BharatNotes Why this chapter matters for UPSC: Agriculture is the backbone of GS3. This chapter covers the full crop production cycle — from soil preparation to storage — and directly connects to fertilizer policy, irrigation schemes, organic farming, food security legislation, and India's flagship agricultural programmes tested repeatedly in Prelims and Mains.
PART 1 — Quick Reference Tables
Crop Seasons in India
| Season | Period | Major Crops | Sown/Harvested |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kharif | June – September | Rice, Maize, Cotton, Jute, Sugarcane, Soybean | Sown: June (monsoon onset); Harvested: Sep–Oct |
| Rabi | November – March | Wheat, Barley, Gram (chickpea), Mustard, Peas | Sown: Nov; Harvested: Mar–Apr |
| Zaid | March – June | Watermelon, Muskmelon, Cucumber, Bitter gourd | Short season between Rabi and Kharif |
Irrigation Methods Compared
| Method | Mechanism | Water Saving | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dug wells / Tube wells | Groundwater extraction | Baseline | Small farms; water-table areas |
| Canal irrigation | River/dam water via channels | Baseline | River plains; large-scale farming |
| Tank irrigation | Rainwater stored in tanks | Moderate | South India (Eri system, Tamil Nadu) |
| Sprinkler | Water sprayed uniformly | 20–30% | Uneven terrain; vegetables; cereals |
| Drip irrigation | Water at root zone via pipes | 30–50% | Orchards; horticulture; water-scarce areas |
Fertilizers vs Manure
| Parameter | Chemical Fertilizer | Manure / Compost |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Synthetic (factory-made) | Decomposed plant/animal waste |
| Nutrient release | Quick/fast | Slow and sustained |
| Soil texture | Deteriorates over time | Improves structure and water retention |
| Soil microorganisms | Reduces diversity | Enhances microbial activity |
| Examples | Urea (N), DAP (N+P), MOP (K) | Compost, Vermicompost, FYM |
| Environmental risk | Eutrophication, groundwater contamination, soil acidification | Negligible if well-composted |
PART 2 — Detailed Notes
Agricultural Practices — The Full Cycle
The eight basic agricultural practices in sequence:
- Soil preparation — Ploughing/tilling loosens compacted soil, aerates it, and kills weeds; harrow breaks clods; leveller smooths the field for uniform water distribution
- Seed selection — Certified seeds (tested for germination, purity); high-yielding variety (HYV) seeds
- Sowing — Seed drill ensures seeds are sown at correct depth and spacing, reduces seed loss vs broadcast sowing
- Irrigation — Supplying water at right intervals
- Fertilizer/Manure application — Adding nutrients
- Weeding — Removing unwanted plants (weeds) that compete for nutrients, space, and light
- Harvesting — Cutting the mature crop; done manually (sickle) or mechanically (combine harvester)
- Storage — Preserving grains post-harvest to prevent pest damage and fungal spoilage
Vermicompost: Compost produced by earthworms feeding on organic waste. Earthworm castings are rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Vermicompost improves soil aeration and water-holding capacity. It is a cornerstone of organic farming and is produced under the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY).
Manure Types
- Compost: Decomposed farmyard waste, kitchen waste, crop residues
- Vermicompost: Earthworm-processed organic matter — higher nutrient density than regular compost
- Farm Yard Manure (FYM): Mixture of cattle dung, urine-soaked bedding, and crop residue
- Green manure: Growing leguminous plants (e.g., sunhemp, dhaincha) and ploughing them back into soil — adds nitrogen naturally
UPSC GS3 — Fertilizer Policy: India is the world's 3rd largest consumer of fertilizers at ~66 million tonnes/year. Urea accounts for ~56% of total fertilizer use. The government provides a massive fertilizer subsidy — approximately ₹1.89–1.95 lakh crore in FY2023-24 (actual); ₹1.70 lakh crore in FY2024-25 (RE). Note: the spike to ~₹2.5 lakh crore was only in FY2022-23 due to global gas/fertilizer price surge.
Nano Urea: Developed by IFFCO (Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative) in 2021. It is a liquid urea in nanoparticle form — one bottle replaces one bag of conventional urea, cutting transportation costs and GHG emissions. India has begun exporting Nano Urea.
