Agriculture - Chapter 4 Geography NCERT Class 10

Summary

This video script delves into the significance of agriculture in India, tracing its roots back to the Vedic period and highlighting its evolution to the present day. It outlines the three main types of farming: primitive subsistence, intensive subsistence, and commercial farming. The script discusses India's diverse cropping patterns, technological and institutional reforms, and the sector's contribution to the national economy. It also addresses challenges such as globalization's impact, food security, and the need for increased investment in agriculture to ensure sustainable growth and maintain its vital role in the country's prosperity.

Takeaways

• 🌾 Agriculture is the largest livelihood provider in India, with a history dating back to the Vedic period (1500 to 500 BCE).
• 🌱 Today, two-thirds of India's population is engaged in agricultural activities, emphasizing its importance to the national economy.
• 🍲 Agriculture not only feeds the nation but also provides raw materials for multi-million dollar industries such as tea, coffee, and spices.
• 💡 Technological advancements in agriculture, such as high-yielding seeds and genetic engineering, have greatly increased efficiency and productivity.
• 🏡 Primitive subsistence farming, characterized by traditional methods and reliance on monsoon rains, is still practiced in some parts of India.
• 🔬 Intensive subsistence farming involves the use of advanced techniques and resources to maximize output from limited land, often under high pressure.
• 💼 Commercial farming focuses on crops with high profit potential, utilizing the latest technology and inputs for maximum productivity.
• 🌳 India's diverse physical geography and cultural plurality are reflected in its varied cropping patterns, including Rabi, Kharif, and Zaid seasons.
• 📉 Despite being a backbone of the economy, agriculture's contribution to India's GDP is declining, raising concerns about the sector's sustainability.
• 🌐 Globalization has exposed Indian agriculture to international markets, but domestic challenges such as infrastructure and subsidies in developed countries affect competitiveness.
• 🔄 The Indian government has implemented various reforms and support systems, such as the National Food Security System, to address food security and support farmers.

Q & A

What is the historical significance of agriculture in India?

The history of agriculture in India dates back to the Vedic period, around 1500 to 500 BCE. This era marked the beginning of agriculture in the Indian subcontinent when the Indo-Aryans settled in northern India near the Indus Valley, shaping the early stages of agriculture.

Why is agriculture considered vital to India's economy?

Agriculture is vital to India's economy because it is the largest livelihood provider, supports a significant portion of the population, and contributes to food security and raw materials for various industries. It also plays a role in foreign exchange earnings through exports.

What are the three types of farming mentioned in the script?

The three types of farming mentioned are primitive subsistence farming, intensive subsistence farming, and commercial farming. Each type represents different levels of technological use, intensity of labor, and focus on profitability.

What is the role of genetic engineering in modern agriculture?

Genetic engineering plays a crucial role in modern agriculture by enabling the development of high-yielding seeds that require less water and time to grow. These innovations contribute to increased productivity and efficiency in farming practices.

Can you explain the concept of 'slash-and-burn' agriculture mentioned in the script?

Slash-and-burn agriculture, also known as 'jump cultivation,' is a primitive subsistence farming method practiced mainly by tribal people in the northeastern region of India. It involves clearing land by cutting down natural vegetation, growing food crops, and then burning the remaining vegetation to enrich the soil with ash, before moving on to another plot.

What are the challenges faced by intensive subsistence farming?

Intensive subsistence farming faces challenges such as enormous pressure on agricultural land due to limited land availability and the need for higher production to meet economic or financial pressures. This can lead to land degradation and reduced productivity over time.

What is the significance of the Green Revolution in India's agricultural history?

The Green Revolution was a period of increased agricultural yields in India due to improved agronomic technology and best practices. It was aimed at overcoming food deficits and improving the agricultural sector's efficiency and productivity.

What are the three main cropping patterns in India?

The three main cropping patterns in India are Rabi, Kharif, and Zaid. Rabi crops are sown in winter and harvested in summer, Kharif crops are grown with the onset of the monsoon and harvested at the end of the monsoon, and Zaid crops are grown in the short summer season.

How does the Indian government support its farmers through institutional and technological reforms?

