
» This type of agriculture is practised in countries where population size is small and land is enough.
» Here, per acre yield is low but overall production is in surplus due to less population. Agriculture is done with the help of machines.

Intensive Farming

» This is a system of farming in which the cultivator uses large amount of labour and capital on a relatively small area.
» In countries where the size of population is big but land is less, this type of farming is done.
» Annually two or three crops are grown due to the demand of food for the large size of population.
» Agriculture is done with the help of manual labour.

Plantation Agriculture

»In this type of agriculture, trees or bushes are planted on huge estates.
» A single crop like rubber, sugarcane, coffee, tea or banana is grown.

Problems of Indian Agriculture

» The low productivity of our agriculture is mainly due to the difficulties faced by our peasants.
» Indian agriculture is chiefly of subsistence type where a large manual labour is employed to work on farms to grow just enough food for the needs of the family and very little is left for marketing.
» A major part of the Indian soil has been impoverished because it has been under plough for the last 4000 or 5000 years.
» Deforestation, overgrazing and heavy rainfall have led to soil erosion.
» Divisions of land have led to fragmentation.
» The size of land holding is very small and uneconomic.
» The farmers are poor, illiterate and ignorant.
» They use primitive tools and out dated method.
» They lack financial credit and investment.
» Good seeds, fertilizers and improved technology are not available to them.
» They lack irrigation facilities and are still on the mercy of nature.
» Most of the farmers have no security against crop failure or loss caused by nature.
» Generally farmers are uneducated and have no scientific approaches.

Three Crop Seasons in India

Rabi

» This season starts after the rainy season.
» Sowing begins in September-October and harvesting takes place in February-March.
» Wheat, barley, pulses and some oil seeds are grown in the Rabi season.

Kharif

» The Kharif season begins with the onset of the monsoons in June-July.
» The crop grows in the rainy season and harvesting takes place after the retreat of monsoon in September-October.
» Rice, maize, millets, groundnuts, cotton and jute are grown in the Kharif season.

Zayad

» This is the summer season for growing crops which remain till April, May and June.
» Products are mainly vegetables and fruits.

Green Revolution

» The increase in agriculture productivity of cereals that has taken place since the 1960s mainly as a result of introduction of high yielding varieties of wheat and rice and use of fertilizers, machines and irrigation etc., is known as green revolution.
» Green revolution has made us self-sufficient in food production.
» This has not only saved our much precious foreign exchange but has also made us self-reliant.
» But green revolution has proved more beneficial to rich farmers only, because it involves a lot of investment.