agriculture

2.  Definition of agriculture.
 Development of agriculture in
India.
 Types of farming.
 Major crops in our region.
 Case study of Gujarat , how it

4. Since independence India has made much progress in agriculture. Indian
agriculture, which grew at the rate of about 1 percent per annum during
the fifty years before Independence,has grown at the rate of about 2.6
percent per annum in the post-Independence era.Expansion of area was
the main source of growth in the period of fifties and sixties after that the
contribution of increased land area under agricultural production has
declined over time and increase in productivity became the main source
of growth in agricultural production. Another important facet of progress
in agriculture is its success in eradicating of its dependence on imported
foodgrains. Indian agriculture has progressed not only in output and yield
terms but the structural changes have also contributed. All these
developments in Indian agriculture are contributed by a series of steps
initiated by Indian Government. Land reforms, inauguration of Agricultural
Price Commission with objective to ensure remunerative prices to
producers, new agricultural strategy1, investment in research and
extension services, provision of credit facilities, and improving rural
infrastructure are some of these steps.

5. India agriculture has an extensive background which goes
back to at least 10 thousand years. Currently the country
holds the second position in agricultural production in the
world. In 2007, agriculture and other industries such as
lumbering and forestry made up more than 16% of India's GDP.
Despite the steady decline in agriculture's contribution to
the country's GDP, India agriculture is the biggest industry in
the country and plays a key role in the socioeconomic
growth of the country. India is the second biggest producer
of wheat, rice, cotton, sugarcane, silk, groundnuts, and
dozens more. It is also the second biggest harvester of
vegetables and fruit, representing 8.6% and 10.9% of overall
production, respectively. The major fruits produced by India
are mangoes, papayas, sputa, and bananas. India also has the
biggest number of livestock in the world, holding 281
million. In 2008, the country housed the second largest
number of cattle in the world with 175 million. Season-to-
season variations of rainfall are also significant and the
consequences of these are bumper harvests and crop
searing. For this reason, irrigation in India is one of the main
priorities in Indian farming.

6. Some major organizations are hailing farming within agroecosystem as the
way forward for mainstream agriculture. Current farming methods have
resulted in over-stretched water resources, high levels of erosion and
reduced soil fertility. According to a report by the International Water
Management Institute and UNEP,there is not enough water to continue
farming using current practices; therefore how critical water, land,
and ecosystem resources are used to boost crop yields must be
reconsidered. The report suggested assigning value to ecosystems,
recognizing environmental and livelihood tradeoffs, and balancing the rights
of a variety of users and interests. Inequities that result when such measures
are adopted would need to be addressed, such as the reallocation of water
from poor to rich, the clearing of land to make way for more productive
farmland, or the preservation of a wetland system that limits fishing rights.
[
Technological advancements help provide farmers with tools and resources
to make farming more sustainable. New technologies have given rise to
innovations like conservation tillage,a farming process which helps prevent
land loss to erosion, water pollution and enhances carbon sequestration.[

7. According to a report by the International Food Policy Research
Institute (IFPRI), agricultural technologies will have the greatest impact on food
production if adopted in combination with each other; using a model that
assessed how eleven technologies could impact agricultural productivity, food
security and trade by 2050, IFPRI found that the number of people at risk from
hunger could be reduced by as much as 40% and food prices could be reduced
by almost half.
Intensive commercial farming: This is a system of agriculture in which
relatively large amounts of capital or labor are applied to relatively
smaller areas of land. It is usually practiced where the population
pressure is reducing the size of landholdings. West Bengal practices
intensive commercial farming.Extensive commercial farming: This is a
system of agriculture in which relatively small amounts of capital or labor
investment are applied to relatively large areas of land. At times, the
land is left fallow to regain its fertility. It is mostly mechanized because of
the cost and availability of labor. It usually occurs at the margin of the
agricultural system, at a great distance from market or on poor land of
limited potential and is usually practiced in the tray regions of
southern Nepal

8. Crops grown are sugarcane, rice and wheat. Plantation
agriculture: Plantation is a large farm or estate usually in a
tropical or sub-tropical country where crops are grown for sale
in distant markets rather than local consumption. Commercial
grain farming: This type of farming is a response to farm
mechanization and it is the major type of activity in the areas of
low rainfall and low density of population where extensive
farming is practiced. Crops are prone to the vagaries of weather
and droughts and mono culture of wheat is the general practice.
In a commercial based agriculture, crops are raised in large
scale plantations or estates and shipped off to other countries for
money. These systems are common in sparsely populated areas
such as Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, and Maharashtra. Wheat,
cotton, sugarcane, and corn are all examples of crops grown
commercially.

17. The advantages are many and great:
Issue of certificates, documents and application forms – for example, verification for bought
land, issue of birth certificates and any other type of documentation or bureaucratic procedure
is issued promptly at the village, where previously it may have required traveling to distant
location and an entire day's waiting before being served
Direct communication enables prompt redressed of grievances and significantly improves the
ethics of government
More efficient bill payment, record keeping and monitoring of tax collection. The makes it
easier for the villagers to pay their bills and therefore increases the overall state tax collection
Access of villagers to commodities related information that directly affects their livelihood – for
example, price of crop, which crops they should plant and more efficient growing methods
Access to information and education
Communication with family members who are in the cities or abroad
Gilt's VSAT Network Solutions
The Gilt VSAT solution that was deployed in the Gujarat network provides a number of unique
benefits that have contributed to the success of the project:
Ease of installation – With 23 years of experience in developing equipment that is typically deployed
in remote locations, Gilt's VSATs are designed for simple installation making allowing rapid
deployment with minimal on-site expertise required. This is one of the things that made it possible
for all 13,693 Gilt VSATs to be deployed throughout Gujarat within a period of approximately 6
months.
.Quos assurance – The Gilt VSAT system includes advance mechanisms for ensuring that the
necessary bandwidth is allocated for different traffic types so that the optimal quality of the
communications can be achieved.
Robust communications – The Gilt VSAT system can be deployed in harsh environmental
conditions. Exceptionally high MTBF and system stability allow large scale networks, such as the
one installed in Gujarat, to function properly and operate smoothly.