Status of Agriculture

 In India agriculture is broadly classified into 5

different periods before India’s Independence, which
are as under:
1. Early history (Before 15000 BCE)
2. Vedic period – Post Maha Janapadas period (1500 BCE-200
CE)
3. Early Common Era – High Middle Ages (200-1200 CE)
4. Late Middle Ages – Modern Era (1200-1757 CE)
5. Colonial British Era (1757-1947 CE)
[Where; BCE- Before Common Era ; CE- Common Era /AD –
Anno Domini]

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 1. Early history (Before 15000 BCE)

 9000 BCE: Wheat and barley were domesticated in the Indian

subcontinent. Domestication of horse, sheep and goat soon

followed. This period also saw the first domestication of elephant.

 8000-6000 BCE: Barley and Wheat cultivation, along with

domestication of cattle, primarily sheep and goat - was visible in

Mahrgarh (Balochistan, now in pakistan). Agro pastoralism in India

included threshing, planting crops in rows – either of two or six

and storing grain in granaries.

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 5000 BCE: Agricultural communities became widespread in
Kashmir.
 5000-4000 BCE
 Cotton was cultivated. The Indus cotton industry was well
developed and some methods used in cotton spinning and
fabrication continued to be practiced till the modern
Industrialization of India.
 Variety of tropical fruit such as mango and muskmelon are
native to the Indian sub- Continent. The Indians also
domesticated hemp, which they used for a number of
applications including making narcotics, fibre and oil.

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 The farmers of the Indus Valley grew peas, sesame and dates.

Sugarcane was originally from tropical south Asia and Southeast

Asia.

 Different species likely originated in different locations with

Saccharum barberi originating in India and Saccharum edule and

Saccharum officinarum coming from New Guinea.

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 5440 BCE: Wild Oryzae rice appeared in the Belan and Ganges

velley regions of Northern India. Rice was cultivated in the Indus

Valley Civilization.

 4500 BCE: Irrigation was developed in the Indus Valley Civilization.

The size and prosperity of the Indus Civilization grew as a result of

this innovation, which eventually led to more planned settlements

making use of drainage.

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 3000 BCE: Sophisticated irrigation and water storage systems

were developed by the Indus Valley Civilization, including artificial

reservoirs at Girnar.

 2600 BCE: An early canal irrigation system from Circa.

 2500 BCE: Archeological evidence of an animal- drawn plough in

the Indus Valley Civilization.

 2000 BCE: Agricultural activity included rice cultivation in the

Kashmir and Harrappan regions.

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 2. Vedic Period – Post Maha Janapadas Period (1500
BCE-200 CE)

 Gupta (2004) finds it likely that summer monsoons may have been longer

and may have contained moisture in excess than required for normal food

production. One effect of this excessive moisture would have been to aid

the winter monsoon rainfall required for winter crops.

 In India, both wheat and barley are held to be Rabi (Winter) crops and like

other parts of the world – would have largely depended on winter

monsoons before the irrigation became widespread.

 The growth of the Kharif crops would have probably suffered as a result of

excessive moisture.
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 Jute was first cultivated in India, where it was used to make ropes

and cordage.

 Some animals- thought by the Indians as being vital to their

survival – came to be worshiped.

 Trees were also domesticated, worshiped and venerated – peepal

and Banyan in particular.

 Others came to be known for their medicinal uses and found

mention in the holistic medical system Ayurveda.

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 1000-500 BCE: There are repeated references to iron. Cultivation of
a wide range of cereals, vegetables and fruits is described. Meat
and milk products were part of the diet; animal husbandry was
important. The soil was ploughed several times. Seeds were
broadcasted. Fallowing and a certain sequence of cropping were
recommended. Cow dung provided the manure. Irrigated was
practiced.
 322-185 BCE: The Mauryan Empire categorized soils and made
meteorological observations for agricultural use. Other Mauryan
facilitation included construction and maintenance of dams and
provision of horse-drawn chariots-quicker than traditional bullock
carts.
 300 BCE: The greek diplomat Megasthenes, in his book Indika –
provides a secular eyewitness account of Indian agriculture. 10
 3. Early Common Era – high Middle Ages
(200-1200 CE)

 The Tamil people cultivated a wide range of crops such as rice,

sugarcane, millets, black pepper, various grains, coconuts, beans,

cotton, plantain, tamarind and sandalwood. Jackfruit, Coconut,

palm, areca and plantain trees were also known.