The Indian government supports farmers through various measures such as crop insurance, establishment of Grameen banks and cooperative societies, priority sector lending schemes by banks, and providing subsidies for seeds and fertilizers. These reforms aim to improve the agricultural sector's efficiency and sustainability.

What are the implications of the declining contribution of agriculture to India's GDP?

The declining contribution of agriculture to India's GDP indicates potential issues with the growth and sustainability of the agricultural sector. It can lead to challenges in food security, reduced employment opportunities in agriculture, and increased pressure on farmers to shift to other sectors for livelihoods.

What is the impact of globalization on Indian agriculture?

Globalization has exposed Indian agriculture to international markets, leading to increased production of crops like rice, cotton, rubber, tea, coffee, jute, and spices. However, it also presents challenges such as competition from heavily subsidized agriculture in developed countries and the need for improved infrastructure and support for small farmers in India.

Outlines

00:00

🌾 Agriculture's Role and History in India

This paragraph delves into the significance of agriculture in India, highlighting its status as the largest livelihood provider and tracing its roots back to the Vedic period (1500 to 500 BCE). It emphasizes the evolution of agriculture, the importance of a healthy nation being linked to prosperous agriculture, and the role of farming in producing food and raw materials for industries. The paragraph also introduces the concept of different types of farming, such as primitive subsistence farming, which relies on traditional methods and monsoon rains, and the impact of modern technology like high-yielding seeds from genetic engineering.

05:03

🚜 Types of Farming and Cropping Patterns

The second paragraph explores the different types of farming practices in India, including intensive subsistence farming characterized by high labor and biochemical inputs under pressure to maximize output from limited land. It also discusses commercial farming, focused on profitable crops using advanced technology and high-yielding seeds. The paragraph introduces the concept of cropping patterns, divided into Rabi, Kharif, and Zaid seasons, each with specific crops grown during different times of the year. The Green Revolution is mentioned as a key historical event that boosted agricultural yields through improved technology.

10:03

🛠️ Technological and Institutional Reforms in Agriculture

This section discusses the need for technological and institutional reforms in agriculture to improve efficiency and productivity. It touches on the government's Five-Year Plans, which have included measures for land reform and the abolition of the Zamindari system. The paragraph also covers strategies like the Green and White Revolutions, crop insurance, and the establishment of financial institutions to support farmers. The importance of these reforms for the sustainable growth of the agricultural sector is emphasized, alongside the challenges of adapting to a rising population and international competition.

15:04

📉 Agriculture's Contribution to the National Economy

The fourth paragraph examines the contribution of agriculture to India's GDP, noting a decline in its share despite the sector's foundational role in the economy. It discusses the government's efforts in collaboration with research institutions and the challenges of job creation in the face of increasing GDP. The paragraph also addresses the issue of farmers shifting from agriculture to the services sector due to lack of funding and the potential disastrous effects of such a shift on the economy.

20:04

🍲 Food Security and Globalization's Impact

The final paragraph addresses food security, defined as reliable access to sufficient, affordable, nutritious food. It outlines government initiatives like the National Food Security System, which includes buffer stock and public distribution systems. The paragraph also touches on the issues of categorization for poverty line benefits and the administrative challenges in food distribution. The impact of globalization on Indian agriculture is discussed, including historical trade with European countries and the current struggle of Indian agricultural products to compete internationally due to lack of infrastructure and subsidies.

Keywords

💡Agriculture

Agriculture refers to the practice of cultivating plants and livestock to produce food, fiber, and other organic products. In the video's context, it is the largest livelihood provider in India, dating back to the Vedic period and continuing to be integral to the country's economy and food security. The script discusses the historical development, current practices, and future challenges of agriculture in India.

💡Livelihood

Livelihood encompasses the means of living, including the ways and the resources that people use to make a living. The script highlights that agriculture is the primary source of livelihood for a large portion of India's population, emphasizing its importance in sustaining communities and the national economy.

💡Vedic Period

The Vedic Period, ranging from 1500 to 500 BCE, represents an era in Indian history when the Indo-Aryans settled in the northern part of India. The script mentions this period as the beginning of agriculture in the Indian subcontinent, shaping the country's long-standing relationship with farming.

