Rethinking Traditional Indian Farming Approaches

Rethinking traditional indian farming approaches

- Venkat Maroju

Traditional Farming in India

Ten thousand years – that is just how old Indian agriculture is! Even today, India holds the second position in the world for agricultural production. And despite its declining contribution to the GDP, it is still the most important sector in the country and plays a key role in India’s socio-economic activity. More than 65 percent of rural population is still engaged in agriculture.

However, traditionally, in India, agriculture has always been a subsistence activity, which means that most of the crops grown and livestock raised are to provide food to the farmer and his family. This type of agriculture leaves little surplus for trade. Subsistence farms are small in size, not more than a few acres, the farm technology tends to be primitive and yields are low. Even with all the technological advancements that agriculture has witnessed, subsistence farms still exist. In this kind of agriculture, crops are dependent on rain, heat, fertility of the soil and other environmental conditions. Looking at it one way, it is the most natural kind of agriculture, in which the slash-and-burn technique is used, burning the crop stubbles after harvest and moving to a new patch. With no fertilizers used, the land regains its fertility. The farming system in India is very geography-specific, owing to its different climatic zones. Traditional agriculture also lacks relevant technical knowledge, uses low quality seeds and lacks credit for investment. More importantly, the scientific crop rotation system is not so well understood or appreciated in India.