Introduction to Agriculture

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 Introduction
This document consists of 4 sections

1) 10 Marker Questions: In this part we shall be giving you 10 marker questions. These
are supposed to be somewhat direct and easy as compared to 15 marker questions

2) 15 Marker Questions: In this part we shall be giving you 15 marker questions. These
are supposed to be little complex or consisting of multiple sub questions or may be
an integrated question from concepts of different chapters

3) Previous Year Descriptive Questions: There are no previous year descriptive

questions as this is introduced for the first time in 2021.

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subjective questions are available.

5) Homework Question: There is one homework question for you to think and write.
The answer for this question will not be given by us.

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 Other Guidelines

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 10 Markers (400 Words)

Q.1) Enumerate various branches of Agriculture and discuss the branches of crop
production group.
Approach
Introduction: Explain agriculture and enlist the branches of Agriculture

Body: Discuss about the branches of Agriculture which fall under crop production group.

Conclusion: Conclude with the importance of the crop production group among various branches
of Agriculture.

Answer

The word 'Agriculture' in simple terms means the science and Art of producing crops and
livestock for economic purpose and for the use of mankind. As the time passed, it included
the work of cultivating the soil, producing crops, planting forest plants/trees, raising livestock
and rearing fishes. This lead agriculture scientists and historians come up with branches of
Agriculture to pave a way for convenient Research and development in the respective
branches.

Thus, Agriculture has been divided into 7 major branches. The below mentioned are the
branches of Agriculture.

1. Agronomy
2. Horticulture
3. Forestry
4. Animal husbandry
5. Fishery science
6. Agricultural Engineering
7. Home science

Of the 7 branches mentioned above, the first three, viz., Agronomy, Horticulture and Forestry
can be grouped under “Crop production group”, Animal Husbandry and Poultry group as
“Animal Management group” and Agricultural engineering and Home science as “Allied
agriculture group”.

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 • The Crop production group deals with all the aspects of raising crops, viz., field crops,
Fruits and Vegetable crops and forest trees.
• The Animal management group deals with all the aspects of rearing of animals like Cattle,
buffaloes, swines, horses, camels, fowls, marine and fresh water fishes.
• The Allied agriculture group deals with those disciplines of agriculture that support the
agriculture groups, crop production group and Animal management group.

Let us now have a detailed explanation of the Crop production group.

1. Agronomy: It deals with the production of various crops which includes Food crops, Fodder
crops, Fibre crops, Sugar, Oilseeds, etc. The aim is to have better food production and how
to control the pests and diseases.

✓ Food crops: As the name goes, these crops provide food to us (humans) in the form
of Cereals (Eg: Rice, Wheat), Millets (Eg: Ragi, Bajra) etc.,
✓ Fodder crops: These crops provide food to animals. (Eg: Barseem, Alfalfa etc.,)
✓ Fibre crops: These crops provide fibre to us for clothing, gunny bags etc., (Eg:
Cotton, Mesta etc.,)
✓ Sugar crops: These crops are grown for sugar. (Eg: Sugarcane)
✓ Oil Seeds: These crops are grown for oil. (Eg: Sunflower, Ground nut)

2. Horticulture: It deals with the production of fruits, vegetables, flowers, ornamental plants,
spices, condiments, and beverages. It is again divided into 8 types based on type of
horticulture plants grown or operations conducted.

✓ Arboriculture: Study of, and the selection, planting, care, and removal of, individual
trees, shrubs, vines, and other perennial woody plants.
✓ Floriculture: Production and marketing of floral crops. Examples: Roses, Jasmines,
Lilies etc.,
✓ Landscape horticulture: Production, marketing, and maintenance of landscape plants.
Examples: Berberis thunbergii, Paeonia lactiflora etc.,
✓ Olericulture: Includes the production and marketing of vegetables. Examples: Brinjal,
Tomato etc.,
✓ Pomology: Production and marketing of fruits. Examples: Apples, Mangoes etc.,
✓ Viticulture: Production and marketing of grapes.
✓ Oenology: All aspects of wine and winemaking.
✓ Postharvest Management: Maintaining the quality of and preventing the spoilage of
horticultural crops.

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 3. Forestry: It deals with production of large-scale cultivation of perennial trees for supplying
wood, timber, rubber, etc. and raw materials for industries. This is also called as Silviculture.

