Agricultural Inputs and Productivity | Geography Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Agricultural Inputs and Productivity

• Global productivity pattern is highly uneven. There is an inter-regional disparity in Agricultural Productivity for example Agricultural Productivity in India is higher than in Nepal.
• There has also been an intra-regional disparity in Agricultural Productivity, for example, Punjab and Haryana have very high Agricultural Productivity, while the plateau regions in eastern India have low Agricultural Productivity. Similarly, eastern China has high Agricultural Productivity, while western China has low Agricultural Productivity. California, Texas, prairies in the USA and south and south-eastern Brazil have high Agricultural Productivity.
• Productivity is the ratio of farm output and farm input. Productivity is always measured with reference to an aerial unit. FAO and others use hectares as the land unit.
• Productivity is different from fertility. High fertile land need not be high productivity. For example, despite having high fertile agricultural land in India as compared to China & South Korea, productivity is much less than in China & South Korea.
• The agriculture system has the following components: Input, output, process, and feedback.
  • Input: seed, fertilizers, labor, tools, knowledge, skill, policy, are the input of the farm system. 
  • Output: food grains, grass, fruit, meat, milk, fish, etc, are the output of the farm system. 
  • Process: farming, harvesting, plowing, livestock farming, etc, are the process of the agriculture system. 
  • Feedback: based on the farm output, farmers get the feedback. Using this feedback or experienced knowledge farmer may change the input & process of the agricultural system.

Determinants of Agricultural Productivity

• Agricultural Productivity is primarily governed by three factors:
  • Environment: within this, climate and soil are the main determinants.
  • Society: the land is properly managed in developed countries. In monsoonal countries land is inherited, here land management is a social affair, and consequently development of agriculture is low.
  • Agriculture inputs: inputs play a pivotal role. They are also known as infrastructural agricultural inputs. They are:
  • Irrigation facilities
  • HYV
  • Chemical fertilizer
  • Modern agricultural implements
  • Pesticides
• Those countries which have either developed the agricultural inputs indigenously or have imported these, have been able to make greater productivity of agricultural lands. E.g. – black soil, alluvial soils have very high fertility. Land carrying capacity is high but they are unable to provide high productivity.
• Alluvial soil of Bihar is more fertile than that of Punjab and Haryana, but due to agricultural inputs, Punjab and Haryana have higher productivity. Alluvial plains of Myanmar, Vietnam are very fertile but productivity is low compared to Western Europe, where the soil is not at all fertile (region of podzol soil). Here natural fertility is low but productivity is high due to agricultural inputs.

Classification

• From an agricultural point of view, we divide the countries into three categories:
  • High productivity- >3000 kg/ha yield of cereals
  • Medium productivity – 2000-3000 kg/ha
  • Low productivity- <2000 kg/ha
• Countries of high productivity:
• These include developed countries, Egypt, China, Chile, Indonesia, and South Korea. These are countries where both environmental factors, as well as input factors, have worked.
• Some examples are:
  • Egypt– Egypt has black alluvium soil with agricultural inputs which has resulted in making 95% of land arable.
  • Chile– around 80% of the land is irrigated
  • China– Eastern coastal plain is very fertile, Northern plains, Hwang Ho plain, Manchuria coastal area, Loess plain have got an agricultural revolution.
  • Indonesia– Lava plateau are very fertile.
  • France, South Korea, Germany, etc. are not endowed with fertile soil. All have podzol or podzolic soil. But due to agricultural inputs, their productivity is among the highest in the world.
• Medium productivity countries:
• These include countries which are making attempts to improve agricultural productivity, so there has been tendency to give more agricultural inputs.
• Such countries are Vietnam, Malaysia, Argentina, Myanmar, Mexico, Bangladesh, Brazil, Philippines etc.
• Low productivity countries
• Most of these countries have environmental suitability over large areas but due to lack of agricultural inputs, productivity is low.
• Secondly, natural hazards create problems in the development of inputs. These are countries where regional development has taken place. They have a very high level of intraregional variations in agricultural productivity.
• E.g. In 2005, India recorded total productivity of 2367 kg/ha, but Punjab and Haryana have yields exceeding 3000 kg/ha, while Assam had a value at 1100kg/ha.
• In Pakistan, Punjab has productivity greater than 3000 kg/ha, while productivity in Baluchistan is less than 1000 kg/ha.
• In Nigerian, the Niger river’s command area has high productivity, while the northern plateau has Agricultural Productivity between 500 and 700 kg/ha
• Most of the sub-Saharan countries have black alluvium content but unfavorable climate and lack of irrigation are principally responsible for low and very low productivity.

