Question

Explain how industry and agriculture are complementary to each other.

How are industry and agriculture interdependent on each other?

Answer 1

Agriculture and industry are closely interlinked. In fact, they are the inseparable sides of an economy. If agriculture is the backbone, industry is the energy of the economy. Agriculture and industry are complementary to each other. One cannot develop without the other. We shall now discuss this interdependence under the following two heads.

1. Contribution of Agriculture to Industry:
   1. Agriculture supplies raw materials to industries such as cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, oilseeds, etc.
   2. Agriculture supplies food for the workers working in different industries.
   3. Agriculture is the source of capital formation for industries. The people’s savings are invested in industries.
   4. The agricultural sector provides a good market for industrial goods, both consumer and capital goods.
   5. Agriculture is a source of healthy, strong labour for industry.
2. Contribution of Industry to Agriculture:
   1. Industry supplies various agricultural inputs, such as chemical fertilisers, pesticides, pump sets, tractors, and other implements, thereby raising agricultural productivity.
   2. The infrastructure required for agriculture, such as irrigation projects, roads, and transportation, would not have been possible without the industrial sector’s help.
   3. Industry opens up new and additional sources of employment to absorb all surplus labour from agriculture.
   4. When agricultural productivity improves as a result of industrialisation, farmers’ incomes increase. Thus they spend a lot of money on goods other than food. All these goods are supplied by the industrial sector.