Agriculture is the principal economic activity that produces most of the food we eat. It
produces raw materials for a range of industries in addition to food grains. Similarly, crop
production is one of the most important groups of agriculture because it provides food for
humans and animals alike.

Q.2) What do you understand by evergreen revolution? Why do we need it?

Approach:
Introduction: contextual definition of evergreen revolution
Body: Discuss why evergreen revolution is needed
Conclusion: Synthesis of points written in the introduction and body and
emphasize upon why should we care for evergreen revolution.

Answer

Evergreen revolution refers to productivity improvement of crops in perpetuity without

ecological and social harm. The evergreen revolution involves the integration of ecological
principles in technology development and dissemination.

Dr. M S Swaminathan coined the term ‘’Evergreen Revolution” to highlight the pathway of
increasing production and productivity in a manner such that short- and long-term goals of
food production are mutually hostile. The logic is to produce more from less land, less
pesticide, less water and it must be an evergreen revolution to get sustainable agriculture.

Need for Evergreen revolution arose due to negative impacts of green revolution. Important
demerits of green revolution are

1. Reduction in genetic diversity: Fewer varieties of crops grown for high yields have
reduced genetic diversity among crop species in a country and also led to the extinction
of indigenous crops due to the loss of their cultivation. For example, India has lost more
than 1 lakh varieties of indigenous rice after the 1970s.
2. Neglect of crops other than wheat and rice: Green Revolution is primarily focused on
food grains including wheat, rice, jowar, bajra and maize, etc. However, it is wheat and

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 rice which has benefited the most. The coarse cereals proportion has also declined from
37 percent to 17 percent pre and post green revolution respectively. As per the annual
data 2020-21 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, they have further
declined to 12% (2019-20).
3. Environmental Degradation: Green Revolution has led to degradation of the planet’s
natural environment that has taken place with the application of modern technological
solutions and management methods for the pursuit of economic growth. As per the
Integrated Pest Management report (2020-21), the usage of pesticides has increased
from 58634 MT to 62193 MT from 2016-17 to 2020-21 respectively.

The improvements brought out by the Green Revolution came at the cost of adverse
environmental effects in areas subjected to intensive farming. Hence, the need for the
Evergreen Revolution was called out by Dr. M S Swaminathan, the Father of the Green
Revolution in India.

Thus, the need of the hour is a sustainable agricultural pattern. By building on the strengths
of Green Revolution, while seeking to avoid its weaknesses, Scientists and policy makers can
take significant steps to realize the Evergreen Revolution that will enhance productivity and
do so in a way that is environmentally safe, economically viable and socially sustainable.

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 15 Markers (600 Words)

Q.1) The Green Revolution in agriculture has worked to the disadvantage of farmers.
Discuss.
Approach
Introduction: Green revolution and its impact on Indian agriculture focusing on the
disadvantages.

Body: Give arguments on how green revolution led to disadvantages and the list of
disadvantages

Conclusion: Can conclude on futuristic note on how these disadvantages can be addressed.

Answer
The Green Revolution, in India, spreading over the period from 1967-68 to 1977-78, changed
India’s status from a food-deficient country to one of the world's leading agricultural nations.
The Green Revolution resulted in a great increase in production of food grains (especially
wheat and rice) due to the introduction of new, high-yielding variety seeds, beginning in the
mid-20th century into developing countries like Mexico and India.
But at the same time, it had unintended but harmful consequences on agriculture and human
health. The following are the disadvantages of green revolution.

1. Excessive Usage of Chemicals:

• The Green Revolution resulted in a large-scale use of pesticides and synthetic nitrogen
fertilisers for improved irrigation projects and crop varieties.
• Pesticides were sprayed on crops usually by untrained farm labourers without
following instructions or precautions, which lead to unscrupulous use of the same
and caused more harm than good to crops and became a cause for environment and
soil pollution.
2. Water Consumption:
• The crops introduced during the green revolution were water-intensive crops,
especially Cereals. Most of these crops being cereals, required almost 50% of dietary
water footprint. Canal systems were introduced, and irrigation pumps also sucked out
the groundwater to supply the water-intensive crops, such as sugarcane and rice, thus
depleting the groundwater levels.