💡Green Revolution

The Green Revolution refers to a period of agricultural modernization in India, marked by the introduction of high-yielding varieties of seeds, increased use of fertilizers, and irrigation. The script describes how this revolution led to increased agricultural productivity and helped overcome food deficits, playing a significant role in the country's food security.

💡Subsistence Farming

Subsistence farming is a type of agriculture primarily focused on producing enough food to sustain the farmer and their family, rather than for sale or profit. The script discusses two forms of subsistence farming: primitive and intensive, highlighting the traditional methods and the pressures on land in these farming practices.

💡Commercial Farming

Commercial farming is an agricultural practice aimed at producing crops for sale in the market to generate profit. The script explains that this type of farming involves the use of high-yielding seeds, chemical fertilizers, and other modern agricultural technologies to maximize output and profitability, with rice being a common commercial crop in India.

💡Cropping Pattern

Cropping pattern refers to the distribution and variety of crops grown in different seasons and regions. The script outlines three main cropping seasons in India: Rabi, Kharif, and Zaid, each associated with specific types of crops and farming practices that reflect the country's diverse physical and cultural landscape.

💡Technological Reforms

Technological reforms in the context of agriculture involve the adoption of new technologies, such as high-yielding seeds and advanced farming equipment, to improve productivity and efficiency. The script discusses the importance of such reforms for the sustainable development of the agricultural sector in India.

💡Institutional Reforms

Institutional reforms pertain to changes in the organizational structures and policies that govern a sector. In the script, institutional reforms in agriculture include measures like the abolition of the Zamindari system and the establishment of cooperative societies to support farmers and improve the sector's functioning.

💡Food Security

Food security means having consistent access to sufficient, nutritious food. The script discusses the challenges of ensuring food security in India, including the implementation of the National Food Security System, which involves buffer stock maintenance and a public distribution system to provide food to those below the poverty line.

💡Globalization

Globalization in agriculture refers to the integration of a country's agricultural sector with the global economy, influencing crop production and trade. The script touches on the historical and current impact of globalization on Indian agriculture, including the challenges of competing with heavily subsidized agriculture in developed countries.

Highlights

Agriculture is the largest livelihood provider in India with a history dating back to the Vedic period (1500 to 500 BCE).

Two-thirds of India's population is engaged in agricultural activities, emphasizing its importance to the nation's economy.

Agriculture not only feeds the nation but also provides raw materials for multi-million dollar industries such as tea, coffee, and spices.

Technological advancements in agriculture, such as high-yielding seeds, have significantly improved crop production with less input.

Three types of farming are identified: primitive subsistence farming, intensive subsistence farming, and commercial farming, each with unique characteristics and practices.

Primitive subsistence farming, also known as traditional farming, relies on monsoon rains and natural soil fertility without modern technology.

Intensive subsistence farming is characterized by high labor input, biochemical usage, and pressure on agricultural land for higher production.

Commercial farming focuses on profitability, utilizing high-yielding varieties, chemical fertilizers, and modern techniques for maximum output.

Cropping patterns in India are diverse, influenced by physical geography and cultural plurality, and are categorized into Rabi, Kharif, and Zaid seasons.

The Green Revolution was a pivotal period for Indian agriculture, significantly increasing yields through improved technology and practices.

Technological and institutional reforms are essential for the sustainable development of the agricultural sector in India.

India's agricultural sector contributes to the national GDP, but its share is declining, indicating a need for focused development.

The government's initiatives, such as crop insurance and establishment of banks for farmers, are steps towards institutional and technical reforms.

Food security in India is addressed through the National Food Security System, which includes buffer stock and public distribution systems.

Globalization has a significant impact on Indian agriculture, with both historical and contemporary implications for crop production and international trade.

The Indian agricultural sector faces challenges such as water scarcity, soil degradation, and the need for diversification to high-value crops.

Small farmers need support to improve their conditions, including better infrastructure and reduced reliance on chemicals for sustainable farming.

The video concludes with a call for increased investment in agriculture to address challenges and ensure the sector's vitality for the nation's future.

