हिंदी
CBSEScience (English Medium) Class 12
प्रश्न पत्र२६३९
पाठ्यपुस्तक उत्तर२५९९७
MCQ ऑनलाइन अभ्यास परीक्षा४३
महत्वपूर्ण प्रश्न एवं उत्तर२६०६३
अवधारणा स्पष्टीकरण और वीडियो६२९
समय सारणी२४
पाठ्यक्रम

Overview of Land Resources and Agriculture

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Topics

Estimated time: 24 minutes
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Land Use Categories

  • Land-use records are maintained by the Land Revenue Department, and they differ slightly from the geographical area measured by the Survey of India, which remains fixed.
  • Forests refer to land officially classified as forest in records, which may not always match the actual forest cover.
  • Non-agricultural land includes land used for settlements, roads, industries, canals and infrastructure, and increases with urbanisation and development.
  • Agricultural-related categories include:
    a) Net Sown Area – land where crops are grown.
    b) Current Fallow – land left uncultivated for one year.
    c) Other Fallow – left uncultivated for 1–5 years.
    d) Culturable Wasteland – left unused for more than 5 years but can be reclaimed.
  • Other categories include Barren and Wastelands, Permanent Pastures and Grazing Lands, and Land under Tree Crops and Groves, which are used for grazing, orchards, or are unsuitable for cultivation.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Land-use Changes in India

  • Land-use changes are influenced by economic development, population growth and technology, while total land area remains fixed.
  • As the size of the economy grows, pressure on land increases and even marginal lands are brought under use.
  • With economic development, there is a shift from agricultural (primary) sector to secondary and tertiary sectors, leading to conversion of agricultural land into non-agricultural uses like buildings and industries.
  • Even though agriculture’s share in GDP declines, pressure on agricultural land remains high because a large population still depends on it and food demand is increasing.
  • Between 1950–51 and 2019–20, land under non-agricultural uses, forests, current fallow and net sown area increased.
  • The highest increase is in non-agricultural land due to urbanisation, industrialisation and infrastructure development.
  • Land categories like barren land, culturable wasteland, tree crops and groves, and fallow land have declined due to increasing pressure from agriculture and non-agricultural activities.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Common Property Resources

  • Common Property Resources (CPRs) are community-owned natural resources like forests, pastures, and village water bodies, used by all members without private ownership. They are important for fodder, fuel and livelihood, especially for landless farmers and women.
  • Agriculture is land-based, and access to land directly affects rural income and poverty. Land also has social value and acts as security for credit and emergencies.
  • The total cultivable land includes net sown area, fallow land and culturable wasteland. Over time, the share of cultivable land has slightly declined, and scope for expanding net sown area is limited.
  • To increase production, India needs land-saving technologies such as increasing crop yield and improving cropping intensity (more crops grown per year on the same land).
  • Indian agriculture has three cropping seasons—Kharif, Rabi and Zaid. Farming types include irrigated (protective and productive) and rainfed (dryland and wetland farming) depending on rainfall and water availability.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Foodgrains

  • Foodgrains occupy about two-thirds of total cropped area in India and are the main crops in both subsistence and commercial farming. They are divided into cereals and pulses.
  • Cereals cover about 54% of cropped area, and India ranks third in world cereal production after China and USA. Major cereals are rice, wheat, jowar, bajra and maize.
  • Rice is the staple food of India and is mainly grown in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. It is grown as a kharif crop, and yield is high in irrigated states like Punjab and Haryana.
  • Wheat is the second most important cereal and is a rabi crop. Major producers are Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.
  • Coarse cereals like jowar, bajra and maize are grown in semi-arid and dry regions. Maharashtra is the leading producer of jowar, and Rajasthan leads in bajra production.
  • Pulses occupy about 11% of cropped area and are important sources of protein. They improve soil fertility through nitrogen fixation.
  • Gram and Tur (Arhar) are the main pulses. Madhya Pradesh is a major producer of gram, and Maharashtra is the leading producer of tur. Pulses are mostly rainfed crops with low and fluctuating yields.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Oilseeds

  • Oilseeds are grown for extracting edible oils and occupy about 14% of total cropped area in India. Major oilseed growing regions are Malwa Plateau, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Telangana and Karnataka.
  • Groundnut is a major oilseed and India produces about 18.8% of world production (2018). It is mainly a rainfed kharif crop, and leading producers are Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
  • Rapeseed and Mustard are grown in rabi season in north-western and central India. Rajasthan, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh are major producers.
  • Around two-thirds of rapeseed and mustard area is irrigated, which has helped improve and stabilise yields.
  • Soyabean and Sunflower are other important oilseeds. Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra lead in soyabean production, while Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are major sunflower producers.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Fibre and Other Important Crops

  • Fibre crops like cotton and jute are used for making cloth, bags and sacks. Cotton is a kharif crop grown in semi-arid areas, and India ranks second in cotton production after China.
  • Major cotton producing states are Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana. Yield is high in irrigated north-western states and low in rainfed areas like Maharashtra.
  • Jute is mainly grown in West Bengal, which produces about three-fourths of India’s jute. India produces about three-fifth of world jute production.
  • Sugarcane is a tropical crop and mostly irrigated in India. India ranks second after Brazil in sugarcane production. Major producers are Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
  • Tea and Coffee are plantation crops. Assam is the leading tea producer, and Karnataka produces most of India’s coffee. India ranks second in tea production and eighth in coffee production globally.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Agricultural Development in India

  • Before Independence, Indian agriculture was mainly subsistence-based and suffered from droughts, famines and low productivity. Partition also reduced irrigated land as one-third went to Pakistan.
  • After Independence, the government focused on increasing foodgrain production by shifting from cash crops to food crops, increasing cropping intensity, and bringing fallow and cultivable land under cultivation.
  • In the mid-1960s, India adopted HYV seeds of wheat and rice, along with fertilisers and irrigation in states like Punjab, Haryana and Western U.P., leading to the Green Revolution and rapid rise in food production.
  • The Green Revolution initially benefited only irrigated regions, causing regional disparities, but later spread to eastern and central India. In the 1980s, agro-climatic planning (1988) was introduced to develop rainfed areas and promote diversification.
  • Agricultural output has increased greatly due to expansion of irrigation and modern technology (fertilisers, pesticides, machinery). The government promotes sustainable farming through NMSA, organic farming schemes (PKVY, RKVY), and Farmer’s Portal.
CBSE: Class 12

Key Points: Problems of Indian Agriculture

  • Regional Nature of Problems: Agricultural problems in India differ from region to region due to different climate, soil and historical conditions, but some problems are common everywhere.
  • Dependence on Monsoon: Only about 33% land is irrigated, so most farming depends on rainfall. Erratic monsoon causes droughts and floods, harming crop production.
  • Low Productivity: Crop yields in India are lower than countries like USA, Russia and Japan. Rainfed dry areas growing coarse cereals, pulses and oilseeds have especially low output.
  • Indebtedness and Lack of Finance: Modern farming inputs are costly. Small and marginal farmers often take loans from banks and moneylenders. Crop failure and low income lead to heavy debt problems.
  • Lack of Effective Land Reforms: Unequal land distribution continued even after Independence because land reforms were not properly implemented due to political pressure from landlords.
  • Small and Fragmented Landholdings: Average farm size is decreasing due to population growth. Land is divided among generations, causing fragmentation, which makes farming uneconomical.
  • Underemployment and Land Degradation: Many farmers remain unemployed for 4–8 months in a year due to seasonal farming. Also, soil fertility is reducing because of salinity, waterlogging, erosion, and excessive chemicals.
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