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 • Punjab is a major wheat- and rice-cultivating area, and hence it is one of the highest
waters depleted regions in India, with 99.1% of its total cultivable area under
irrigation (as per the Annual Report- 2016-17, by Ministry of Agriculture and
Farmers’ Welfare), followed by Haryana at 93%.
3. Non-Food Grains Left Out:
• Although all food-grains including wheat, rice, jowar, bajra and maize have gained
from the revolution, other crops such as coarse cereals, pulses and oilseeds were left
out of the ambit of the revolution.
• Major commercial crops like cotton, jute, tea and sugarcane were also left almost
untouched by the Green Revolution.
4. Significant changes in cropping pattern:
• The cropping pattern in India has undergone significant change due to effect of green
revolution. The proportion of Pulses, oil seeds, nutria cereals/coarse cereals in total
food grains has declined.
• It has been due to rapid rise in the production of rice and wheat. Similarly, the pulses
proportion also has shown substantial decline.
• The coarse cereals proportion has also declined from 37 percent to 17 percent pre
and post green revolution respectively.
5. Problems of labour displacement:
• Under the garb of green revolution mechanisation of agricultural activities has
resulted in the displacement of labour.
• To bring out favourable and unfavourable effects of new technology on employment:
it is rightly said by someone “if the green revolution is regarded as a package
consisting of HYVs and fertilisers, its contribution to employment has been
substantial.
• However, the net use of tractors may turn out to be negative as well.”
6. Technical disparities:
• Technological changes in Indian agriculture have resulted in greater income
inequalities. C.H. Hanumantha has opined, “Technological changes have contributed
to widening the disparities in income between small and large farms and between
landowners on the one hand and the landless on the other.”
• As per the latest agriculture census 2015-16, The small and marginal holdings (below
2.00 ha.) constituted 86.08 percent (total 14.64 crores landholders), who could not
harvest the benefits of green revolution owing to non-application of technical
knowledge in small land holdings.
7. Neglect of institutional reforms:

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 • New Agricultural Strategy as part of green revolution has not laid stress on
institutional reforms. As a result, land reforms have not been implemented properly
and thus remain a distant dream. Other areas of neglect include provision of irrigation
works, institutional credit, insurance, marketing and warehousing facilities.

The Green Revolution transformed the image of India from being a ‘begging bowl’ to ‘bread
basket’. However, to rectify flaws and loopholes of the Green Revolution we need to make it
evergreen. The improvements brought out by the Green Revolution came at the cost of
adverse environmental effects in areas subjected to intensive farming.
However, where population pressure is high, there is no option except to produce more food.
Hence, the need for the Evergreen Revolution was called out by Dr. M S Swaminathan, the
Father of the Green Revolution in India.

Q.2) Examine the current status of Indian agriculture

Approach:
Introduction: Introduction about the current data on Indian agriculture
Body: Problems plaguing Indian agriculture with supporting statements
Conclusion: Synthesis of points written in introduction and body and emphasize
upon the importance of agriculture with a quote.

Answer

Agriculture plays a vital role in the Indian economy. According to Census 2011, Over 70 per
cent of the rural households depend on agriculture. As per the Economic survey 2022-23,
the Indian agriculture sector has been growing at an average annual growth rate of 4.6 per
cent during the last six years. It grew by 3.0 per cent in 2021-22 compared to 3.3 per cent
in 2020-21. Despite the growth, the Indian agriculture sector is plagued with perils and let us
analyze the current scenario of Indian agriculture below:

1. Decreasing land size:

• Area under agriculture has been shrinking. As per the latest information available
from Agriculture Census, the average size of operational holdings has decreased
from 2.28 hectares in 1970-71 to 1.84 hectares in 1980-81, to 1.41 hectares in 1995-
96 and to 1.08 hectares in 2015-16.
2. Lack of mechanization:

