Page 94 - DECO303_INDIAN_ECONOMY_ENGLISH

Unit 6: Agriculture in the National Economy

The second feature of this strategy included waste lands – estimated at 64 million hectares – and Notes
degraded regions which are either unutilised or underutilised assessed to cover 107 million
hectares. All such lands are under the control of the Government or of Panchayats. The Tenth
Plan projected that:
(a) all these lands under the control of the Government or the Panchayats would be packaged
out in viable units and allocated to landless, small and marginal farmers, scheduled caste
and scheduled tribe farmers, retired defence personnel, and educated rural youth, for
cultivation.
(b) greatly degraded wastelands, should be specially used for forestry, tree cropping and
agro-forestry.
(c) the areas under reserved forests but which are presently unutilised or under-utilised
should be distributed to the resource poor particularly landless and marginal farmers, to
generate grasses and fodder and medicinal and aromatics plants.
(d) the Tenth Plan persisted rain-water harvesting and conservation so as to enhance
productivity of rain-fed farm lands. Rain water conservation as well as harvesting hold
the means for sustainable development of rain-fed regions. Such a programme should
make sure that the minimum fundamental water needs of the rural communities are met.
In this relation, the Tenth Plan proposed to persist vigorously, minor irrigation development
and the adoption of enhanced on-farm water management practices and also the use of
water saving devices, like sprinkler irrigation and trip irrigation system in low-rainfall
regions.

Generally, the Tenth Plan believed that recent land and water-use practices in the country
were unsustainable, less productive and influence adversely on regeneration of natural
resources. Therefore, for sustainable development of natural resources, the Tenth Plan
would continue to pursue, as already stated, a regionally differentiated strategy founded
on agro-climatic situations and land and water availability. The promotion of proper
cropping patterns formed a necessary part of the Tenth Plan strategy.
(e) the Tenth Plan imagined a radical thrust in crop diversification. Small as well as marginal
farmers, by and large, offer a prime place to cereals in the cropping system, even though
Indian agriculture is moving quickly towards commercialisation. The focus on cereals is
due to regard of food security, low risk and easy market access. Also, the Government’s
minimum support price (MSP) policy, including only three crops (paddy, wheat and
sugarcane) has motivated mono-cropping and even exploitation of natural resources in
few regions. All this has occurred in the face of acute shortage of pulses and oilseeds.

It is important for you to note that the Tenth Plan’s new purpose was diversification
towards high value as well as more remunerative crops, regarding the agro-climatic
conditions, donation of land and water resources and the market demand both within the
country and outside. The Tenth Plan stressed on the production of fruits, agro-forestry,
vegetables, flowers, tree farming, animal husbandry, aquaculture, dairying, etc.
To motivate such activities, the Tenth Plan developed the essential infrastructure for post-
harvest handling, marketing, processing, storage, etc. and also endorsed pro-active
production policies to encourage farmers and entrepreneurs.
(f) the Tenth Plan set out radical schemes influencing production and distribution of quality
seeds, fertilisers and plant nutrients, farm implements, soil testing and pest management.
(g) finally, the Tenth Plan motivated organic farming in a big manner. The Plan appreciated
the growing demand for organically generated food all over the world and the high prices

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 89