Crop yield per hectare in India is among the lowest compared to global averages due to structural weaknesses, finds a study by Exim Bank.
While India with 158 million hectares (mh) of arable land produces only 249 million tonnes (mt) of cereals, China with 110 mh produces 483 mt and the US with 163 mh produces 420 million tonnes of cereals. The per hectare yield of rice in India, the world’s second largest producer, is at 2178 kg, while it is 6582 kg in China and 6521 kgs in Japan.
The agriculture sector in India is heavily dependent on input usage such as energy, water, fertilisers and pesticides. Appropriate strategies need to be adopted for sustainable management of these resources to counter negative impact on crop production, said the study.
To achieve sustainable resource management, the policy framework needs to be geared towards providing long-term solutions, stimulating technology and capital investment, said the report titled ‘Technological interventions in Indian agriculture for enhancement of crop productivity’.
Though India is one of the largest producers of tractors its usage in farms are relatively low. In contrast, Bangladesh appears to be more mechanised due to relatively high usage of two-wheeler tractors.
Overuse of fertilisers and pesticides, and declining organic content due to intensive cultivation are also largely responsible for soil degradation. For instance, over use of urea turns soil acidic; more energy is required to cultivate such degraded land, and a higher proportion of rain water is lost as run-off.
Increased use of fertilisers has also led to pollution of water resources, both surface and ground water, resulting in poor quality of irrigation water, having negative impact on crop growth and productivity.
In India, about 85 percent of farmers are using farm-saved seeds that lose its vigour and thereby the productivity over a period. The genetic gains in seeds achieved during the Green Revolution period has also been decelerating. While the use of hybrid seeds in Indian agriculture has been growing, there has been low penetration of hybrid seeds in case of staples.