Transcripts

chapter for agriculture in this video we

will learn about agriculture and how it

is important to our country agriculture

is the largest livelihood provider in

India the history of agriculture in

India dates back to the Vedic period

that is 1500 to 500 BCE so this was the

time when the Indo iron settled into the

northern India near Indus Valley and the

culture was sometimes referred to as

vedic civilization agriculture was first

shaped in the Indian subcontinent during

this era now fast-forward today

two-thirds of a population is engaged in

agricultural activities there's a saying

in economics I don't know who said this

but it goes something like this

a healthy nation is a prosperous nation

and to be healthy agriculture produces

most of the food that we consume

apart from producing food for the nation

agriculture produces raw material for

various multi-million dollar industries

like tea coffee spices etc just think

about it supporting so much of

employment and not to forget many of

these items are exported and that brings

in a lot of foreign exchange just

imagine how much agriculture is

important now that we have a beef

context regarding the importance of

Agriculture let's move ahead and get to

know more in depth here is a summary of

the content in this video through

seconds back we learned the importance

of Agriculture and how a national

economy is dependent on it let's move on

to the second topic types of farming

agriculture is not something new it's

been carried out from ages hence there

will be significant changes in the way

it is carried out I'm talking about its

procedures techniques practices etc over

the time a lot of things change --is

like the physical environment let's take

an example of the weather weather is not

the same today what it used to be

thousands of years back similarly today

there is a massive technological boost

in the agricultural sector in order to

use them efficiently you have to be

aware of its technical know-how for

example today we have high yielding

seeds to grow crops quickly

these seeds produces more with less

input they do not require much water

they do not require much time these

innovation are possible due to genetic

engineering and one need to acquire the

knowledge in order to make efficient use

of this technology so based on such

diversity there are three types of

farming and they are one primitive

subsistence farming to intensive

subsistence farming and the last one is

commercial farming let's get to know

each one of them in brief the first one

is primitive subsistence farming now the

meaning of the term primitive is having

characteristics of an early stage so the

primary tools that were used for

agriculture were who doubt digging

stakes and family community laborers

because today we have large machineries

but there are many parts in India where

this kind of farming is still continued

where things are at its early stage so

most commonly this type of farming is

dependent on monsoon because that is the

cheapest and the best way of getting

water so you cannot think about having a

private channel from a reservoir for

irrigation and the second important

thing is need to have a natural

fertility of the soil again you cannot

afford to have fertilizers of or high

yielding seeds no advanced methods only

traditional methods so natural fertility

of the soil is important and then you

need suitability of the environment

which means the mother nature should be

happy again you cannot have access to

private rooms or freezers or some sort

of a place where you can control the

temperature so in simple terms we can

also say primitive subsistence farming

is also known as traditional farming

where there is no use of modern

technology or method everything is of

early stage so slash-and-burn

agriculture is one of the type of

primitive subsistence farming remember

that there is another word to it it's

called jump cultivation it's mainly

practiced by the tribal people of the

northeastern region so what they do is

they clear the land they cut down all

the natural vegetation they make it a

flat plane land they grow their food

crops and once they have done with the

growing part naturally the soil

fertility will decrease the

what they do is they burn the natural

vegetation so that all the born ashes of

the vegetation will again make the soil

fertile and in the meantime they move on

to the next piece of land this decreases

the land productivity and this type of

Agriculture is not recommended so I hope

you get the meaning of primitive

subsistence farming let's move on to the

second one

intensive subsistence farming so the

meaning of the word intensive means

intense serious or full-fledged so in

this type of farming you make use of all

kinds of facility that is available that

is intensive labor then high doses of

biochemical inputs and the focus is

always towards the higher production

however there is one problem with this

kind of farming there's always enormous

pressure on the agricultural land

because a farmer would have limited

piece of land and due to family

economical or financial pressure he has

to continue to grow more and more crops

so that he can have maximum output from

that limited piece of land so just

remember the word intense you will get

the meaning of this type of forming and

the last type of farming is commercial

farming so the meaning of the word

commercial is something that is

associated with business so when a

particular crop is associated with

business I mean if you earn some sort of

a huge profit by growing a particular

crop then you will use all kinds of

technology you will put an ample of

hardwork time effort money labor

everything and the reason is simple the

