Performance of the Agriculture Sector and Types of Farming
Geography › Agriculture and Crop Geography · Topic 11.4
Agriculture is the main livelihood of India, contributing about 18 per cent of gross value added but employing around 45 per cent of workers. Foodgrain output has risen from about 50 million tonnes in 1950-51 to over 330 million tonnes, and India is the top producer of milk and a leading producer of rice, wheat, sugar, cotton and fruit. Farming is classed as subsistence or commercial: subsistence types are primitive subsistence (shifting cultivation) and intensive subsistence, and commercial types include plantation, extensive grain, mixed and Mediterranean farming.
7 min read · UPSC Prelims · Geography · Agriculture and Crop Geography
At a Glance
- Share in GVA About 18 per cent
- Share of workforce About 45 per cent
- Foodgrains Over 330 million tonnes
- Subsistence types Primitive, intensive
- Commercial types Plantation, extensive grain, mixed
- Exam link UPSC Prelims, Geography: Agriculture and Crop Geography
Where Does It Fit?
This topic follows the topics on land use, degradation and management and describes the sector that uses the land. It also covers the types of farming, which the later topics on seasons, inputs and individual crops build on. Previous topic: Sustainable Land Management. Next topic: Cropping Seasons in India.
How Has the Agriculture Sector Performed?
- Share in the economy: agriculture and allied activities contribute about 18 per cent of gross value added, far below their share in the 1950s of over half, but they employ around 45 per cent of the workforce, which shows low productivity per worker.
- Foodgrains: output has risen from about 50 million tonnes in 1950-51 to over 330 million tonnes in recent years, making India self-sufficient and a major exporter of rice. Horticulture output, at over 350 million tonnes, exceeds foodgrains, and India is the largest producer of milk, with over 230 million tonnes.
- Growth drivers: the Green Revolution, irrigation, fertiliser, improved seeds, public procurement and minimum support prices, as in Agricultural Revolutions (Green Revolution, White Revolution, Blue Revolution, etc.).
- Problems: small holdings, dependence on the monsoon, low yields compared to the best in the world, price swings, indebtedness, and damage to soil and groundwater. Farmers’ incomes are low and the government has set a goal of raising them.
The figures are approximate and are updated in the advance estimates of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, so the latest ones should be checked.
What Are the Types of Subsistence Agriculture?
| Type | Features | Regions |
|---|---|---|
| Primitive subsistence (shifting cultivation) | Vegetation is cleared by fire, and the ash adds fertility; plots are cultivated for a few years and then abandoned for a fallow; also called slash and burn; low yield, simple tools | Jhum in the north-east of India; milpa in Central America and Mexico; ladang in Indonesia and Malaysia; roça in Brazil; tropical forests |
| Intensive subsistence: wet paddy | Very small holdings because of dense population, family labour, little machinery, manure; high yield per hectare but low output per worker | Monsoon Asia: eastern India, Bangladesh, China, Japan, Southeast Asia |
| Intensive subsistence: other crops | Where paddy is not suited, wheat, soyabean, barley, sorghum and millets are grown, often with irrigation | Northern China, North Korea, northern Japan; the wheat plains of India and the millet areas of the west and south |
Shifting cultivation is a response to poor soils and low population, as in regur) Acidic leached soil Laterite Desert soil Arid soil, sandy Classification…">Types, Textures and Distribution of Soils in India, but as the population grows, the fallow period shortens and the soil and forest are degraded, so governments try to replace it with settled farming and agroforestry.
What Are the Types of Commercial Agriculture?
| Type | Features | Regions |
|---|---|---|
| Plantation agriculture | Large estates, heavy capital, scientific methods, single-crop specialisation, cheap labour, and good transport to the factory and the market; introduced by Europeans in the tropics | Tea in India and Sri Lanka, rubber in Malaysia, cocoa and coffee in West Africa, sugarcane and bananas in the West Indies, coffee fazendas in Brazil, coconut in the Philippines |
| Extensive commercial grain farming | Very large mechanised farms in semi-arid mid-latitude interiors; wheat is the main crop; low yield per hectare but high yield per person | Eurasian steppes, North American prairies, Argentine pampas, South African veld, Australian downs, Canterbury plains |
| Mixed farming | Moderate-sized farms combining crops and livestock; crop rotation, fodder, heavy investment in machinery and fertiliser | North-western Europe, eastern North America, temperate southern continents |
| Dairy farming | Specialised rearing of milch animals near cities | North-western Europe, Canada, south-eastern Australia and New Zealand |
| Mediterranean agriculture | Specialised commercial farming of citrus fruits, grapes for wine, olives and figs; winter vegetables and fruits for European and American markets | Countries around the Persian Gulf Largest sea Philippine Sea or South China Sea by area…">Mediterranean Sea, California, central Chile, south-western South Africa, southern Australia, as in World Climate Types (Köppen Classification): Equatorial, Monsoon, Savanna, Desert, Mediterranean, Temperate and Polar Climates |
| Market gardening and horticulture | High-value vegetables, fruits and flowers for urban markets; small intensive farms with irrigation, greenhouses and high inputs; truck farming for vegetables near cities | Densely populated industrial areas of north-west Europe, north-eastern United States, and the Mediterranean; Netherlands for flowers |
| Co-operative and collective farming | Farmers pool resources voluntarily in cooperatives, as in Denmark and the Netherlands; or the state runs collective farms, as in the former Soviet Union and China before reforms | Denmark, Netherlands, Israel’s kibbutz and moshav, India’s dairy cooperatives |
What Is the Pattern in India?