 Systematic ploughing, manuring, weeding, irrigation and crop

protection was practiced for sustained agriculture. Water storage

systems were designed during this period.

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 Kallanai (1st-2nd century CE), a dam built on river Kaveri during this

period, is considered the as one of the oldest water – regulation

structures in the world still in use.

 Spice trade involving spices native to India -including cinnamon

and black pepper – gained momentum as India starts shipping

spices to the Mediterranean.

 Roman trade with India followed as detailed by the archaeological

record and the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea.

 Chinese sericulture attracted Indian sailors during the early

centuries of the Common Era.

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 320 -550 CE: Crystallized sugar was discovered by the time of the

Guptas and the earliest reference of candied sugar come from

India.

 647 CE: Chinese documents confirm at least two missions to India,

initiated in, for obtaining technology for sugar-refining.

 875-1279 CE: Noboru Karashima’s research of the agrarian society

in south India during the Chola Empire reveals that during the

Chola rule land was transferred and collective holding of land by a

group of people slowly gave way to individual plots of land, each

with their own irrigation system.

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 The growth of individual disposition of farming property may

have led to decrease in areas of dry cultivation.

 The Cholas also had bureaucrats which oversaw the

distribution of water, particularly the distribution of water by

tank and channel networks to the drier areas.

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Spaced repetition -“ Method of Reviewing material at
systematic intervals”

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 4. Late Middle Ages – Early Modern Era (1200-1757
CE)

 The construction of water works and aspects of water technology

in India is described in Arabic and Persian works. The diffusion of

Indian and Persian irrigation technologies gave rise to irrigation

systems which bought about economic growth and growth of

material culture.

 Agriculture ‘Zones’ were broadly divided into those producing rice,

wheat or millets.

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 Rice production continued to dominate Gujarat and wheat

dominated north and central India.

 The Encyclopaedia Britannica details the many crops introduced to

India during this period of extensive global discourse.

 1556-1605 CE: Land management was particularly strong during

the regime of Akbar the Great under whom scholar- bureaucrat

Todarmal formulated and implemented elaborated methods for

agricultural management on a rotational basis.

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 Indian crop-such as cotton, sugar and citric fruits –spread visibly

throughout North Africa, Islamic Spain and the Middle East.

 Though they may have been in cultivation prior to the

solidification of Islam in India, their production was further

improved as a result of this recent wave, which led to far –

reaching economic outcomes for the regions involved.

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 5. Colonial Birtish Era (1757-1947 CE)

 A number of irrigation canals are located on the Sutlej river.

 Few Indian commercial crops – such as Cotton, Indigo, opium and

rice made it to the global market under the British Raj in India.

 The second half of the 19th century saw some increase in land

under cultivation and agricultural production expanded at an

average rate of about 1 per cent per year by the later 19th century.

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 Due to extensive irrigation by canal networks punjab, Narmada
valley and Andhra Pradesh became centers of agrarian reforms.
 The British regime in India did supply the irrigation works but
rarely on the scale required.
 Community effort and private investment soared as market for
irrigation developed.
 Agricultural prices of some commodities rose to about three
times between 1870-1920.

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 A rich source of the state of Indian agriculture in the early British
era is a report prepared by British engineer, Thomas Barnard and
his Indian guide, Raja Chengalvaraya Mudaliar, around 1774.
 This report contains data of agricultural production in about 80
villages in the area around chennai in the years 1762 to 1766.
 This report is available in Tamil in the form of palm leaf
manuscripts at Thanjavur Tamil University and in English in them
Tamil Nadu State Archives.

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 1871: Government of India created Department of Revenue,
Agriculture and Commerce which formed as base for Initiation of
Agriculture in India.
 1880: Famine Commission Report was submitted which was base
for inception of Agricultural Department.
 1881: Separate Department of Agriculture at Centre for Famine relief
operations.

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 1890: Dr. J.A. Avoelcker appointed as a consulting chemist from
Royal Agricultural society (England)- Laid foundation for
agricultural research in India.
 1892-1903- Appointment of Imperial Agricultural chemist, Imperial
Mycologist and Imperial Entomologist – Base for Beginning of
inducting the scientist in Agriculture.
 1901 - 1905: To enhance agricultural education, Establishment of
Agricultural Colleges at Pune, Kanpur, Sabour, Nagpur,
Coimbatore and Lyallpur (Now in Pakistan).