output is going to be profitable so this

is the meaning of commercial farming so

the kind of inputs that we put in this

kind of farming are you will use high

yielding varieties seeds so these are

genetically produce seeds so this kind

of seeds produces more with less input

then again you will use chemical

fertilizers insecticides and pesticides

for higher productivity now rice is a

very common as well as important

commercial crop because you and I vie to

eat rice at least once in our day so you

do realize the demand of this crop so

where there is huge 2-month there has to

be supply and supply is usually

profitable and that is the meaning of

commercial farming just remember that

now let's move on to the next topic

cropping pattern India has a rich

physical diversity

meaning physical effect divisions such

as the mountains plateaux deserts

islands all of this are so diverse

landforms and together they all exist in

the Indian subcontinent and then we have

plurality of cultures that is so many

communities with different religion

linguistic cultural tribal values exist

together not with all of this going on

you can see the reflection of diversity

in the way crops are grown and this is

what is referred to as cropping pattern

in India you can find fiber crops cereal

vegetables fruits and spices all of this

are grown but in a different season and

they have been nicely divided into three

types they are Rabi Karif and Zedd so

let's read about each one of them in

brief the first one is Robbie crop so

this crop is soared in the season of

winter that is from October to December

and harvested in summer that is from

April to June so always remember Robbie

crop is a winter crop the best way to

remember is the letter I also exists in

the word winter so when you have Robbie

it's winter remember that now some of

the important Rabi crops are wheat

barley piece gram now these crops are

grown in the large part of India

especially places near north and

northwest in parts such as Punjab

Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and

Kashmir with tarantula andother Pradesh

so remember India has two types of

monsoon that is southwestern monsoon and

then not eastern monsoon so the second

one that is the not eastern monsoon it

occurs during the winter season

therefore this monsoon or this rainfall

helps in the success of these crops now

due to the success of Green Revolution

it has helped in the growth of these

Rabi crops so Green Revolution was a

period when agriculture in India

increased its yields due to improved

agronomic technology you know at that

time everything was efficiently done we

have proper technology in place and with

best practices this movement green

revolution developed and this was purely

to overcome food defects because that

can lead to health

hazards now let's read about the kharif

crop kharif crops are grown with the

onset of monsoon so this is the

southwestern monsoon we are talking

about which starts at the beginning of

June and the crops are harvested in the

month of September or October by the end

of the monsoon so car if crop is sown in

the monsoon and Robbie crop is sown in

the winter remember that now some of the

car if crops are paddy maize jor bara

tor MooMoo Roth cotton jute ground nut

and soya bean so all of these crops are

grown at the region of Assam West Bengal

coastal regions of Orissa under Pradesh

Tamil Nadu Kerala and Maharashtra so you

see all of these places receives

rainfall from the southwest and wind so

this was all about the car if crop so

after Robbie and kharif season there's

something called Zee season so it is a

short season but it is mostly in the

summer so some of the crops that are

grown in this season are watermelon musk

melon koo kumba and other vegetables and

father's so all of these crops falls on

the Zayat crop so with this we are now

aware of the three types of cropping

patterns in India now let's read about

the major crops of India I have made a

separate video dedicated to this entire

topic I want you to watch that video and

you will have a nice understanding about

all the major crops that are grown in

India link to the video is in the

description you can also click on the

info card available on your top right

corner of this video let's move on to

the next topic technological and

institutional reforms now the meaning of

the words technological and

institutional reforms means that there

has to be a Reformation or change in the

technology the way we use and in the

institutional formation or function

because if we bring a positive change in

both the sectors that is the technology

as well as the institution it will only

contribute towards smooth functioning of

the work flow and efficiency will be at

its prime agriculture is the bloodline

of a country I mean without food no one

can survive therefore to develop this

sector there has to be a compatibility

with the acknowledged

and the institutional changes because if

you're performing agriculture on your

land without the help of technology or

any institutional help then it is not

sustainable meaning it will not last for

a very long time you will be exhausted

tired and your productivity will be low

there are so many farmers in this

country who still depends upon the

monsoon and the natural fertility of the

soil I mean it isn't wrong but the

productivity would be so less I mean as

a farmer you need to make use of the

irrigational facilities and then you

have to use fertilizers for for growing

the natural fertility of your soil you

also need to use high yielding variety

of seeds that take less input and gives

a larger output because if you don't

make use of all these new reforms then

it is going to be a serious challenge to

