Cropping Pattern

A cropping pattern refers to the arrangement and sequence of crops grown on a piece of land over a specific period. It involves decisions about the types of crops to be cultivated, their spatial arrangement, and the timing of their planting and harvesting. Different cropping patterns are employed based on factors like climate, soil type, and water availability.

Key Elements of Cropping Pattern:

• Crop selection:The type of crops chosen to be grown, considering their suitability to soil, climate, market demand, and profitability.
• Crop sequence:The order in which crops are planted, often designed to optimize resource use, maintain soil fertility, and manage pests and diseases.
• Spatial arrangement:The distribution of crops within a field, influenced by factors like irrigation systems, intercropping practices, and sunlight exposure.
• Temporal arrangement:The timing of planting and harvesting, considering factors like crop growth cycles, weather patterns, and market windows.

Types of Cropping Patterns:

Monoculture

• Monoculture: cultivation of a single crop or single tree plantation on a land.
• Mono-cropping: Growing a single crop continuously on the same land, often leading to soil depletion and pest issues.

Types	Explanation
A. Monoculture Mono-Cropping	Only one crop
B. Polyculture Mixed Cropping Sequential Relay Ratooning Multiple Cropping – Inter Cropping	Sugarcane + Mustard + Onion/Potato Ragi, Mustard Maize – Potato – Chilli Paira – Utera Sugarcane, Sorghum, Plant – Stubble – Plant

Polyculture

• Mixed Cropping: Mixed farming is the practice of growing crops while raising animals for meat, eggs, or milk. For instance, a mixed farm may have cattle, sheep, pigs, or poultry in addition to growing grain crops like wheat or rye.
• Crop Rotation/sequential cropping: Different crops on the field in pre-planned succession: succeeding crop planted after harvest of the preceding crop.
  • Depends on: the availability of moisture/irrigation facilities. If properly done, 2-3 crops can be grown in a year.
• Relay Cropping: A method of sowing in which lentil/Lathyrus/Uradbean/Moongbean seeds are broadcast in the standing crop of rice about two weeks before its harvest. This practice enables the use of better soil moisture available at the time of harvesting of rice crops, which could otherwise be lost quickly. It is commonly practised in Bihar, Eastern UP, West Bengal, Chattisgarh and Odisha.
• Ratoon Cropping: It is a multiple-harvest system in which regenerating stubbles of the established crop in the field are managed for subsequent production. In crops such as – cotton, banana, sugarcane, lemons, pigeon pea and rice, instead of cutting, picking of pods is done, and the plants are allowed to bear the next flush of pods.
  • Irrigation after the main harvesting of the crop increases the yield from the ratoon crop. The ratoon crop usually produces 50-65% of the sown-crop yield.
  • The ratoon system is not viable if sequential cropping is possible.
• Inter-Cropping: Growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field in a definite pattern: row by row. Crops are selected such that their nutrient requirements are different:
  1. Max nutrient utilisation
  2. Prevents pests and diseases from spreading to all plants belonging to one crop.

Types of Inter-Cropping	Explanation
a. Parallel Cropping	Such crops have different growth habits and zero competition with each other. e.g. Urad/Moong + Maize
b. Companion Cropping	When the production of both inters crop is equal to that of its solid planting. e.g. Mustard/Potato/Onion + Sugarcane
c. Synergetic Cropping	In this type of cropping, the yield of both crops is higher than their pure crops in a unit area. e.g. Sugarcane + Potato
d. Multi Storey	An innovative agricultural technique that utilizes the vertical space available to cultivate diverse crops at different levels. e.g. Colocasia – Potato – Leafy vegetables

Types of Farming:

We can classify all types of farming that are practised in India into the following categories:

1. Subsistence Agriculture
   • Primitive Subsistence Agriculture
   • Intensive Subsistence Agriculture
   • Nomadic Herding
2. Commercial Farming
   • Commercial Cropping
   • Plantations
   • Horticulture
   • Livestock Farming
   • Mixed Farming
   • Agro-Forestry
   • Aquaculture
   • Hydroponics and Greenhouse farming
   • Organic Farming

Subsistence Agriculture:

Subsistence agriculture is defined as one in which the farmers consume all, or nearly so, of the products grown. There are two categories of subsistence farming:

1. Primitive Subsistence Farming
2. Intensive Subsistence Farming
3. Nomadic Herding

Primitive Subsistence Agriculture:

Primitive subsistence farming or shifting cultivation is widely practised by many tribes in the tropics, especially in Africa, south and Central America and Southeast Asia.