- Seasons: kharif crops, such as rice, maize, cotton, jowar and bajra, are sown with the onset of the monsoon in June and harvested in September to October; rabi crops, such as wheat, barley, gram, mustard and peas, are sown in October to December and harvested in March to April; zaid crops, such as watermelon, cucumber and fodder, are grown in the summer between the two. The cropping seasons follow the climate, as in Seasonal Cycle of Indian Climate: Cold Weather, Hot Weather, Southwest Monsoon, Retreating Monsoon Seasons.
- Types in use: intensive subsistence farming on small holdings in the plains and deltas; jhum in the north-east, officially being phased out; plantations of tea, coffee, rubber and spices in the hills, as in Categories of Forests in India and Extent of Forest Cover; commercial farming of wheat and rice in Punjab and Haryana; horticulture and dairy near cities; and increasingly organic and natural farming.
- Structure: the average holding is small, around 1.1 hectares, and agriculture employs close to half of the workforce but contributes about 15 to 18 per cent of the gross value added, so productivity per worker is low, as in Sex ratio Females per 1,000 males Pyramid types…">Population Characteristics: Age Composition, Population Pyramids, Gender/Sex Composition, Literacy Rates. Foodgrain output has reached a record of about 350 million tonnes.
- Support: minimum support prices, PM-KISAN income support, crop insurance and the National Mission on Natural Farming launched in 2024.
As an analytical point, the classification shows that farming systems are a result of population density and capital: where land is short and labour is plentiful, as in monsoon Asia, farming is intensive and subsistence-oriented, and where land is plentiful and labour is scarce, as in the prairies, it is extensive and mechanised. India’s challenge is to raise the income of the small farmer through diversification into horticulture, dairy and fisheries, through better water use and through market links, and not only through higher yields of cereals.
Why Is This Topic Important?
- Facts Types and regions asked
- India Seasons and structure
- Policy Small farm incomes
What Came Next?
The next topic describes the cropping seasons of India. Next topic: Cropping Seasons in India.
Key People and Terms
- Jhum Shifting cultivation of north-east India
- Plantation Large commercial estate of one crop
- Truck farming Vegetable farming for urban markets
- Viticulture Grape cultivation
- Kharif Monsoon-sown crops
- Rabi Winter-sown crops
Exam Corner
Points to Remember
- Jhum is shifting cultivation in the north-east.
- Wet paddy farming has high yield per hectare, low per worker.
- Grain farms: high yield per person, low per hectare.
- Plantations need large capital and one crop.
- Kharif June to October; rabi October to April.
Do Not Confuse With
- Intensive and extensive farming Small land with high inputs versus large land with low yield per hectare
- Plantation and mixed farming Single cash crop versus crops plus livestock
- Kharif and rabi Monsoon versus winter crops
Memory Hook
Burn and move, paddy by hand, tea on estates, wheat by machine; mix it, milk it, market it.
Mains Angle
Questions compare farming types and ask about Indian agriculture. These points add depth.
- Contrast Intensive versus extensive
- Shift Subsistence to commercial
- India Small farms, low productivity
A Question You May Face
An original practice question, not a past paper question.
“Distinguish between subsistence and commercial agriculture with examples, and discuss the changing pattern of agriculture in India.”
How to Answer
- Subsistence Shifting and intensive.
- Commercial Plantation to horticulture.
- India Seasons and holdings.
- Change Diversification.
GS Relevance
Frequently Asked Questions
What is shifting cultivation?
Shifting cultivation is a primitive form of subsistence agriculture in which the vegetation is cleared by burning, crops are grown on the cleared plot for a few years, and then the plot is abandoned for a fallow period. It is known as jhum in north-east India, milpa in Central America and ladang in Indonesia and Malaysia.
What is the difference between intensive and extensive agriculture?
Intensive agriculture is farming with small land holdings and high inputs of labour, fertiliser and often irrigation, giving a high yield per hectare, as in monsoon Asia. Extensive agriculture uses very large farms with machines and low inputs per hectare, giving high output per worker, as on the prairies.
What is plantation agriculture?
Plantation agriculture is large-scale commercial farming of a single crop, such as tea, coffee, rubber, cocoa or sugarcane, in the tropics. It was introduced by Europeans and needs large estates, capital, technical management, cheap labour and transport links to the factories and markets.
What are the cropping seasons of India?
India has three cropping seasons: kharif, with crops such as rice, maize, cotton and millets that are sown with the monsoon in June and harvested in autumn; rabi, with crops such as wheat, barley, gram and mustard sown in winter and harvested in spring; and zaid, the short summer season between them.
What is the contribution of agriculture to the Indian economy?
Agriculture and allied activities contribute about 18 per cent of India's gross value added, down from over half in the 1950s, but they still employ about 45 per cent of the workforce. India is a leading producer of rice, wheat, sugar, cotton and fruit and the world's largest producer of milk.
PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis
1 Jhuming is a form of shifting cultivation practised in north-east India.
It is slash-and-burn farming.
2 Extensive commercial grain farming has a high yield per hectare.
It has high yield per person, low per hectare.
3 Plantations are usually specialised in a single crop.
Tea and rubber are examples.
4 Agriculture employs a larger share of workers than its share in gross value added.
This points to low productivity.
Past Mains Questions on This Topic
This topic comes under Agriculture and Crop Geography. UPSC Mains questions asked on the matching syllabus topic, year-wise with marks:
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