• Although there have been inter-regional and intra-regional variations in agricultural productivity but there has been growing attempts by developing countries to increase agricultural productivity, primarily using agricultural inputs. This is obvious from the increase in productivity seen in some countries.
• When we consider general agricultural productivity, including all crops, it is found that countries using agricultural inputs have developed profitable agricultural economies.
• Commercial grain farming of the USA, Canada, France, Norway, Sweden, Australia, and New Zealand are good examples. They have also provided inputs to other crops and the yield is phenomenal in wheat, maize, and rice in the USA and wheat, potato in Western European countries.
• Developing countries are still dependent to a greater extent on natural conditions. Whatever inputs are given they are given to food crops, so industrial and commercial crops are almost ignored. Developing countries have failed to develop new seeds and new agricultural technology and whatever is developed in western countries are not much suitable for developing countries.
• So whenever they use imported HYV seeds and imported modern agricultural technology, they are unable to get the required productivity.
• Thus, poor and developing countries have to take major steps first for developing indigenous inputs and secondly more technological interactions with the developed countries.
• Present emphasis has changed. Presently there is a need to develop sustainable seeds and only those infrastructures which may have environmental suitability. So developing countries also have challenges to develop new inputs- drought-resistant seeds, flood-resistant seeds, and different systems of irrigation in drought areas.
• They also need to change crop priority and suitable needs to be encouraged. By taking such measures, developing countries may also improve their agricultural productivity.

Methods to increase productivity

• Mechanization in agriculture 
• Innovative ideas in agriculture 
• Knowledge, skill 
• High-quality seeds, fertilizer, pesticides may increase the productivity
• Zero budget farming 
• Soil health card scheme

Importance of productivity

• Regional imbalance can be estimated by calculating the productivity of farms. 
• Knowledge disparities also can be known through productivity 
• Productivity is the actual measurement of efficiency in farm sectors.

Understanding Agricultural Productivity

Agricultural productivity refers to the output of agricultural products from a given set of inputs. In the Indian context, it can be evaluated based on yield (quantity of a crop produced per unit of land), and efficiency of resource utilization.

Status of Agricultural Productivity in India

India is the world's largest producer of spices, pulses, milk, tea, cashew, and jute, and the second largest producer of rice, wheat, sugarcane, groundnut, vegetables, and fruits. However, despite these impressive figures, agricultural productivity in India is not uniform and exhibits considerable variation across crops and regions.

Factors Influencing Agricultural Productivity in India

Various factors contribute to the level and variations in agricultural productivity in India. These include:

Physical Factors

• Climate and Weather Conditions: India's diverse climatic conditions influence the type and productivity of crops. While the monsoon plays a vital role in kharif crops, winter temperatures affect rabi crops.
• Soil Quality: Different regions in India have different soil types, affecting the suitability and productivity of various crops.

Technological Factors

• Use of High Yield Variety (HYV) Seeds: HYV seeds have significantly improved the productivity of crops like rice and wheat. However, their usage is not uniform across the country.
• Irrigation: Despite numerous large-scale irrigation projects, a significant portion of India's agriculture is still dependent on monsoons. The lack of irrigation facilities affects productivity.

Socio-Economic Factors

• Farm Size: The prevalence of small and marginal farms in India often limits the farmers' capacity to invest in modern farming techniques, thereby affecting productivity.
• Credit Availability: Access to affordable credit is crucial for farmers to invest in better inputs and modern agricultural practices.

Enhancing Agricultural Productivity in India

Enhancing agricultural productivity in India requires a multi-faceted approach:

• Investment in Agricultural Research and Development: Innovations in crop breeding, pest management, and farming practices can significantly boost productivity.
• Improving Irrigation Infrastructure: Ensuring reliable irrigation can reduce dependence on monsoons and enable multiple cropping.
• Promoting Farm Mechanization: Mechanization can improve efficiency and reduce dependence on manual labor.
• Strengthening Agricultural Extension Services: These services can help disseminate knowledge about modern farming practices among farmers.

Limits To Growth

• The club of Rome was formed in 1968 in Rome to study the common futures of earth.
• In 1972, the club of Rome released a paper “limit to growth”. Under this paper, a detailed analysis was done on mankind’s sustainability whether mankind will sustain it in the long run or not. The club of Rome also did a detailed study on Malthus’s theory on population and gave a report on world resources and the ability to absorb the pollution.

What is the limit to growth?

• Limit of growth theory says nature had set a limit beyond the limit development cannot possible.
• The limit to growth model was developed by D. H. Meadows on the basis of system dynamic principle.
• The basic assumption in this model:
  • We have limited resources available on earth.
  • Limited agricultural land
  • Earth has a limited capacity to consume the pollution
  • The model also gives the importance of technology & innovation to change productivity.
  • The model does not give much importance to recycling & pollution control mechanism
• There are five variables or input used in this model:
  • Population
  • Pollution
  • Per capita food availability
  • Per capita industrial production
  • Natural resources or non-renewable resources

• The output will differ with Changes in these five variables. For example, if the population is increasing then per capita food availability will decrease. If industrial production is increasing then pollution will be increasing
• The theory is based on the thesis that “the continued growth leads to infinite quantities that just do not fit into a finite world.” This basic idea has been elaborated in a highly complicated model which cannot be easily described in equation form.
• Among the various relationships, there are “feedback loops” that register the effects of changes in one variable such as food production on another variable like population growth.
• For example, population growth is positively related to food production, But food production is negatively related to pollution, and pollution, in turn, is positively related to industrial output.
• The model also uses past data on such factors as growth rates of population, industrial output, and agricultural production, and the estimates of rates of technological progress. These factors would lead to the use of new resources, raise agricultural productivity, and control pollution.

Criticisms:

• The Limits to Growth (LTG) was an alarming report predicting the collapse of the world economy in the 21st century.
• It does not account for the infinite possibilities in human innovation.
• The prediction was based on data and computer simulation techniques which could not have been so refined, exact, and sophisticated like that of today.