We can identify primitive subsistence farming through the following characteristics:

1. Very primitive tools: digging sticks and hoes are used;
2. Often uses family/community labour.
3. It depends on the monsoon, the natural fertility of the soil and the suitability of environmental conditions.

Slash and Burn

1. After some time, the soil loses fertility and the farmer shifts to another part. But fertility becomes less and less due to loss of fertility in different parcels.
2. Vegetation is usually cleared by fire and ashes add to the fertility of soil: Slash and burn. It is prevalent in tropical regions under different names in India.

Slash and Burn in India

The slash-and-burn technique has been used in India for a long time. However, its prevalence is negligible now. It was known across India by different names: Jhum in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland; Pamlou in Manipur, Dipa in Bastar. Bewar or Dahiya in Madhya Pradesh, Podu or penda in Andhra Pradesh, Pama Dabi or Koman or Bringa in Odisha, Kumari in the Western Ghats, Valre or Waltre in South Eastern Rajasthan, Khil in the Himalayan belt, and Kuruwa in Jharkhand.

Intensive Subsistence Agriculture:

Intensive subsistence farming is practised in areas with high population pressure on land.

• It is dominated by wet paddy cultivation.
• Land holdings are very small due to the high density of the population. Right to inheritance led to smaller landholdings.
• Labour: Labour-intensive farming. Farmers work with the help of family labour leading to intensive use of land.
• Use of machinery is limited and most of the agricultural operations are done by manual labour.
• High doses of biochemical inputs and irrigation are used for higher production, apart from farmland manure. The yield per unit area is high but per labour productivity is low.

Nomadic Herding or Pastoralism

Nomadic herding or pastoral nomadism is a primitive subsistence activity, in which the herders rely on animals for food, clothing, shelter, tools and transport.

Herders move from one place to another along with their livestock, depending on the amount and quality of pastures and water. Each nomadic community occupies a well-identified territory as a matter of tradition.

Commercial farming:

Commercial farming uses Modern inputs: High Yielding Variety (HYV) seeds, chemical fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides for higher productivity. The degree of commercialisation of agriculture varies from one region to another. Ex: Rice in Punjab and Haryana, but in Odisha, it’s a subsistence crop.

• Single crop in a large area.
• Plantation is an interface of agriculture and industry. All products are used as raw materials in respective industries.
• Use of Capital-intensive inputs. (migrant labours)
• In India, Tea (Assam and North Bengal), Coffee (Karnataka), rubber, sugarcane, Banana, etc, are plantation crops.

Horticulture

Fruits and Vegetable crops are classified as Horticulture crops. There are high-value crops such as vegetables, fruits and flowers, often produced solely for the urban markets.

Characteristics of Horticulture crops:

• Farms are small and are located where there are good transportation links with the urban centre where a high-income group of consumers is located.
• It is both labour and capital-intensive and lays emphasis on the use of irrigation, HYV seeds, fertilisers, and insecticides.

Livestock Farming

It is more organized and capital-intensive than nomadic herding.

It is a specialised activity:

• Often only one kind of animal is reared: sheep, cattle, goats and horses.
• In Western Europe, North America and Australia, it is practised on permanent ranches – large and divided into several parcels – fenced to regulate grazing.

