Agriculture: Cropping Patterns, Irrigation, Storage, Transport, Marketing and E-Technology

What the official syllabus says

General Studies III (Main Written Examination, Paper V):

• Major crops-cropping patterns in various parts of the country, - different types of irrigation and irrigation systems storage, transport and marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints; e-technology in the aid of farmers.

Topics in detail

Major crops and cropping patterns

• Crop seasons: kharif, rabi and zaid; their main crops
• Food grains: rice, wheat, coarse cereals (millets such as bajra, jowar and ragi) and pulses
• Commercial crops: cotton, sugarcane, jute, oilseeds (mustard, groundnut, soybean)
• Plantation and horticulture crops: tea, coffee, rubber, spices, fruits and vegetables
• Regional cropping patterns: the rice-wheat system of the north-west, rainfed farming in central and peninsular India, coastal and north-eastern patterns
• Factors behind cropping patterns: climate, soil, irrigation, prices and MSP, technology, markets
• Cropping intensity, multiple cropping, crop rotation and crop diversification
• Green Revolution: high-yielding varieties, fertilisers, irrigation; its gains and its ecological and regional costs
• Agro-climatic zones and agro-climatic regional planning

Irrigation and irrigation systems

• Sources: canals, tanks, wells and tube wells; share of groundwater in irrigation
• Major, medium and minor irrigation projects; command area development
• Methods: flood, furrow, sprinkler and drip; micro-irrigation and water-use efficiency
• Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (2015) and Per Drop More Crop
• Groundwater depletion, waterlogging and soil salinity
• Inter-State river water disputes and river linking proposals
• Watershed development and rainwater harvesting

Storage and transport of produce

• Post-harvest losses and their causes
• Warehousing: Central and State Warehousing Corporations, private warehouses, negotiable warehouse receipts
• Cold storage and cold chains for perishables
• Rural roads, rail and road transport of farm produce; Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (2020)

Marketing of agricultural produce

• Regulated markets under State Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) laws; commission agents
• Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing Act (2017) and other reform proposals
• Electronic National Agriculture Market (e-NAM, 2016)
• Farmer Producer Organisations and cooperatives in marketing
• Contract farming, direct marketing and private markets
• Price volatility, distress sales and market information

Issues and constraints

• Small and fragmented holdings; low productivity; dependence on monsoon
• Credit: institutional and non-institutional sources, Kisan Credit Card, farm debt
• Crop insurance: Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (2016)
• Soil health: Soil Health Card scheme, imbalanced fertiliser use
• Climate change and agriculture: heat stress, erratic rainfall
• Extension services: Krishi Vigyan Kendras and the Agricultural Technology Management Agency
• Organic and natural farming (Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana); millets and the International Year of Millets (2023)
• Farm mechanisation and its fit with small holdings

E-technology in aid of farmers

• Weather and market advisories by mobile; Kisan call centres
• Remote sensing and GIS for crop estimation and insurance
• Drones for spraying and crop assessment
• Digital agriculture: farmer registries and land-record linked databases
• Precision farming, sensors and farm mechanisation; custom hiring centres

Overlaps

• General Studies I: the distribution of key natural resources and the factors behind the location of industries.
• Haryana: Agriculture, Water and Animal Husbandry: the State's crops, canals, mandis and portals.