Food Crops - Geography

Table of Contents
1. Rice (Oryza sativa)
2. Wheat (Triticum)
3. Coarse Cereals and Millets (including Wasteland Development)
4. Pulses
5. Crop Science in India
6. Organic Farming
7. Summary
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Rice (Oryza sativa)

Rice is the principal staple food crop of India. India has about 29 percent of the world's total area under rice and contributes roughly one-third of the world's rice production, second only to China. Rice occupies about 23 percent of India's total cropped area.

• Rice is a tropical plant and, therefore, is essentially a kharif crop in India; it thrives in a hot and humid climate.
• It flourishes where rainfall is heavy and well distributed (over 100 cm) or where extensive irrigation is available, and where mean temperatures are around 25°C or above during the growing period.
• Rice is cultivated widely across nearly all states of India except Rajasthan. It is the chief crop of the great plains, of terraced valleys in the lower Himalayas (from Kashmir to Assam) and of irrigated tracts elsewhere.
• The largest producer of rice is West Bengal, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
• Irrigation has enabled Punjab and Haryana, despite their relatively arid climates, to become important rice growers.
• Cultivation of rice is labour-intensive because large-scale mechanisation of ploughing and transplantation is difficult where fields remain flooded for long periods.
• Some commonly grown high-yielding varieties of rice include IR-5, IR-8, IR-20, IR-22, Sabarmati, Bala, Jamuna, Karuna, Kanchi, Krishna, Cauvery, Hansa and Padma.

Rice crop

Wheat (Triticum)

Wheat is the second most important crop in India after rice in terms of cropped area and production. It occupies about 13 percent of the gross cropped area. Wheat is a rabi (winter) crop: it grows best in cool, moist conditions during its vegetative growth and ripens in a warm, dry climate. The crop develops well where annual rainfall is between 50-75 cm and where moisture or irrigation is available during the winter season. Wheat is generally avoided in very warm southern winters and in the humid eastern regions.

Wheat crop

Wheat is principally grown in north-western India - especially Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh (notably the Ganga-Yamuna Doab and the Gomati-Ganga Doab) - and in parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat. About 72 percent of India's wheat production comes from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana combined. Timely winter rains brought by western disturbances in north-west India favour higher yields. Wheat production has increased through the adoption of high-yielding varieties, expansion of irrigation and more efficient use of fertilisers.

• Important high-yielding wheat varieties include Lerma Rajo 64A, Sonalika, Kalyan Sona, Safed Lerma, Sharbati Sonora and Sonora 64.

Coarse Cereals and Millets (including Wasteland Development)

Coarse cereals, often called millets, include crops such as jowar (sorghum), bajra (pearl millet), ragi (finger millet), maize and barley. About 36 million hectares in India are devoted to coarse grains. Production of coarse grains was nearly stagnant during the 1970s, reached a peak of 33.6 million tonnes in 1983-84, and then declined; this decline was mainly due to a reduction in the cropped area as farmers shifted to higher-value crops.

• Coarse grains are mainly kharif crops, predominantly rainfed and requiring little or no irrigation; they are therefore widely grown in relatively dry regions.
• Ragi requires relatively more rainfall and is commonly grown in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
• Jowar is grown in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
• Bajra is common in the drier parts of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan and south-west Uttar Pradesh.
• Millets typically have a higher protein content than wheat and rice, and are an important food source for poorer sections of the population.
• Because most millet cultivation is rainfed, stabilising production requires soil moisture conservation, adoption of dry-farming techniques and watershed management - measures that also support wasteland development and sustainable use of marginal lands.

Pulses

• Pulses are the main source of protein for India's large vegetarian population.
• India is the largest producer and consumer of pulses in the world.
• Pulses production in India has largely stagnated in the range of 8-14 million tonnes over several decades.
• In 1950-51 the land under pulses was nearly 19 million hectares (about 15 percent of total cropped area); by 1984-85 this area was 22.8 million hectares (about 13 percent of total cropped area). By 1995-96 land under pulses increased to 23.9 million hectares.
• Pulses production crossed 14 million tonnes in 1994-95 but declined to 13.19 million tonnes in 1995-96. The estimated production for 2003-04 was 14.89 million tonnes compared with 11.14 million tonnes in 2002-03.
• Average yield of pulses is low, around 500-600 kg per hectare, and per capita availability declined from 69 g in 1961 to about 34 g in 1996.

Pulses

• Pulses are grown across most of India except in areas of very heavy rainfall; most pulse cultivation is rainfed.
• Being leguminous, pulses fix atmospheric nitrogen and help restore soil fertility; they are therefore commonly used in rotation with other crops.
• Intercropping and mixed cropping are common where pulses are grown as secondary crops.
• Major pulse-growing states include Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Odisha, Bihar, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
• Pulses are grown in both kharif and rabi seasons: arhar, moong, urad and moth are largely kharif crops; channa, matar (peas) and masoor (lentil) are mainly rabi crops.
• Arhar is chiefly grown in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. Channa is mainly grown in Bihar, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.
• Programmes to increase pulses production include the National Pulses Development Project (NPDP) and the Special Foodgrains Production Programme (SFPP). Pulses have also been included under technology missions to improve yield and production stability.

