5 Marks Each

Question

State measures to improve productivity in agriculture.

Vidyadip · Accepted Answer

The government took the following steps to increase the agricultural productivity:
$(I)$ Institutional measures:
The government has taken several institutional measures under its five year plans. These are:
$1.$ Land reforms:

Government framed laws to abolish Zamindari system. This has helped to protect tillers from getting exploited and to help them obtain ownership of land.
These reforms help farmers to keep a major share of the crops with themselves for selling purpose unlike in the Zamindari system.
As a result, the farmers have become motivated to increase the agricultural productivity and overall production.

$2.$ Availability of institutional credit:

India set-up nationalized banks so that it could provide credit and other monetary facilities to the farmers.
In $1982,$ India established the ‘National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development $\text{(NABARD)’,}$ under the $\text{RBI}$ with the sole aim of financing agriculture sector.
Regional Rural Banks $\text{(RRBs)}$ and Land Development Banks $\text{(LDBs)}$ were also set-up under the $\text{NABARD,}$
All these institutions provide cheap credit that to in sufficient amount to Indian farmers. This has helped to boost the agricultural productivity.

$3.$ Improvement m structure of agriculture marketing:
The government has taken following steps to improve the structure of agriculture marketing:

Regulated markets have been set up.
$\text{‘AGMARK (AGMARK = Agriculture Marketing)’}$ has been introduced to classify the agriculture produce on the basis of its quality.
National warehouse corporation and state warehouse corporation have been set-up to store agricultural produce of farmers.
System has been developed so that the farmer can be provided information about prices of agriculture produce.
To protect farmer from changes that take place in market prices, the government announces bottom prices below which the produce cannot be sold.

$4.$ Agriculture research:

Indian farmers are mostly uneducated and do not have sufficient capital to conduct experiments and research in their fields. So, $\text{NABARD}$ has taken up this task.
Although $\text{NABARD}$ is an apex financial institution for providing credit to agricultural sector, it also undertakes several programmes and events and funds researches for agriculture and rural development.
$\text{NABARD}$ does .many researches and based on the outcomes it provides knowledge and training to the farmers to increase and improve their crops.
This helps farmer to leave their traditional ways of farming and adopt new scientific methods. The farmers thus earn higher income and are also able to fulfill the rising demand of the nation.
Moreover, to make farmers a part of agricultural reforms, collective rural development programs, Panchayati Raj, Integrated Rural Development Programs, Jandhan Yojana, etc. have been started. By becoming a part of these programmes the farmers are able to modernize the agriculture and increase their agricultural productivity.

$(II)$ Technological measures:
Institutional measures require major structural changes as compared to technological measures. So, it is easier to implement technological measures.
Following technical measures have been taken by the government:
$1.$ Improved seeds:

Seeds developed with the help of scientific research are called improved seeds $($hybrid seeds$\}.$
These scientifically developed seeds give more and faster production and also protect the crops against diseases.
India has been able to tremendously increase its production using these seeds.
Due to this extraordinary growth in food grains, the ‘Agriculture Revolution’ is also known as ‘Seed Revolution’.
National Agriculture Research Committee, National Seed Corporation and agripulture universities gave utmost importance and top priority for developing hybrid seeds as a means to increase agriculture productivity.

$2.$ Use of chemical fertilizers:

Use of chemical fertilizer increased with the use of improved seeds in India.
Chemical based fertilizers give required nutrition to plants and help them to grow fast. So, chemical fertilizers have proved highly beneficial for increasing agriculture productivity.
Nitrogen, phosphate, potash and other chemicals used as per crop.
India has also set-up public sector units such as $\text{IFFCO}$ to produce chemical fertilizers.
The government also imports and distributes fertilizers at subsidized rates.

$3.$ Increase in irrigation facility:

Rain is the main source of irrigation for Indian agriculture. However, rains are quite uncertain in India and so agriculture production and productivity gets affeoted badly.
A systematic and well ‘established irrigation facility is the key to solve this problem.
A well-established irrigation system can help to regularize the production and also increase the productivity. Hence, government has undertaken various developmental programmes in irrigation sector. The government has also set-up ‘Infrastructural development fund’ for this purpose.
$\text{NABARD}$ has been assigned the responsibility to finish the incomplete irrigation projects and to develop other irrigational facilities.

$4.$ Use of machines:

Government has encouraged use of various types of machines which can increase the speed of agriculture production.
With development of engineering and automobile sector, equipment and vehicles such as tractor, trailer, thresher, electric pump set, oil engines, pesticides sprinkler pump, etc. have been developed. These machines are extremely helpful for raising more than one crop a year, saving the crops, increasing the production speed and increasing productivity.

$5.$ Pesticides:

The government encourages using pesticides to protect the crops from various diseases.
The use of pesticides helps in reducing the loss and wastage that occurs due to diseased crops.
Their use thus helps in improving agricultural productivity. ‘.

$6.$ Soil testing:

By testing the soil, the farmer can find out about the properties of the soil and weather the soil is suitable for a particular crop or not. It also helps in knowing which minerals does the soil lack and which type of fertilizer will it need.
Thus soil testing is an effective means to improve and maintain productivity. Government helps the farmers in getting their soil tested. It also guides them about the care they will have to take to retain the, soil quality.

$(III)$ Other measures:

To improve agriculture productivity farmers should be educated. They should be well informed about the new technologies in agriculture.
They should also be made aware about the evil customs of the villages so that they become optimistic about agriculture.
Agricultural fairs and events should be arranged to guide farmers about increasing agriculture productivity,
Farmers should be made aware about agriculture allied activities such as cattle rearing, poultry farming, food processing, jungle farming, etc. so that they do not remain solely dependent on agriculture for livelihood.
Small scale agro industries should be expanded to rural areas so that such industries can become a support to agriculture.

Year	Extent of literacy in Extent of literacy in India	India and Gujarat Extent of literacy in Gujarat
$1981$	$43.57\%$	$44.92\%$
$1991$	$52.21\%$	$61.29\%$
$2001$	$64.83\%$	$69.14\%$
$2011$	$74.04\%$	$79.13\%$

Decade	$1951$	$1961$	$1971$	$1981$	$1991$	$2001$
Urban Population $(\%$ of Total Population$)$	$17.29$	$17.97$	$19.91$	$23.34$	$25.70$	$27.81$

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