Dairy Farming

It is the most advanced and efficient type of rearing of milch animals. It has the following characteristics:

• Highly capital intensive: Animal sheds, storage facilities for fodder, feeding and milching machines. Special emphasis is laid on cattle breeding, health care and veterinary services.
• Highly labour intensive: involve rigorous care in feeding and milching. There is no off-season.
• Technology Intensive: refrigeration, pasteurisation and other preservation processes have increased the duration of storage of various dairy practised mainly near urban and industrial centres which provide a neighbourhood market for fresh milk and dairy products. The development of transportation, and refrigerated products.

Mixed Farming:

When crops and livestock are grown on the same farm it is called mixed cropping. Fodder crops are an important component of mixed farming. Crop rotation and intercropping play an important role in maintaining soil fertility.

1. Equal emphasis is laid on crop cultivation and animal husbandry. Animals like cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry provide the main income along with crops.
2. High capital expenditure on farm machinery and building,
3. Extensive use of chemical fertilisers and green manures and
4. Skill and expertise of the farmers.

Mixed farms are moderate in size and usually, the crops associated with them are wheat, barley, oats, rye, maize, fodder and root crops.

Cropping Pattern V/s Farming system:

• Cropping System is a broader term comprising the crops and cropping pattern along with theirinteraction with other agricultural components such as resources, machinery, technologies, environment, etc.
• Cropping system= Cropping pattern + Interaction (input, technology)
• Farming system= Cropping system + Interaction (other enterprise)

Factors Affecting Cropping Pattern:

1. Varied Physiography and Topography: The Indian subcontinent has a diverse soil profile, topography, climate, and weather and is divided into 127 agroclimatic zones (ACZ) as per ICAR.
2. Economic factors:Farm size, Credit facility, Income, Insurance etc. For example, if the farm holding is small and the farmer’s income is less, the farmer will opt for subsistence farming.
3. Government Policies:Policies like MSP wheat and rice are preferred by farmers over other crops. Similarly, Due to British policies, India went from a major food crop economy to a cash crop economy in the past.
4. Market for crops:Price and factors determine the type of crop, Ex, Sugarcane in Maharashtra for export.
5. Infrastructure: Both forward and backward infrastructure affect the cropping pattern of a particular area. Say irrigation facilities are available, then 3-4 crops are possible in a year, while if cold chain infra is developed, farmers may be attracted towards horticulture crops.
6. Climate Change: Rising temperatures, shifting rainfall patterns, and extreme weather events are disrupting optimal growing conditions, forcing farmers to shift crop selection and planting times. This can lead to reduced yields, altered planting seasons, and even the need for entirely new crops in some regions.
7. Technological advancements: Precision agriculture tools like sensors and data analysis enable optimized planting, fertilization, and pest control, leading to more diverse and resilient cropping patterns
8. Change in consumer preferences: Shifting consumer interest towards organic, local, or health-conscious options is driving farmers to adapt their cropping patterns. This can involve:

• Introducing new crops: Kale and quinoa to meet the demand for specific ingredients.
• Prioritizing sustainability:Organic farming to align with environmental concerns.
• Focusing on local markets:Shorter supply chains and fresh produce preferences.

Changes in Cropping Pattern:

Changes after Independence:

• Among all the food crops, the largest increase in the area since 1950- 51 has already been recorded by wheat cultivation, which shows an increase of 132% by 1987-88.
• But in the case of both rice and pulses, the increase in area has been restricted to only 23%;
• Coarse cereals have recorded only a marginal increase of 11% by 1987-88.