Problem with overuse of chemical fertilizers:
- Soil acidification and degradation
- Eutrophication of water bodies (nitrogen/phosphorus runoff → algal blooms → oxygen depletion)
- Groundwater contamination (nitrates in drinking water)
- Long-term reduction in soil organic carbon
Weed Management
Weeds (e.g., wild oat, amaranthus, parthenium) compete with crops for water, nutrients, sunlight, and space. Control methods:
- Mechanical: Khurpi (hand weeding), tilling between rows
- Chemical: Herbicides/weedicides (e.g., 2,4-D for broadleaf weeds in wheat)
- Biological: Introducing natural predators or pathogens of weeds (e.g., Zygogramma beetle against Parthenium hysterophorus — Congress Grass)
UPSC GS3 — Organic Farming:
- Sikkim became the world's first 100% organic state in 2016 — all agricultural land certified organic.
- Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY): Central scheme promoting cluster-based organic farming. Farmers form groups of 50 in 50-acre clusters; supported for 3 years.
- Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF): Developed by Subhash Palekar; based on cow dung/urine inputs (Jeevamrit, Bijamrit), no external inputs. Andhra Pradesh adopted it statewide (Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming — APCNF).
- Natural Farming: Distinguished from ZBNF in some policy documents; PM Pranam scheme (2023) incentivises states to reduce fertilizer use.
Food Grain Storage
- Post-harvest losses in India estimated at 10–16% of production (NHB/ICAR data)
- FCI (Food Corporation of India): Manages central pool storage — approximately 80 million tonne capacity across silos, covered warehouses, and CAP (cover and plinth) storage
- Hermetic storage bags (PICS bags): Airtight bags suffocate insects without pesticides — promoted under e-NAM ecosystem for small farmers
- Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) and State Warehousing Corporations provide commercial storage
- India's food grain production: 357.73 million tonnes in 2024-25 — a new record (DAC&FW Final Advance Estimate); up from 332.30 MT in 2023-24 (~7.7% increase)
UPSC GS3 — Food Security: National Food Security Act 2013 (NFSA): Covers 67% of India's population — 75% rural and 50% urban. Entitles beneficiaries to 5 kg of foodgrains per person per month at subsidised prices (rice ₹3/kg, wheat ₹2/kg, coarse cereals ₹1/kg). Expanded into free supply under PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), made permanent from January 2024.
PM-KISAN: Direct income support of ₹6,000/year to eligible farmer families in 3 instalments — over 11 crore farmers enrolled.
e-NAM: Electronic National Agriculture Market — online trading platform for agricultural produce at APMCs; reduces intermediaries, improves price discovery.
PM Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY): Crop insurance scheme; premium rates 1.5–2% for food crops; actuarial premium paid by government; over 5.5 crore farmer applications annually.
Soil Health Card Scheme: Issued to farmers with nutrient-status of their soil and recommended dosage of fertilizers — promotes rational fertilizer use.
[Additional] 1a. Green Revolution — HYV Seeds, M.S. Swaminathan, and the Trade-offs
The chapter mentions "high-yielding variety (HYV) seeds" but gives no context — yet the Green Revolution is one of the most tested UPSC topics in GS3 (agriculture) and GS1 (modern India). It also connects directly to the chapter's discussion of fertilizers and water use.
Green Revolution in India (mid-1960s):
Background: India faced severe food shortages and famine threat in the early 1960s; dependent on US PL-480 "ship-to-mouth" wheat imports. Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri gave the slogan "Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan."
Key figures:
- M.S. Swaminathan — "Father of Green Revolution in India"; geneticist; collaborated with Norman Borlaug to adapt Mexican semi-dwarf wheat varieties to Indian conditions; awarded Bharat Ratna in 2024 (posthumous) — India's highest civilian honour (died September 28, 2023)
- Norman Borlaug — American agronomist; developed high-yielding semi-dwarf wheat; "Father of global Green Revolution"; Nobel Peace Prize 1970
What changed:
- India imported 18,000 tonnes of semi-dwarf Mexican wheat seeds (Sonora 64, Lerma Rojo) → adapted as Sonalika and Kalyan Sona varieties for Indian conditions
- IR-8 (International Rice 8) — high-yielding rice variety developed at IRRI (International Rice Research Institute, Philippines); adopted widely in Punjab, Haryana, western UP
- Wheat production: 12 million tonnes (1964) → 20 million tonnes (1970) → India became self-sufficient in food grains
Why HYVs needed more inputs:
- HYV crops have shorter stems (semi-dwarf) — don't fall over ("lodge") under heavy grain weight
- But they only give high yields with adequate water AND fertilizer — thus directly drove demand for irrigation expansion and chemical fertilizers
- Areas of Green Revolution (Punjab, Haryana, western UP) had assured irrigation from canals and tube wells — not replicable in rain-fed areas
Trade-offs — UPSC mains angle:
- Water depletion: HYV paddy (especially Basmati and Parmal) needs 5,000+ litres of water per kg of grain — Green Revolution locked Punjab/Haryana into water-intensive crops in water-scarce areas; groundwater falling 1 metre/year in some blocks
- Fertilizer dependency: Soil health degraded; NPK imbalance (overuse of urea relative to P and K)
- Biodiversity loss: Thousands of traditional rice/wheat landraces displaced; India's gene banks (NBPGR — National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources) now preserve these endangered varieties
- Regional inequality: Green Revolution concentrated in Punjab-Haryana-western UP; eastern/northeastern India largely bypassed → created regional income inequality
Green Revolution 2.0 / Evergreen Revolution: M.S. Swaminathan himself advocated for an "Evergreen Revolution" — productivity improvement without ecological damage; sustainable intensification combining modern genetics with agroecology.