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 • In spite of the large-scale mechanization of agriculture in some parts of the country,
most of the agricultural operations in larger parts are carried on by man power.
• Little or no use of machines is made in ploughing, sowing, irrigating, thinning and
pruning, weeding, harvesting threshing and transporting the crops.
3. Over dependence on agriculture:
• The NSSO's latest annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) report for 2021-22
(July-June) shows the farm sector's share in the country's employed labour force at
45.5%. That is down from 46.5% in 2020-21, but still higher than the 2018-19 low of
42.5%.
• There is also the problem of surplus labour or disguised unemployment. This pushes
the wage rates below the subsistence levels.
4. Falling Investment in Agriculture:
• As per First Revised Estimates of National Income for 2019-20, The Gross Capital
Formation (GCF) in agriculture as a percentage of the total GCF in the economy has
fallen from 8.5 % in Financial Year 2011-12 to 6.5 % in Financial Year 2018-19. This
is because the share of private investment has shrunk.
5. Unsustainable agricultural practices:
• Minimum Support Price leads to non-scientific agricultural practices like
monocropping and over usage of fertilizers whereby the soil and water are stressed
to an extent of degrading ground water table and salinization of soil.
6. Irrigation related issues:
• Although India is the second largest irrigated country of the world after China, only
one-third of the cropped area is under irrigation.
• Irrigation is the most important agricultural input in a tropical monsoon country like
India where rainfall is uncertain, unreliable and erratic India cannot achieve
sustained progress in agriculture unless and until more than half of the cropped area
is brought under assured irrigation.
7. Issues in Agricultural Marketing:
• Agricultural marketing still continues to be in a bad shape in rural India.
• In the absence of sound marketing facilities, the farmers have to depend upon local
traders and middlemen for the disposal of their farm produce which is sold at throw-
away price.
• This is especially in states that have a weak network of Agricultural Produce Market
Committee (APMC).
8. Lack of transportation:
• One of the main issues with Indian agriculture is the lack of cheap and efficient means

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 of transportation.
• Even at present there are lakhs of villages which are not well connected with main
roads or with market centers.

Agriculture and allied sector play vital role in providing nutrition and livelihood to the huge
population in India. It plays an important role in terms of GDP, employment and
environmental sustainability.

However, average farm size, poor infrastructure, low use of farm technologies, disguised
unemployment, decrease of soil fertility due to over fertilization and sustained pesticide use,
are leading contributors to low agricultural productivity.

Since agriculture happens be the largest sector in India, it can and must play an important
role in pushing up the rate of capital formation. This being said, the problems plaguing
agriculture should not be ignored because, “If agriculture goes wrong, nothing else will have
a chance to go right!”.

Q.3) Why agriculture is considered as both science and arts? Discuss

Approach:
Introduction: Throw a light on why agriculture is called as science and art
Body: Discuss how it is both science and art with supporting statements.
Conclusion: Synthesis of points written in introduction and body and conclude the
answer by stating that agriculture is both arts and science.

Answer

The word 'Agriculture' is derived from the Latin word 'Ager' means “Land or Soil” and
'Culture' means “cultivation”, which in simple terms means the science and art of producing
crops and livestock for economic purpose and for the use of mankind.

Agriculture is said as science because it provides new and improved strain of crop and animal
with the help of breeding and genetics, and brings in modern technology in agricultural
practices.

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 As an art it embraces knowledge of the way to perform the operations of the farm in a skilful
manner, but does not necessarily include an understanding of the principles underlying the
farm practices.

In this regard, let’s now discuss how agriculture can be considered as science below.

Agriculture as a science:

1. Knowledge of pest control:

• For example, new crop & animal varieties are developed by hybridization, genetic
breeding, transgenic crop varieties resistant to pests and diseases, hybrids in each
crop, high fertilizer responsive varieties, water management, herbicides to control
weeds, use of bio-control agents to combat pest and diseases etc.
2. Development of farm machineries:
• Farm machinery, mechanical devices, including tractors and implements, used in
farming to save labour.
• Farm machines include a great variety of devices with a wide range of complexity
from simple hand-held implements used since prehistoric times to the complex
harvesters of modern mechanized agriculture.
3. Helps in Soil analysis:
• Soil tests are used to determine the soil's nutrient level and pH content. Armed with
this information, farmers can define the quantity of fertiliser and the exact type that
is needed for application to improve the soil on your farm.
• This is essential because fertile soils are necessary to grow healthy crops
However, agriculture can be considered as arts because of the following reasons:

As an art, it involves the use of learnt skills in

1. Art of tilling the land:

• It is the practice of aerating the soil to permit moisture and air to permeate, allowing
seeds to germinate, encouraging root growth, controlling weed growth, and
integrating fertilizers into the soil.
2. Knowledge on Crop harvesting:
• Harvesting is the process of removal of entire plants or economic parts after
maturity.
• The economic product may be grain, seed leaf, root or entire plant. Every plant has
its own harvesting period and agriculture as an art is useful in understanding it.
• For example, Rice has a harvesting symptom of Moisture content of grains less
than 20 per cent whereas Sorghum has grain moisture content less than 28 per

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 cent.
3. Art of domestication of animals:
• From alpacas in Peru to zebus in India, billons of domesticated animals around the
world are raised and cared for in a variety of ways.
4. Art of handling livestock:
• Modern feeds are produced by carefully selecting and blending ingredients to
provide highly nutritional diets that both maintain the health of the animals and
increase the quality of such end products as meat, milk, or eggs.