Phases of Changes in Cropping Pattern:

1. Phase I – Pre-Green Revolution Phase: Ship to mouth Phase –
   • Features: scattered, subsistence, mono-cropping, cereals grown with low productivity.
   • The government neglect caused food-grain insufficiency in the 1960s.
   • Growth Rate: less than 2%.
2. Phase II – Green Revolution Phase:
   • Switch from subsistence farming to intensive farming: Advent of HYV seeds, Announcements of MSP, expansion of canal system.
   • Cereal anxiety led the Centre to offer minimum support prices (MSPs) for the major cereals, which distorted cropping patterns into the“cerealization” of agriculture.
   • Changes in cropping patterns: Rice was introduced to Punjab, Haryana and UP from traditional east and south India.
3. Phase III- Globalization Phase: It led to competition from other countries:
   • The ratio between food and non-food crops during 1990-91 was 77:23.
   • Demand for cash crops increased, and cropping patterns changed a little to satisfy the demand for plantation crops like tea, coffee, etc.
4. Phase IV – Horticulture Awareness Phase:
   • After the launch of the National Horticulture mission in 2005, it increased multiplefold.
   • After 2012-13, the number of horticulture crops grown in India surpassed the number of food-grain crops.
   • It was a period of global agricultural commodity surge, and Agri-GDP increased to 3.6%.

Cropping Seasons of India

India has three cropping seasons:

1. Kharif.
2. Rabi.
3. Zaid.

Kharif Crops:

• Season: Its sowing largely coincides with the South-west monsoon and harvesting takes place between September and October.
• Crops: Tropical crops such as paddy, maize, jowar-bajra, tur (arhar), moong (green), urad (black), cotton, jute, and Soyabean.
• Region: Punjab, Haryana, Assam, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Maharashtra (Konkan coast particularly) along with UP and Bihar.

Rabi Crops:

• Season: Sowing begins with the onset of winter – October – November, and harvesting is done in March and up to May.
• Major areas: North-Western parts of India which receive precipitation due to western temperate cyclones (western disturbance). These include Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, Uttarakhand and UP.
• Irrigation has become important in Punjab, Haryana, Western UP and parts of Rajasthan for the Rabi crop.
• During this season the regions of Eastern Ghats, especially Tamil Nadu, receive rainfall from the North-Eastern Monsoon.
• Crops: Those crops that require low-temperature conditions (and low rainfall) facilitate the cultivation of temperate and subtropical crops. These include Wheat, Barley (jaw), peas, gram (chana) and Mustard (sarsaun).

Zaid Crops:

• These are short-duration summer cropping season crops cultivated on irrigated lands after the Rabi harvest in April-May.
• Season: Short season between Rabi and Kharif. When don’t have to wait for rains (March to June)
• Crops: Watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber(kheera), vegetables and fodder crops.

Did you know?

Several regions of Assam, West Bengal and Odisha can have 3 crops in a year, namely Aus, Aman, and Boro. It is one of the most fertile regions of the world and one of the only regions to have three crops in a year.

Such distinct cropping season does not occur in southern parts of the country. Here temperature is high enough to grow tropical crops during any period, provided soil moisture is available. Thus, rice can be grown thrice a year in the Cauvery plains.

India boasts a diverse agricultural landscape, with a wide range of crops playing crucial roles in its food security, economy, and culture. Here are some of the major crops in India, categorized based on their primary purpose:

1. Food Grains:

• Rice:The staple food for a large portion of the population, primarily grown in eastern and southern India.
• Wheat:Dominates the northern and north-western regions, providing dietary diversity and bread flour.
• Maize (Corn):Gaining popularity due to its adaptability to various climates and uses in feed, food, and industrial applications.
• Pulses (Legumes):Rich in protein and essential nutrients, including lentils, chickpeas, and pigeon peas.
• Millets:Traditional crops like finger millet and pearl millet are making a comeback for their nutritional value and drought resilience.

2. Cash Crops:

• Cotton:A significant export crop, particularly in western India, used for textiles and other products.
• Sugarcane:Concentrated in northern and western regions, providing sugar for domestic consumption and export.
• Jute:Grown for its fibre used in making packaging materials, mainly in eastern India.
• Oilseeds:Soybean, groundnut, rapeseed, and sunflower provide vegetable oils and protein meals.
• Tobacco:Though controversial, it remains a cash crop for some farmers in southern India.