[Additional] 1b. PMKSY — The Policy Framework for "More Crop Per Drop"
The chapter covers irrigation methods technically but misses the central government policy that funds and scales them.
[Additional] PM Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) — GS3 (Agriculture / Water):
Launched: 2015; tagline: "Har Khet Ko Pani, More Crop Per Drop"
Objectives:
- Expand cultivable area under irrigation ("Har Khet Ko Pani" — water to every field)
- Improve water-use efficiency in existing irrigated areas ("More Crop Per Drop")
- Reduce water wastage; promote precision/micro-irrigation
Components:
| Component | Focus | Implementing Ministry |
|---|---|---|
| Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP) | Complete long-pending large/medium irrigation projects | Jal Shakti |
| Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP) | Groundwater development; surface minor irrigation; watershed | Jal Shakti |
| Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) | Micro-irrigation (drip + sprinkler); extension; precision farming | Agriculture & Farmers Welfare |
| Watershed Development | Rain-fed area management; soil + water conservation | Rural Development |
PDMC (Per Drop More Crop) — key figures:
- Coverage achieved: 95.58 lakh hectares under micro-irrigation from FY2015-16 to December 2024 (PIB)
- Union Budget 2025-26 allocation: ₹8,259.85 crore for PMKSY
- Drip and sprinkler irrigation promoted under PDMC with 40–55% subsidy to farmers (55% for small/marginal farmers)
Why this matters:
- India uses ~80% of its freshwater for agriculture — the highest share globally for a major economy
- Micro-irrigation (drip + sprinkler) can reduce agricultural water use by 30–50%
- If India's irrigation efficiency improved to global standards, it could irrigate 2× the current area with the same water
- PMKSY directly links to JJM (water for drinking) by reducing agricultural water extraction, leaving more for groundwater recharge
Exam Strategy
Prelims traps:
- Kharif crops are sown with monsoon onset (June), not harvested then — harvesting is September–October
- Drip irrigation saves more water (30–50%) than sprinkler (20–30%) — do not confuse the figures
- DAP = diammonium phosphate — provides both N and P, not just phosphorus
- Vermicompost uses earthworms; compost uses microbial decomposition without earthworms
- Parthenium hysterophorus (Congress Grass/Gajar Ghas) is an invasive weed — not a native crop pest
- Sikkim = world's first fully organic state (2016) — not just India's first
Mains angles:
- India's fertilizer subsidy vs soil health trade-off; PM Pranam scheme
- Water crisis in agriculture — why drip/sprinkler adoption is slow (cost, awareness, electricity)
- Organic farming as climate resilience strategy
Practice Questions
Prelims:
With reference to Indian agriculture, which of the following is/are correct about drip irrigation?
- It can reduce water use by 30–50% compared to flood irrigation
- It is most suited for orchards and vegetables
Select the correct answer using the code below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
- It can reduce water use by 30–50% compared to flood irrigation
"Nano Urea" developed by IFFCO is significant because:
(a) It replaces all types of chemical fertilizers
(b) One bottle can replace one bag of conventional urea, reducing GHG emissions and transport costs
(c) It is derived entirely from organic sources
(d) It increases soil carbon sequestration directly
Mains:
India's fertilizer subsidy regime, while ensuring food security, poses long-term risks to soil health and groundwater. Critically examine. Suggest policy reforms. (CSE Mains 2023, GS Paper 3, 15 marks)
What are the main features of Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF)? How does it differ from conventional organic farming? Assess its potential and limitations for Indian agriculture. (CSE Mains 2019, GS Paper 3, 15 marks)