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 1905: Establishment of Imperial Agricultural Research Institute
(IARI) at pusa.
 1929: Based on Royal Commission on Agriculture’s
recommendation (1928), Imperial Council of Agricultural Research
(ICAR) was establishment to conduct comprehensive research.
 1931-1947: Indian Lac Cess Committee, Indian Central Tobacco
Committee, Indian Central Oilseeds Committee, were formed to
improve research in various crops.

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 Republic of India (1947 CE onwards)

 Special programs were undertaken to improve food and cash

crops supply.

 The grow More Food campaign (1940s) and the Integrated

Production Programme (1950s) focused on food and cash
crops supply respectively.

 1957: All India Coordinated Maize Improvement Project was

initiated (First Coordinated Project) to exploit maize Research
(Specifically heterosis).

 Five – year plans of India – oriented towards agricultural

development soon followed.

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• 1963: Introduction of semi dwarf wheat varieties from CIMMYT,
Mexico Formed basis for green revolution.
• 1966: Introduced semi-dwarf rice varieties TN1 and IR 8 from
Taiwan and Philippines respectively is formed as base for green
revolution.
 Land reclamation, land development, mechanization,
eletrification, use of chemicals- fertilizers in particular and
development of agriculture oriented ‘package approach’ of
taking a set of actions instead of promoting single aspect soon
followed under government supervision.

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 The many production revolutions initiated from 1960s
onwards included Green Revolution in India, Yellow
Revolution (Oilseed : 1986-1990), Operation Flood
(diary:1970-1996) and Blue Revolution [fishing:1973-2002] etc.

 1979: National Agricultural Research Project [NARP] was

launched to strengthen the research capabilities of SAUs.

 Following economic reforms of 1991, significant growth was

registered in the agricultural sector, which was by now
benefiting from the earlier reforms and the newer innovations
of Agro- processing and Biotechnology.

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 1998: National Agricultural Technology Project [NATP] was

initiated Strengthen the research on location specific problems

Contract farming - which requires the farmers to produce crops

for a company under contract and high value agricultural

produce increased.

 2006: National Agricultural Innovative Project [NAIP] was

launched for End to end approach for solving problems.

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 Time Line Of Development of Agriculture

S.NO Time Line Development of Agriculture

1 9500 BCE Earliest evidence for domesticated wheat
2 9000 BCE Early cultivation of plants and domestication of
crops and animals
3 8000 BCE Evidence for cattle herding
4 7000 BCE Cultivation of barley; animals are domesticated
5 6500 BCE Cattle domestication in Turkey
6 6000 BCE Indus Valley grows from wheat to cotton and
sugar
7 5500 BCE Sumerians start organized agriculture
8 5400 BCE Archaelogical proof for domestication of chicken

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S.NO Time Line Development of Agriculture
9 5400 BCE Linearbandkeramik Culture in Europe
10 5000 BCE Africa grows rice, sorghum
11 4000 BCE Ploughs make an appearance in Mesopotamia
12 3000 BCE Maize is domesticated in Americas
13 3000 BCE Turmeric is harvested at Indus Valley
14 2737 BCE Tea is discovered
15 2000 BCE 1st windmill in Babylon
16 1000 BCE Sugar processing in India
17 500 BCE Row Cultivation in China
18 Year 200 Multi-tube seed drill invented in china
19 Year 700 Arab Agriculture Revolution
20 Year 1000 Coffee originates in Arabia
21 Year 1492 Columbian exchange changes agriculture

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S.NO Time Line Development of Agriculture
22 Year 1599 1st Practical Greenhouse is created
23 Year 1700 British Agricultural Revolution
24 Year 1700 Charles Townshend Popularizes
25 Year 1794 Cotton gin is invented
26 Year 1800 Chemical fertilizer began to be used
27 Year 1837 John Deere invents steel plough
28 Year 1860 Hay cultivation changes
29 Year 1866 Gregor Mendel describes Mendelian inheritance
30 Year 1879 Milking machine replaces hand milking
31 Year 1892 First practical gasoline- powered tractor
32 Year 1900 Birth of industrial agriculture
33 Year 1930 First aerial photos for agriculture
34 Year 1930 First plan patent is given
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S.NO Time Line Development of Agriculture
35 Year 1939 DDT becomes a rage
36 Year 1944 Green Revolution begins in Mexico
37 Year 1972 Organic movement starts taking roots
38 Year 1996 Commercial cultivation of genetically modified plants
39 Year 1998 National Agricultural Technology Project (NAPT) was
initiated
40 Year 2006 National Agricultural Innovative Project [NAIP]
41 Year 2007 National Food Security Mission
42 Year 2009-10 National Livelihood Mission
43 Year 2014 Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana [PMFBY]
44 Year 2015 Pradhan Mantri Gram Sinchai Yojana [PMGSY]
45 Year 2015 Soil Health Card Scheme
46 Year 2015 Krishi Dak Service

