AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY
4 Major Causes of Low Agricultural productivity in India
Agricultural Productivity In India
Although agricultural productivity has been raising in recent years in India, thanks to the Green Revolution yet yields per acre continue to be very low as compared with international standards. The causes of low agricultural productivity are studied under the following heads:
1. Natural Factors: Agriculture in India is dominated by nature, specially rainfall. It is said to be a gamble on the monsoon. The rains may be insufficient or unevenly distributed. They are uncertain and sometimes we have too much rain causing floods. There may be other natural calamities befalling Indian Agriculture, e.g., hailstone, forest or attach by pets and insects. These implements of weather seriously damage the agricultural productivity.
2. Institutional Factors:
a) Size of Holding: The average size of holding in India is very low, less than 2 hectares or 5 years. Since the average agricultural holding is too small, no scientific cultivation with improved seeds, implements etc. is possible resulting in low productivity.
b) The pattern of land tenure: a very important factor for low agriculture productivity is the absence of proper incentives. The cultivators were to pay high rent and he has no security of tenancy. Under these difficult conditions, it is it is impossible to expect the farmer to increase agricultural productivity.
3. Techno-Economic Factors:
a) Superflows of manpower: Experience tells us that agricultural productivity is inversely proportional to the no. of people engaged in it. There is excessive pressure of population on land resulting in small, un-economic and fragmented holding.
b) Poor Techniques of Production: The Indian farmers, by and large, huge centuries-old implements which are incapable of efficient agricultural operations. Moreover, poor quality seeds and inadequate use of fertilizers.
c) Lack of irrigation facilities: Nearly one-fifth of the total sown area has the benefit of irrigation, the rest has to depend on the variety of the monsoons. It is well known that even when irrigation facilities are available they are not fully utilized.
d) Inadequate non-farm services: Indian Agriculture has suffered because of the inadequate of such non-farm services as provision of Finance, Marketing etc.
e) Neglect of agricultural Research: Expenditure on agricultural research is small and is not at all commensurate with the requirement of Indian agriculture. There is also little coordination between the laboratory and the farm.
4. Socio-Economic Factors: Low agricultural productivity in India is no less due to the operation of the socio-economic factors. Among them, we may mention the conservative outlook of the farmers, his fatalism, ignorance and illiteracy. They stand in the way of the adoption of modern technique.
AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY
Measures to increase productivity
The following measures are suggested to increase agricultural productivity:
1. Land Reforms: Though the Government has undertaken many land reform measures they have not been properly implemented.
2. Use of Improved seeds: Improved seeds can play an important role in raising productivity in agriculture. This has been already proved by the use of HYV seeds in Punjab, Haryana and U.P. in our country.
3. Use of fertilizers: HYV seeds require heavy doses of fertilizers. According to agricultural scientists, Indian farmers use only one-tenth the amount of manure that is necessary to maintain the productivity of the soil.
4. Irrigation: the use of improved seeds and fertilizers requires proper irrigation facilities. Irrigation can also make multiple cropping in no. of areas and hence raise productivity.
5. Mechanisation: Agricultural productivity can be raised through farm mechanization. The mechanization results in an increase in productivity of land labour and reduction of cost, saving of time, increase in economic surplus.
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Good writings.
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