the rising population because what

happens when supply doesn't meet the

demand there will be all sorts of crisis

and no country wants that

therefore the agricultural sector needs

some serious technical and institutional

reforms so if you look at the first

five-year plan of our India or for those

of you who don't know what is fire your

plan it is a government plan for

economic development so what they do is

they decide and write it down all the

things that they want to do for the next

five years since independence we have

had twelve five-year plan anyways so if

you look at the document you will find

that there is a mentioning of

institutional reforms and technological

reforms for the agricultural sector so

what does it mean it means that even the

government is strong about adopting

these measures so that they can improve

the agricultural sector so if you look

at the first fire plan which was drafted

in the year of 1951 to 56 in that it is

mentioned about abolishing of Zamindari

system and that is a major step towards

land Reformation in case you want to

read more about it I have a link in the

description to the first fire plan in

fact you can read up all the fire plans

so some of the strategies that that has

been taken by the Government of India in

improving the Indian agricultural sector

is Green Revolution and white revolution

so these revolutions in

you'd both institutional and technical

reforms so some of the reforms were

provision for crop insurance against

Roth so just like you have an insurance

for your car here you have an insurance

for your crop then you have the

establishment of Grameen banks

cooperative societies and banks for

providing loan facilities to the farmer

so every bank has a priority sector

lending scheme so it is an important

role given by the Reserve Bank of India

so what happens in this scheme is the

bank has to keep aside certain amount of

money that can only be given to the

agricultural sector or allied activities

as loan so this money cannot be given

for any other purposes this is only

meant for agricultural activities so

these are some of the schemes introduced

by the government of India for the

benefit of the farmers and the next

topic is contribution of agriculture to

the national economy now we know that

agriculture has been the backbone of the

country therefore naturally its

contribution to the GDP would be

statistically visible but this

contribution is declining year by year

so any sort of decline or stagnation is

bad for the nation and will have serious

implications on the society government

is dedicated towards the development of

this sector by joining hands with Indian

Council of agricultural research many

agricultural universities many

veterinary services and numerous animal

breeding centers so all sorts of R&D is

being carried out by the government now

another challenge that our country faces

today is that our GDP is increasing but

the employment opportunity is not I'll

just give you an brief illustration as

to what I just said

so GDP is nothing but the value of all

the finished goods and services produced

within a country now I want you to

imagine two countries having GDP of 100

so country a has 100 and country B has

100 and also assume their population is

the same that is 10 people so in country

a 10 people are earning 10 rupees in

order to generate a GDP of 100 fair

enough now in country B 5 people are

earning 20 rupees each in order to

generate a GDP of 100 and rest 5 people

are unemployed

so you see increase in GDP does not mean

the country is doing well in terms of M

now with the similar principle we can

also think of it this way though the GDP

must be increasing for the country year

by year but then the growth rate of

agriculture is decelerating so the three

most important sectors agriculture

industries and services so these three

sector broadly determines the kind of

job that we are in so currently India's

GDP is 7.3 now it's really good it's

high but if you look at inside the

services sector is high followed by

industries and then last is agriculture

and Moomins back we just read that

agriculture is the backbone of the

Indian economy if that is low what good

is it going to do to the country I hope

you get what I'm trying to say and

because of the increase in the services

sector a lot of things are being

outsourced from developed nations to our

country including jobs products services

etc and because of that Indian farmers

are facing a big challenge from the

international competition and then on

the other hand government is also not

increasing the funding in the

agricultural sector and because of all

of this farmers are redrawing their

investment from agriculture there are a

lot of people who were farmers once upon

a time they have left the agricultural

sector and I move towards the services

sector for employment just imagine if

the entire population moves from one

sector to another it is going to be

catastrophic

though it may promise you comfort job

security and benefits but we need

sufficient amount of people at different

sectors so that no sector is empty

especially we can not afford to empty

the agricultural sector it needs to be

properly fed with investment so this was

the contribution of agriculture to the

national economy and the next topic we

are going to read about is food security

so the meaning of the term food security

is having reliable access to a

sufficient quantity of affordable

nutritious food usually the countries

with higher incidence of poverty do not

have food security because there are

many geographical political as well as

economical reasons apart from all of

this there are places which are prone to

natural disasters