3. Plantation Crops:

• Tea:India is the second-largest tea producer globally, grown mainly in the Darjeeling and Assam regions.
• Coffee:Grown in southern India, primarily in Karnataka and Kerala, renowned for its unique flavour profiles.
• Rubber:Cultivated in southern India, especially Kerala, contributing to tyre production and other industrial uses.
• Coconut:A versatile crop providing oil, milk, copra, and other products, grown along the coasts of India.

4. Horticulture Crops:

• Fruits: Mangoes, bananas, grapes, apples, citrus fruits, and a wide variety of other fruits add diversity and nutrients to the Indian diet.
• Vegetables:Tomatoes, onions, potatoes, okra, brinjal, and numerous other vegetables contribute significantly to daily food intake.
• Flowers:India is a major producer of cut flowers like roses, carnations, and marigolds, contributing to both domestic and international markets.

Problems with India’s Agriculture

Problems of Indian Agriculture: Most of them region region-specific. Yet some are common & range from physical constraints to institutional hindrances:

Demand Supply mismatch

Certain crops are overproduced, whereas certain others are underproduced such as Pulses, oil seeds etc. This has created a series of problems:

1. Over-dependence on Rice-wheat-Sugarcane

Foods	Production (in Tons)	%
Total Foodgrains	134390	63.58
Total Cereals and Millets	107983	51.09
Rice	48120	22.77
Wheat	35517	16.80
Total Pulses	26407	12.50
Total Condiments and Spices	4170	1.97
Total Fruits and Vegetables	11665	5.52
Total Food Crops	155786	73.71
Total Oilseeds	29346	13.88
Sugarcane	5242	2.48
Cotton	13306	6.30
Total non-food crops	55573	26.29
Total Cropped Area	211359	100

2. Import Dependence: Oilseeds and Pulses are a few of the most imported commodities in India.
3. Lack of export orientation: [Dalwai Committee]
4. Low Prices of Agricultural Produce – Problem of plenty: farm revenues decline for several crops despite increasing production and market prices falling below the Minimum Support Price (MSP).

• Surging Input Costs: Diesel prices and fertilizer costs have shot up in the post-COVID times.

Poor Growth Rate

1. China’s annual agricultural growth over the long run has exceeded that of India by a substantial 1.5% on average.
2. Low Inflation in agricultural commodities: GVA deflator in Agriculture for 2018-19 is around 0% as agricultural prices did not grow. This is because output is exceeding well beyond market demand. It is difficult for Small farmers to sustain themselves.
3. Low productivity: The yield of crops in the country is low in comparison to the international level. Esp. in Rice, wheat, cotton and oilseeds; Further, Labour productivity is low too due to high pressure on land.

Market Penetration:

Farmers especially small landholders in less developed states, sell their produce mainly through village traders or government-run primary Agriculture Credit societies and often get exploited. This is due to several constraints:

1. Lack of commercialisation: A large number of farmers grow crops for self-consumption – subsistence farmers.
2. Insufficient Processing: The agri-produce in India has limited front-end linkage with the Agro-processing industry.

Constraints of Financial Resources and Indebtedness

• Informal Credit: Most such farmers have resorted to availing credit from even money lenders.
• Indebtedness: is at around 90%; Average debt hovers around ₹
• Suicides among farm workers rose 18% in 2020; Deaths among landowning farmers dropped slightly: NCRB.
• About 70% of agricultural households spend more than they earn.
• 25% of all farmers live below the poverty line.
• Inputs of modern agriculture are very expensive for small farmers.

Dependence on Monsoon:

1. Irrigation covers 33% of the gross cropped area and 45% of NSA.
2. Inequitable distribution: More than 60% of irrigation water is consumed by rice & Sugarcane.
3. Biases against rain-fed areas: Rain-fed Agriculture Atlas(By Rainfed Agriculture Network).
   • They produce 88% of pulses, 40% of rice, and 64% of the Cattle population.
   • The majority of the schemes are designed for irrigated areas and simply extended to rain-fed areas without considering their requirements.
   • Miniscule procurement in rain-fed areas.