47 Year 2016 DBT for Fertilizer Subsidy

48 Year 2018 Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana
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 Status of Farmers in Society

 Most of the Indian Farmers are now leading a very

miserable life. Industry has not thriven much in country.
Hence most of the people depend on agriculture. As a
result there has been a great pressure on land. Each
cultivator has got a very small amount of land. He gets
only a small income from the produce of his land. So he
cannot maintain his family with that income.

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 For this reason he has to run into debt. Thus we see
that the farmers as a class are debtors. We cannot
always get two meals a day. They have not even
ordinary clothes to wear. When they fall ill, they
cannot meet the expenses of treatment and medicine.
So, for want of food, drinking water, good dwelling
houses they fall ill and die in large numbers for want of
treatment and diet.

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 Measures to Improve Farmers Condition in India

 India is mainly an agricultural country. Hence her prosperity depends largely

on the improvement of agriculture. This can be done if the condition of the
farmers can be improved. If agriculture is neglected, all classes of people
will suffer. There had been, for some years, shortage of food crops in India.
We had to buy food crops to other countries at a very high price.

 Hence, we all now feel the importance of growing more food. So for this
reason at present there has been some improvement in this respect. More
food crops are being produced now.

 As a result, our country is now self-sufficient in the matter of food crops.

The farmers should get every facility to grow more food crop. If we can
depend on our own food crops, we can save much money. This money may
be spent in buying machinery for the development of industry. Considering
all these, the Government has laid great importance on the problem of
growing more food.

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 Measures to Improve Farmers Condition in India

They are to be educated- The farmers are the backbone of the nation.
So, it is the first duty of the people and the Government of the country
to improve their condition. If their condition is not improved, the whole
nation will suffer.
 Generally farmers of our country are not educated. As they are
poor, they cannot bear the educational expenses of their children. So

they must learn the principles of scientific agriculture.

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 The old method of cultivation should be changed-
Our farmers do not know how to cultivate the land
scientifically.
 They follow the ancient method of tilling the land
with a plough and a pair of oxen. But in Western
countries, the farmers use motor tractors. Within a
short time they till many acres of land and get more
crops.

 But the Indian farmers cannot till so much land and

do not get so much crops. Hence, they should be
trained to use motor tractors to till the land.

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 The Western farmers use improved manure to make the soil fertile.
For this reason also they get more crops. Indian farmers generally
use only cow-dung as manure. This also they do not use in large
quantities. Hence, the fertility of the soil is not increased and the
land does not yield more crops.

 In Western countries the agricultural land is not divided into small

plots. A farmer has got many acres of land in one big plot. It is
economial to cultivate such a plot with tractors. In our country, the
farmers have got small plots of land and the plots of a cultivator
are situated at different places.

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 Motor tractors cannot be used in such small plots. The cost of
cultivation also is greater. Hence the farmers should join together
and till their land with tractors. It is now done in Russia with great
success, This is called collective farming. Like India, Russia also
was mainly an agricultural country and the condition of the
farmers was miserable.
 But now scientific agriculture has been introduced there and the
farmers are well off now and the country also has been
prosperous.

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 They should learn thrift - our farmers should learn to be thrifty.
They spend more than what they earn. When they reap the
harvest, they sell the crops and get money. At that time they
spend money lavishly. They do not then think of future. Within a
short time they spend all their money. Then they are compelled
to borrow money. In this way they run into debt.
 They should learn some craft – Indian farmers are not engaged
for all the time in cultivating their land. Sometimes they have to
remain idle. If they learn some handcrafts, such as spinning,
weaving, they can earn some money and supplement their
income from cultivation. They can thus be free from want.

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 Duty of the Government

 As the prosperity of the country depends largely on

agriculture, our Government should try to improve
the condition of the farmers.

 They should set up agricultural schools and model

farms to educate the farmers free of cost. They
should irrigate the land to make it fertile.

 They should lend money to the farmers at a nominal

interest during the season of cultivation.

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 They should distribute good seeds and manure to

the farmers.

 The farmers may not be able to buy tractors.

 Our Government should lend tractors to them at a

nominal charge.

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