and they are so remote that it's very

difficult to supply food over there even

such kind of places exist in today's

world so in order to deal with this

problem the government has designed

something called national food security

system and it has two components one is

above a stock and another one is public

distribution system so the meaning of

buffer stock is keeping a large quantity

of food in a storage or a warehouse and

then public distribution system is

nothing but the ration shop through

which that stored food is supplied at a

very lower price to the people who are

below the poverty line but then to

maintain such a huge stock of food the

government has to first buy those food

from the farmers and for that government

has fixed a support price wherein they

will buy that grain in that particular

price and then they will keep it in food

Corporation of India now this is a

national cause of course the prices at

which the government will buy from the

farmer is going to be less but then the

government is going to complement the

farmers by giving subsidies in providing

seeds fertilizers and all those sort of

things to grow nice crops so this is

like balancing the equation you are not

benefiting at the cost of someone else's

loss and then these foods are then taken

from food Corporation of India to the

public distribution systems that is the

ration shops and distribute it among the

people but as a great saying goes

everything has a problem and here the

problem is the government procures large

quantity of rice wheat and paddy from

the farmers because these are the staple

food for the Indian population and these

are being consumed at a large scale so

mostly the government buys all of these

crops and stock them now having said

that the farmers are even smarter they

have also developed interest in growing

only these kind of crops because there's

not going to be lost for the farmers

it's likely going to be taken by the

government so they will not have a loss

in it now due to this there is a

distorted cropping pattern and another

problem comes from the administrative

point of view we know that consumers or

the population is divided into two

categories that is above the poverty

line and below the poverty line

and based on this the government

provides this stocked food through PDS

2d below poverty line people but the

categorization is not perfect and the

number of deserving poor people are not

being benefited by these schemes so even

this problem needs to be addressed so

again all of this problem can be only

dealt if the government increases the

investment in agricultural sector

because the moment you create necessary

infrastructure like irrigation

facilities availability of electricity

then it automatically attracts the

private parties then the private party

is going to invest huge capital in it so

capitalism does helps only if it is

properly administered and monitored now

apart from all of this there are reasons

like scarcity of water then degradation

of soil due to the overuse of fertilizer

and pesticides and declining

productivity of land and then farmers

shifting from the food crops to

cultivation of fruits vegetable oil

seeds and industrial crops because of

commercialization so these are some of

the problems that the government needs

to address in order to improve the

agricultural sector of a nation and the

last topic of this chapter is impact of

globalization on agriculture

globalization means when an organization

develops international influence or

starts operating on an international

scale so here we are going to read about

how agriculture gained international

exposure so globalization is not

something new for Indian agriculture

industry it's been happening since 19th

century when European traders arrived

they used to take Indian spices to

different parts of the world and the

Indian farmers were asked to grow

European crops so all of this accounts

for globalization the British were

attracted to the cotton belts of India

they exported heavy cotton raw materials

to Britain and due to which Britain

textile industry flourished and we have

many more such examples of globalization

not today India is an important producer

of rice cotton rubber tea coffee jute

and spices but still our agricultural

products are not able to compete with

the developed countries because the

government of developed countries they

highly subsidized agriculture

in those countries as a result they are

able to produce good as well as huge

quantities of products in India we do

not have proper infrastructure for the

agricultural department the condition of

small farmers have barely changed our

farmers are still fighting the most

basic problems of agriculture like

overusing of chemicals land degradation

and bio vanishing biodiversity so all

these initial problems we are still

engaged in that so proper thrust should

be given to the improvement of the

condition of small farmers so there is

an old saying that success lies in small

small changes therefore the Indian

farmers should diversify their cropping

pattern from cereals to high-value crops

because this needs to be done at the

most basic level though we can sit and

talk about institutional and technical

reforms but at the ground level farmers

need to understand this logic behind

diversifying the cropping pattern we

have to learn the art of harnessing the

diverse climate and in the process grow

wide range of high-value crops so with

this we have come to an end of this

chapter I hope you have found this video

informative if you enjoy these videos

and see a purpose behind watching them

please like the video and comment down

below

until then catch you guys later and talk

to you guys on the next one peace