Small Farm Size and Fragmentation of Landholdings:

According to the NSSO data, the average landholding size has reduced from 2.3 hectares in 1971 to 0.38 hectares in 2015-16 [halved every 20 years]. Further, according to the data from SECC (Census):

• 4.9% of farmers control 32% of India’s farmland.
• A “large” farmer in India has 45 times more land than a “marginal” farmer.
• 10Cr or 56.4% of rural households own no agricultural land.
• Only 12.9% of land marked–the size of Gujarat–for takeover from landlords was taken over by December 2015.
• Five million acres—half the size of Haryana—were given to 5.78 million poor farmers by December 2015.

Vast Under-employment:

Disguised unemployment and rampant seasonal unemployment (work only for 4-8 months). Even in cropping season work is not available throughout the season.

Degradation of cultivable land:

1. Alarming situation in irrigated areas:
   • Alkalisation & salinisation of soils affected 8mnha land due to salinity & Alkalinity;
   • Another 7mnha has lost fertility due to water logging.
2. Insecticides & Pesticides: concentration in toxic amounts in soil profile
3. Leguminous crops have been displaced from cropping patterns in irrigated areas &
4. Duration of fallow has substantially reduced owing to multiple cropping – natural fertilisation processes such as nitrogen fixation have obliterated.
5. Soil erosion in rain-fed areas.

All this has led to lower household incomes in the Agricultural sector.

MS Swaminathan Commission’s Report

The major causes of the agrarian crisis: Unfinished agenda in land reform: Marginal land holding. Quantity and quality of water and adverse meteorological factors add to these problems. Access, adequacy and timeliness of institutional credit. technology fatigue, Opportunities for assured and remunerative marketing. 28% of the families in India were found to be BPL & therefore, food security needed attention.

Solutions:

1. Target Income, not prices – ES 2016-17
2. Price Discovery Strategies: See MSP, Market mechanisms.
3. The solution to marginal land holding:
   • Distribute ceiling-surplus and wastelands;
   • Land diversion: Prevent diversion of agricultural & forest land to the corporate sector;
   • Ensure grazing rights & seasonal access to forests to tribals and pastoralists;
   • Establish a National Land Use Advisory Service, etc.
   • Land Pooling: Farmers can voluntarily come together to reap economies of scale.
   • Land bankingis the practice of aggregating parcels of land for future sale or development.
4. Solutions for ensuring credit:
   • Expand the outreach of the Credit facilities System:
   • Issue Kisan Credit Cards to women farmers: [PMJDY now mandatorily issues KCCs]
5. Crop Insurance: Establish an Agriculture Risk Fund to provide relief to farmers in the aftermath of successive natural calamities, etc.
6. Inputs/Technology:
   • Ensure availability of quality seed and other inputs at affordable costs;
   • Set up Village Knowledge Centres (VKCs) or Gyan Chaupals in farmers’ distress hotspots;
7. Price Stabilization:
   • Need for focused Market Intervention Schemes (MIS) in the case of life-saving crops;
   • Have a Price Stabilisation Fund in place to protect the farmers from price fluctuations, etc.
8. Improving the competitiveness of the small farmers was considered necessary:
   • Improvement in implementation of MSP: It should be at least 50% more than the Weighted average cost of production;
   • Availability of data about spot and future prices of commodities through the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) and the NCDEX, etc.
9. Productive Employment: The need to create productive employment opportunities and to improve the quality of employment in several sectors such that real wages rise through improved productivity. By Emphasizing relatively more labour-intensive sectors inducing a faster growth of these sectors.
10. Measures to preserve traditional rights of access to biodiversity and conservation, enhancement and improvement of crops, farm animals & fish stocks through breeding, etc.
11. Use of Technologies:
12. Soil Health Card Scheme: It assists State Governments (75:25) in setting up Soil Testing laboratories for issuing Soil Health Cards to farmers. State Governments should adopt innovative practices like the involvement of agricultural students, NGOs and the private sector in soil testing, determining the average soil health of villages, etc., to issue Soil Health Cards.

