Syllabus
Cropping Patterns in various parts of the country, Different Types of Irrigation and Irrigation Systems
Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation(GS 3)
Source
The Indian Express – 29/09/2023
Context
M.S. Swaminathan, the agricultural scientist known as the father of the Green Revolution in India passed away recently.
Content
Dr. M.S Swaminathan
- Dr. Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan, popularly known as Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, was a legendary agricultural scientist and a key architect of India’s Green Revolution.
- He is known as the “Father of Green Revolution in India“
- He was instrumental in ushering in the Green Revolution in the 1960s and ’70s, which helped India combat food insecurity.
- Dr. Swaminathan played a crucial role in introducing and further developing high-yielding varieties of wheat and rice in India.
- His groundbreaking work in agriculture transformed the lives of millions and ensured food security for India.
- Dr. Swaminathan was conferred with the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Vibhushan, apart from several international awards.
- He was also the recipient of the first World Food Prize for his leadership in India’s Green Revolution.
- Dr.Swaminathan played a pivotal role in creating the All India Agricultural Research Service, which facilitated collaborative research among scientists across the nation.
- He initiated the lab-to-land programme, which aimed at transferring agricultural technologies directly to farmers.
“If agriculture goes wrong, nothing else will have a chance to go right in our country”
Dr. M.S. Swaminathan
Pre Green Revolution Period
- During British rule, India switched from being a net food exporter to being a net food importer .
- Famine became common and the nation was frequently plagued by chronic food shortage.
- India’s food problems were perhaps most severely exemplified by the Great Bengal Famine of 1943.
- In the Bengal Famine, an estimated 4 million people died of hunger that year in eastern India.
- At the time of Partition in 1947, Punjab (India’s wheat growing center) was split between the two nations, with most of the irrigated cropland going to Pakistan.
- The production and productivity of Wheat crops were quite low, when India became independent in 1947.
- The production of Wheat was only 6.46 million tonnes and productivity was merely 663 kg per hectare during 1950-51, which was not sufficient to feed the Indian population.
- Although there was a sharp rise in grain production after independence, it was not sufficient enough to meet the food requirements of a growing population.
- To meet the food shortage and to stabilize the prices, India was forced to import increasing amounts of food and it was described as “Ships to Lips”.
- When the import of food grains was going on, the political scenario also changed with the Indo-China war in 1962 and Indo-Pak war in 1965.
- Also,There were two successive droughts in the year 1965 and 1966, leading to further fall in agricultural output.
Period of Green Revolution
| Green Revolution The term “Green Revolution” refers to the renovation of agricultural practices beginning in Mexico in the 1940s. It was a period of increased productivity of global agriculture as a result of new advances.Green Revolution technologies spread worldwide in the 1950s and 1960s, significantly increasing the number of calories produced per acre of agricultureNorman Borlaug is considered as the Father of the Green Revolution.He developed a dwarf wheat variety in Mexico, which became a model for what could be done in other staple crops around the world. |
- The green revolution was kick-started from the year 1966 and the effects of adoption of superior technology and institutional reforms were found to manifest from 1968-69 onwards.
- Thus the Green Revolution was applied to the period from 1967 to 1978 basically in the parts of Haryana and Punjab.
- M. S. Swaminathan was instrumental in introducing high-yielding and disease-resistant varieties of wheat to India as a part of the Green Revolution.
- The advent of the new high-yielding dwarf varieties of Mexican wheat in 1966-67 marked the beginning of an agricultural development in India that opened unprecedented opportunities for increasing net returns to farm management.
- The HYV seed was so much more productive that it considerably reduced the risk of change.
- In India, with the rapid introduction of high-yielding wheat varieties, production reached a record high of 16.6 million tons in 1967-68, one third more than the previous peak output of 12.3 million tons achieved in the last good weather year of 1964-65.
- Moreover, despite a recurrence of drought and other unfavourable seasonal conditions, wheat production in 1968-69 exceeded the new level, giving substance to the slogan of a “green revolution” in the wheat areas.
- In 1969-70, national wheat output rose to another record high of approximately 20 million tons.
- Regionally, in India, the greatest effect of the Green Revolution has occurred in the wheat growing areas of Punjab, Haryana and Western U.P.
- In South India, the effects of the Green Revolution have been concentrated in the States of Andhra and Tamil Nadu.
