what were the reasons that led to the commercialization of agriculture
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Till the end of the first half of the 19th century, the Indian village was essentially self-sufficient. It had hardly any contact with the world outside except for the occasional visits of the grain or cloth merchant who carried the surplus of one village to make good the deficiency of another. In such a village, production was dictated by its self-sufficient character.
The village grew its own food, made its own implements and produced small-quantities of cotton and oil seeds—all for its own requirements. There were, however, two crops which could not be grown all over the country. These were cotton and Sugar-cane. Even in these, trade was severely limited in extent and restricted to a small area.
In such a self-sufficient community, which had only a few exchanges to make with the outside world, the need for money was rarely felt. Instead, grain was the standard of value which was used by the villagers for remunerating services or for effecting exchanges with each other.
However, from 1860 onwards, a series of developments took place which, on one side, broke the traditional isolation of the village, and, on the other, transformed the nature of agriculture from subsistence to commercial farming. The farmer, no longer, produced for his domestic consumption but “a good proportion of land went under the plough for purposes of export”.
The development of transport and foreign trade led to the introduction of a variety of new crops such as tobacco, groundnuts and potatoes while, at a later stage, the Commercial requirements of the Company led it to encourage the cultivation of indigo, jute, tea and coffee.
Dependent as he became on foreign markets, the farmer now realised that it was more paying to live on the profits earned from his farm than on the products that he grew. This change in Indian agriculture is called the commercialisation of Agriculture.
The village grew its own food, made its own implements and produced small-quantities of cotton and oil seeds—all for its own requirements. There were, however, two crops which could not be grown all over the country. These were cotton and Sugar-cane. Even in these, trade was severely limited in extent and restricted to a small area.
In such a self-sufficient community, which had only a few exchanges to make with the outside world, the need for money was rarely felt. Instead, grain was the standard of value which was used by the villagers for remunerating services or for effecting exchanges with each other.
However, from 1860 onwards, a series of developments took place which, on one side, broke the traditional isolation of the village, and, on the other, transformed the nature of agriculture from subsistence to commercial farming. The farmer, no longer, produced for his domestic consumption but “a good proportion of land went under the plough for purposes of export”.
The development of transport and foreign trade led to the introduction of a variety of new crops such as tobacco, groundnuts and potatoes while, at a later stage, the Commercial requirements of the Company led it to encourage the cultivation of indigo, jute, tea and coffee.
Dependent as he became on foreign markets, the farmer now realised that it was more paying to live on the profits earned from his farm than on the products that he grew. This change in Indian agriculture is called the commercialisation of Agriculture.
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