What qualitative changes have taken place in the irrigation system in India
over the last three decades and how it has affected the agricultural production?
Answers
Agricultural development has been the prime goal of India’s endeavours to ensure food security and poverty alleviation Indian agriculture has undergone major transformation during the past three decades, registering a turnaround from being dependent on food aid to becoming a consistent net food exporter. Policy support, production strategies and public investment in infrastructure, markets, institutions, research and extension have made this transformation feasible. The contours of Indian agriculture have gradually changed too. The focus of agricultural development strategy has shifted from raising agricultural output to doubling farmers’ income in five years which aims to promote farmers’ welfare, reduce engrain distress and bring parity between the income of farmers and those working in non-agricultural sectors.
Changing Sources of Agricultural Growth in India___________________
The contribution of the crop sub-sector has been declining over time while the contribution of livestock has grown almost five times and accounts for more than half of the agricultural growth (Fig. 5).
Also, wide inter-state variations are noticed, which is driven partly by the diversity in the production potential and extensive cultivation in marginal areas and partly by policy priority promoting food production regardless of technical or economic efficiency. Moreover, the deceleration in agricultural growth in the late 1990s renewed the debate of convergence in agricultural performance across states in India. A high level of regional disparities in agricultural output and productivity existed during the 1980s, which tapered off to some extent during 1990s and started rising again during the 2000s. The persistence of regional variations poses a challenge for attaining balanced regional agricultural development. There are states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab contributing to more than 10 per cent each of the total production of foodgrains (252 MT) in 2015-16, whereas states like Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir and Kerala contribute to less than 1 per cent of the total output.
Factors for Agricultural Growth_______
The widespread adoption of high-yielding varieties, expansion of irrigation facilities and increase in fertilizer application along with improvement in rural literacy, increase in agricultural credit and improved infrastructure played significant role in the agricultural growth of the country. During the green revolution of 1970s, the cropped area planted with HYV cereals increased from less than 17 per cent in 1970 to 40 per cent in 1980. The area under HYVs continued to increase and reached 70 per cent of the cropped area by 2009-10. Similarly, the cropped area under irrigation, increasing from 23 per cent in 1970 to 34 per cent in 1990 and 51 per cent in 2015-16. The fertilizer consumption per hectare (ha) was merely 26 kg in 1970, increasing to 58 kg by 1980-81 and to 96 kg in 1991. The fertilizer consumption in 2015-16 was about 243 kg/.
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Answer:
The widespread adoption of high-yielding varieties, expansion of irrigation facilities and increase in fertilizer application along with improvement in rural literacy, increase in agricultural credit and improved infrastructure played significant role in the agricultural growth of the country.