Agriculture is the art and science of cultivating the soil, growing crops and raising livestock. It
includes the preparation of plant and animal products for people to use and their distribution
to markets.

As a science, agriculture involves experimentation and application of scientific knowledge in

such areas like soil analysis, mechanization, genetics etc. As an art, it offers some of the learnt
skills in crop management, tillage operations, rearing of livestock, knowledge on harvest etc.

For this reason, it is pertinent to say that “The art and science has its meeting point in
agriculture”.

Q.4) Discuss the success and challenges of White Revolution in Indian milk sector.
Approach:
Introduction: Current context of White Revolution
Body: Success and challenges of white revolution with supporting facts and data
Conclusion: Synthesis of points written in the introduction and body and conclude the
answer with a thought-provoking question.

Answer

Recently, India celebrated the 100th birth anniversary of Verghese Kurien, famously known
as the “Milk man of India”, who launched “Operation Flood”, which became the world's
largest dairy development programme.

It was launched to help farmers develop by giving them control of the resources they create.
All this was achieved by mass production of milk and the process has since been termed as

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 the “White Revolution”. Today, India has earned the first position in milk production in the
world.

Some of the important achievements of the White Revolution are discussed below:

1. Multifold increase in milk production:

• As per Economic survey 2021-2022, milk production in the country has grown at a
compound annual growth rate of about 6.2 per cent to reach 209.96 million tonnes
in 2020-21 from 146.31 million tonnes in 2014-15.
2. Increased per-capita availability of milk:
• The per capita availability of milk per day at present is 375 grams per day as against
125 grams before the white Revolution.
3. Establishment of dairy farming as an alternative occupation:
• The White Revolution made a sound impact on rural masses and encouraged them
to take up dairying as a subsidiary occupation.
• The White Revolution has primarily benefited landless laborers and small and
marginal farmers. 1, 35,439 dairy cooperative groups at the village level now cover
over 14 million farmers.
4. Converting India from milk exporter to surplus producer:
• Operation Flood converted India from a milk importer to the world’s largest
producer. It helped in reducing import bills and made India an exporter.
• The country exported dairy products worth $187 Million in 2019-20.

However, the Indian milk sector faces some issues that needs to be addressed.

1. Less Productivity of Indian breeds:

• The challenge of increasing productivity of Indian breed of bovines rapidly still
remains a major bottleneck.
• The average productivity of Indian cattle per year is 1719 kg per year while in Israel
it is above 13000 kg.
2. Negligence of development of recognized Indian breeds:
• In White Revolution, the focus was on introduction of exotic cattle breeds like HF
and jersey and producing their cross bred. Therefore, the developments of
recognized Indian breeds were largely neglected.
3. Issues related to adulteration of milk:
• About 68 per cent of the milk produced in India is found to have adulterants like
detergent, starch, urea and white paint.

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 4. Lack of institutional support:
• There is no MSP (Minimum Support Price) for milk unlike 24 major agricultural
commodities in the country including wheat and rice.
• Further, dairy cooperatives are not a preferred choice for landless or small farmers.

White revolution or Operation Flood, known as the ‘billion litre idea,’ is the world's largest
agricultural dairy development programme. Within 30 years, it helped double milk available
per person in India, making dairy farming India's largest self-sustainable rural employment
generator.

Increased milk production led to an increase in employment, a reduction in import bills, and
made India an exporter of milk and milk products. The production of milk has gone up by
more than six times when compared with that of the Pre–Independence situation.

In spite of this, there remain major issues in the sector, such as poor returns on investment,
poor productivity, adulteration and the neglect of traditional breeds.

These Problems shouldn't go unaddressed, and the real point to ponder is – "Are the issues
plaguing the milk sector, which provides livelihood for thousands of marginal and small
farmers, fair to be ignored?”.

Homework Question

Ques.1) Enumerate various types of revolutions that took place in Agriculture after
Independence in India. Explain Green revolution in detail. (10 Marks, 400 words)

Ques.2) Discuss the importance of green revolution in Indian economy. (15 Marks, 600
words)

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