Crop Science in India

Crop improvement and management programmes in India have released numerous improved varieties and hybrids across crops. The following lists notable releases identified for various agro-climatic zones (variety or hybrid names and their key traits are shown where given):

• Rice: HRI 120 (resistant to white-backed planthopper and gall midge) and Pusa RH10 (moderately resistant to brown planthopper and rice tungro virus).
• Wheat: HUW 533, GW 322, HD 2781, HW 2045.
• Maize: Hybrid Shaktiman 1, JH 3459, Seed Tech 2324, Hybrid Shaktiman 2, IC 9001 (hybrids/composites).
• Barley: Alfa 93 and BCU 73 (direct introductions).
• Sorghum: CSH 19R (hybrid).
• Pearl millet: RHB 21I, PB 112, Nandi 35 (hybrids) and Pusa Composite 383 (composite variety).
• Finger millet (ragi): Chilka, GPU 45, GPU 26 (varieties).
• Foxtail millet: Meera.
• Proso millet: DHPM.
• Little millet: Kolab, Payur 2.
• Kodo millet: Jawahar Kodo 48.
• Barnyard millet: VL Madira 181.
• Forage sorghum: Bundel Berseem (immune to downy mildew and resistant to major insect pests) and COFS 29 (multicut, high-protein, resistant to major diseases and insect pests) at state level.
• Groundnut: VG 9521 (early maturing).
• Rapeseed-mustard (gobhi sarson): Teri (OE) RO 3 (low erucic acid).
• Krishna rai: JTC1.
• Soyabean: MAUS 61, l. sb1, Palam Soya (varieties identified).
• Linseed: Shekhar (resistant to powdery mildew, rust and wilt) and NL 97 (moderately resistant to powdery mildew, wilt and linseed bud fly).
• Sesame: JTS8.
• Niger: Gujarat Niger (early maturing).
• Gram (chickpea): RSG 888 (resistant to dry root rot) and a bold-seeded Kabuli variety HK 93-134.
• Pigeonpea: Laxmi (resistant to sterility mosaic and tolerant to wilt) and AKT 9911 (tolerant to fusarium wilt).
• Mung-bean: ML 818 (resistant to Cercospora yellow mosaic virus and bacterial leaf spots).
• Urdbean: KU 300 (resistant to yellow mosaic virus).
• Common bean (rajmah): 11 PR 96-4 (resistant to common bean mosaic virus and leaf crinkle).
• Fieldpea: 1PF 27 (pedigree selection: resistant to powdery mildew and tolerant to rust).
• Lathyrus: RLS 1186, IPLY 99-7 and IPLY 99-9 (lines resistant to powdery mildew).
• Mothbean: RMO 435 (tolerant to yellow mosaic virus).
• Clusterbean: RGC 1017.
• Cotton: Pratima and CNH 120 MB (varieties) and an intra hirsutum hybrid (Bunny).
• Sugarcane: Co 89029 (moderately resistant to red rot), CoSe 95422 (moderately resistant to red rot and smut) and CoSe 92493 (moderately resistant to red rot).
• Tossa jute: JRO 128 (fine quality fibre).
• Chewing tobacco: Dharla, Abirami and Lichchivi (varieties).
• Flue-cured tobacco: Cy 79.

Organic Farming

Organic farming is a system in which soil fertility maintenance and pest and disease control are achieved by enhancing biological processes and ecological interactions. Organic farming relies on natural inputs and processes rather than synthetic chemicals. Oilcakes and oilmeals are important natural fertilisers in organic systems; common organic nitrogenous fertilisers include cakes from rapeseed and mustard, neem, castor, mahua, karanja and linseed. To support this approach, the Government launched a National Programme for Organic Production and Farming in 2000.

Organic farming

Advantages of organic farming

• Organic fertilisers often supply readily available plant nutrients in a concentrated form and generally do not adversely affect the physical properties of soil.
• Organic manures are lower in nutrient concentration than synthetic fertilisers but play a vital role in improving the physical, physico-chemical and biological properties of soil, leading to better soil health and long-term productivity.

Methods and practices

• Organic farming avoids synthetic chemical fertilisers and pesticides. Compost - a mixture of leaves, farmyard manure and plant waste - is used to maintain soil fertility. Botanical and natural products, such as neem-based pesticides, are used for pest control; neem preparations are effective and increasingly popular in India.
• Crop rotation is central to organic farming; different crops draw nutrients from different soil depths and rotations balance nutrient use. Recycling of crop residue - by incorporating leaves and stems back into the soil - helps conserve nutrients. Organic farming differs from conventional farming mainly in crop rotation patterns, fertiliser application practices and pest control methods.

Summary

This chapter summarises the geographic distribution, climatic and irrigation requirements, major producing states, recent trends and technological advances for India's principal food crops: rice, wheat, coarse cereals (millets), pulses, and related crop improvement efforts and organic farming practices. Stabilising production of rainfed coarse cereals and pulses requires soil-moisture conservation, watershed management and targeted technology support. Crop science has contributed numerous region-specific varieties and hybrids to increase yields and resistance to pests and diseases, while organic farming offers a complementary pathway to sustain soil health and long-term productivity.