Theme	Scheme
Risk Management	PM Fasal Bima Yojana
Organic farming	Organic Value Chain Development for NER
High-Value commodities	Mission on Horticulture Development
Quality inputs & ToT (Transfer of Technology)	Seed & Planting Plant Protection Agri Extention (to include Wasteland) Farm Mechanization
Water Positive investments	PMKSY – Har Khet ko Pani PMKSY – Per drop more crop
Low-cost credit to farmers	Agri Credit to farmers
White revolution	Livestock Mission, LHDC
Blue revolution	Integrated Development of Fisheries
Processing & Value Addition	PM Kisan Sampada Yojana

Solution & Strategies:

Sustainable Long-Term Solution: We need market reforms to enable better price discovery. For this we must get back to the basic aim of solving the problem of low productivity:  This can be done through:

• Reducing the cost of Inputs: Seeds, Fertilizers and Credit.
• The focus must be towards crop diversification.
• Land and water management(including groundwater). We use 3 times more water to produce 1 tonne of grain in India than in Brazil, China or the US.
• Technology investment and R&D in agriculture. To improve yield gaps and resource management.
• Providing Irrigation

Sustainability Measures

Reducing water requirement:

• Alternative Wetting Drying: The fields are allowed to dry for a few days before re-irrigation to avoid straining the plants. This periodic drying and re-flooding irrigation scheduling strategy is used. Without lowering agricultural yields, this technique lowers greenhouse gas emissionsand the amount of water needed for irrigation.
• Direct Seeding Method (DSR): Using a tractor-powered device, the pre-germinated seeds are drilled into the field without any nursery preparation, instead of transplanting paddy.
• Micro-Irrigation: Application of water slowly via surface/subsurface drip, bubbler, and micro-sprinkler systems in the form of small streams, tiny sprays, or discrete or continuous drips on, above, or below the soil. It requires less watering and holds onto moisture for an extended period.
• Incentivizing water-saving crops: Reward farmers who switch from sugar and rice to crops that require less water and have a smaller carbon footprint.
• Revisit subsidies: MSP/FRP to their output in a way that is sustainable for the environment.
• A long–term plan to lessen carbon emissions and conserve energy and water, two finite resources.
• Agrisystem diversification, improved management of limited water resources, and decreased greenhouse gas emissions.
• Reducing procurement at the FCI could contribute to doubling investments in agricultural research and development to boost sustainable production and enhance agricultural methods to reduce carbon emissions.
• Reducing logistic costs for other crops: By making improvements to infrastructure and logistics, an export-led strategy must also reduce logistics expenses.
• Stable Incomes: Sharing the returns of the investments with farmers to give them a better deal in terms of higher and more stable incomes.

 A Crop Diversification Policy

• Need for crop diversification:
  1. There is already a major shortage of arable land and water for agriculture.
• Policy Objective to be fulfilled:
  1. For the sake of its enormous population, it ought to be able to generate enough food, feed, and fibre.
  2. It ought to do so in a way that promotes increased productivity while maintaining environmental sustainability, including soil, water, air, and biodiversity.
  3. It should make it possible for food to be moved smoothly from farm to fork, reducing marketing expenses, reducing food loss in supply chains, and giving customers access to fresh, safe food.
  4. Affordable, wholesome food should be available to consumers. At the centre of all of these is the farmer, whose income must increase in tandem with access to the greatest markets and technologies both domestically and internationally.
• Initiatives:
  1. Invest in R&D.
  2. Better MSP Policy: Transitioning to greater income support policies connected to preserving water, soil, and air quality from the heavily subsidized input price policy (electricity, water, fertilizers) and MSP/FRP policy for paddy, wheat, and sugarcane.
  3. Improve logistics sector: Due to inadequate supply chain investments, large intermediaries’ margins, and inadequate logistics, our costs continue to be higher than those of many other developing nations.
  4. Boost consumption

FAQs related to Cropping Pattern