Impacts of Green Revolution
| Positive Impacts of Green Revolution | Negative Impacts of Green Revolution |
| Significant increase in Food Production | Degradation of Soil Quality due to the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides |
| Improved Food security and Reduced Hunger | Water Shortage due to intensive Farming practices |
| Food Self Sufficiency | Land Degradation |
| Reduction in Malnutrition | Unemployment due to Mechanization |
| Modernization of Agriculture with High Yielding Seeds,Machinery etc. | Serious Health Consequences due to Consumption of agrochemicals through food. |
| Double Cropping System (2 crop seasons per year) | Loss of agricultural biodiversity as it relied on just a few high-yield varieties of each crop. |
| Increased Income of Farmers | Increase in Pest Vulnerability |
| Growth of Agro-based Industries | Increase in GreenHouse Gas Emissions |
| Transformation of India from Food deficit to Food self sufficient to Food Surplus Country. | Regional Disparities Northern States like Punjab,Haryana and western UP benefitted from the Green Revolution. Eastern and many Southern parts were Neglected. |
Post green revolution period
- The average yield of rice went up by 60.1 percent in the period from 1969-70 to 1988-89, whereas it went up by 97.1 percent for wheat.
- The production of rice has increased from 35 million tonnes in 1960-61 to 54 million tonnes in 1980-81 and then to 112.9 million tonnes in 2017-18, showing a major breakthrough in its production.
Source:https://www.indexmundi.com/agriculture/?country=in&commodity=milled-rice&graph=production
- The yield per hectare has also improved from 1013 kgs in 1960 to 2578 kg in 2017-2018.
- The production of wheat has also increased significantly from 11 million tonnes in 1950-51 to 36 million tonnes in 1980-81 and then to 99.7 million tonnes in 2017-2018.
- During this period, the yield per hectare also increased from 850 kgs to 3371 kgs per hectare.
Source:https://www.indexmundi.com/agriculture/?country=in&commodity=wheat&graph=production
The Evergreen Revolution
- The term ‘Evergreen Revolution’ was coined by Prof M.S. Swaminathan.
- To ensure global food security amid climate change and price volatility, the world must transition from the Green Revolution to a sustained period of evergreen revolution.
- The move towards Evergreen Revolution becomes absolutely necessary to feed the world in a sustainable manner, without inflicting any more damage to the already plundered but precious natural resources.
- An Evergreen Revolution also looks forward to a happy farmer, who is pulled out of a continuing cycle of debt and suicide, to finally emerge free and lead a life of dignity.
- An evergreen revolution eliminates chemical use, reduces irrigation and produces long-term, sustainable growth in yields to feed the world’s growing population.
Govt Initiatives
The Government has taken various steps to modernize agriculture for sustainable growth in the agriculture sector.
- Creation of KrishiVigyanKendras (KVKs) for dissemination of knowledge and information about modern technology etc.
- Initiatives under Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA) Scheme like Extension Reforms, Mass Media Support to Agricultural Extension, Kisan Call Centres, Agri-Clinics and Agri-Business Centres, Exhibitions/ Fairs etc.
- The National Agriculture e-Market platform (e-NAM) has been established.
- Soil Health Card (SHC) to assess the current status of soil health and, when used over time, to determine changes in soil health that are affected by land management.
- Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) is a part of the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana, which focuses on water conservation at the farm level through the use of sprinklers and drip irrigation. It also aims to reduce the use of low-tech irrigation, fertilizer, labor, and input costs.
Way Forward
- Significant and Sustained increase in farmers’ income and a modern, vibrant and sustainable agriculture is essential during Amrit Kaal.
- Advancement in science-led technology, an enhanced role for the private sector in both pre and post-harvest phases, liberalized output markets, an active land lease market, and emphasis on efficiency will equip agriculture to address the challenges of the twenty-first century and contribute towards the goal of Viksit Bharat.
- Competition among States to improve “Ease of doing Farming and Farm Business” needs to be promoted.
- Introduction and promotion of knowledge and skill intensive practices within agriculture, private and corporate sector investments in agriculture, new institutions of producers, integrated food system-based mechanisms etc are needed.
- Adopt a “do-ecology” approach to ensure that ecologically sustainable farming technologies become available.
Reference
- https://www.welthungerhilfe.org/news/latest-articles/2021/dark-side-of-the-green-revolution
- https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2023-07/Aggricultrue_Amritkal.pdf
- https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/agriculture/agricultural-scientist-architect-of-green-revolution-ms-swaminathan-passes-away/article67356103.ece
- https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.mospi.gov.in/sites/default/files/Statistical_year_book_india_chapters/ch8.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwj1heGmkc-BAxXAzDgGHXqYDZwQFnoECA4QBg&usg=AOvVaw1BMH3CLVZe9NMz7Aaend3h
- https://pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1776921