This open access book provides an evidence-based roadmap for revitalising Indian agriculture while ensuring that the growth process is efficient, inclusive, and sustainable, and results in sustained growth of farmers’ incomes. The book, instead of looking for global best practices and evaluating them to assess the possibility of replicating these domestically, looks inward at the best practices and experiences within Indian states, to answer questions such as -- how the agricultural growth process can be speeded up and made more inclusive, and financially viable; are there any best practices that can be studied and replicated to bring about faster growth in agriculture; does the prior hypothesis that rapid agricultural growth can alleviate poverty faster, reduce malnutrition, and augment farmers’ incomes stand? To answer these questions, the book follows four broad threads -- i) Linkage between agricultural performance, poverty and malnutrition; ii) Analysing the historical growth performance of agricultural sector in selected Indian states; iii) Will higher agricultural GDP necessarily result in higher incomes for farmers; iv) Analysing the current agricultural policy environment to evaluate its efficiency and efficacy, and consolidate all analysis to create a roadmap. These are discussed in 12 chapters, which provide a building block for the concluding chapter that presents a roadmap for revitalising Indian agriculture while ensuring growth in farmers’ incomes.

Agricultural Statistics is published each year to meet the diverse need for a reliable reference book on agricultural production, supplies, consumption, facilities, costs, and returns. Its tables of annual data cover a wide variety of facts in forms suited to most common use. The estimates for crops, livestock, and poultry made by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are prepared mainly to give timely current state and national totals and averages. They are based on data obtained by sample surveys of farmers and of people who do business with farmers. The survey data are supplemented by information from the Census of Agriculture taken every five years. Being estimates, they are subject to revision as more data become available from commercial or government sources. Unless otherwise indicated, the totals for the United States shown in the various tables on area, production, numbers, price, value, supplies, and disposition are based on official Department estimates. They exclude states for which no official estimates are compiled. Extensive data includes statistics for the following: -Grain and Feed -Cotton, Tobacco, Sugar Crops, and Honey -Oilseeds, Fats, and Oils -Vegetables and Melons -Hay, Seeds, and Minor Field Crops -Cattle, Hogs, and Sheep -Dairy and Poultry -Insurance, Credit & Cooperatives -Agricultural Conservation & Forestry -Consumption & Family Living -Fertilizers & Pesticides Miscellaneous Agricultural Statistics such as Foreign Agricultural Trade Statistics including exports, fisheries and more. Professionals in the following fields to include farmers, ranchers, soil conservationists, surveyors, agricultural economist consultants, livestock manufacturers, livestock feedlot operators, food distributors, animal scientists, food chemists, food brokers, farm and land appraisers (and more) may have the greatest interest in this volume.

This open access book examines the interactions between India’s economic development, agricultural production, and nutrition through the lens of a “Food Systems Approach (FSA).” The Indian growth story is a paradoxical one. Despite economic progress over the past two decades, regional inequality, food insecurity and malnutrition problems persist. Simultaneously, recent trends in obesity along with micro-nutrient deficiency portend to a future public health crisis. This book explores various challenges and opportunities to achieve a nutrition-secure future through diversified production systems, improved health and hygiene environment and greater individual capability to access a balanced diet contributing to an increase in overall productivity. The authors bring together the latest data and scientific evidence from the country to map out the current state of food systems and nutrition outcomes. They place India within the context of other developing country experiences and highlight India’s status as an outlier in terms of the persistence of high levels of stunting while following global trends in obesity. This book discusses the policy and institutional interventions needed for promoting a nutrition-sensitive food system and the multi-sectoral strategies needed for simultaneously addressing the triple burden of malnutrition in India.

Agriculture occupies a key position in the Indian economy. Though agriculture has now shrunk as a proportion of gross domestic product (GDP) to around 13 percent, it is a vital sector and provider of livelihood for 2/3rd of Indias working population. Agriculture being a State subject, the bulk of public investment in agriculture takes place at the level of States and the Central Government supports the States as a catalyst. The nodal agency for development of agriculture in India is the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. Agricultural policy followed since Independence in 1947 can be broadly classified into three phases. Phase one, immediately after Independence, witnessed several institutional changes through land reforms and initiation of major irrigation projects. The second phase, since the mid-1960s, was aimed at increasing agricultural productivity to attain self-sufficiency in foodgrains through technological revolution and Government support for credit, marketing, and extension services. This was followed by the current phase, since the late 1980s, aimed at making agriculture more market-oriented. Regrettably, Indian economy has been witnessing loss of dynamism in the agriculture and allied sectors in recent years. The sector, as a whole, has showed poor performance lately. Signs of agrarian distress are visible in parts of the country. The spate of suicides by farmers in some areas is the most disconcerting manifestation of this distress. Marginal and small farmers have borne the brunt of the adverse circumstances in agriculture. Concerned by the slow growth in the agriculture and allied sectors, the Government of India has launched a series of programmes/schemes in recent years to rejuvenate agriculture and improve farm income. The present work explains and examines the key reform measures undertaken for the modernization of Indian agriculture. Challenges facing this vital sector of the economy are also set forth.

A unique examination of the development of the modern Indian economy over the past 150 years.

The world's demand for food is expected to double within the next 50 years, while the natural resources that sustain agriculture will become increasingly scarce, degraded, and vulnerable to the effects of climate change. In many poor countries, agriculture accounts for at least 40 percent of GDP and 80 percent of employment. At the same time, about 70 percent of the world's poor live in rural areas and most depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. 'World Development Report 2008' seeks to assess where, when, and how agriculture can be an effective instrument for economic development, especially development that favors the poor. It examines several broad questions: How has agriculture changed in developing countries in the past 20 years? What are the important new challenges and opportunities for agriculture? Which new sources of agricultural growth can be captured cost effectively in particular in poor countries with large agricultural sectors as in Africa? How can agricultural growth be made more effective for poverty reduction? How can governments facilitate the transition of large populations out of agriculture, without simply transferring the burden of rural poverty to urban areas? How can the natural resource endowment for agriculture be protected? How can agriculture's negative environmental effects be contained? This year's report marks the 30th year the World Bank has been publishing the 'World Development Report'.

FAO’s Statistical Pocketbook complements the Statistical Yearbook, by providing, in an easy and simple way, quick access to top-level numbers, charts and maps on many dimensions of food and agriculture – from the characteristics of the sector to production, prices and trade, as well as food security and nutrition and environmental aspects.

The volume offers to the reader a multi-faceted dialogue between noted experts from two major agricultural countries, both founding members of the Word Trade Organisation, each one with different stakes in the great globalisation game. After providing the recent historical background of agricultural policies in India and France, the contributors address burning issues related to market and regulation, food security and food safety, the expected benefits from the WTO and the genuine problems raised by the new forms of international trade in agriculture, including the sensitive question of intellectual property rights in bio-technologies. This informed volume underlines the necessity of moving beyond the North-South divide, in order to address the real challenges of the future.

This report assesses the performance of agricultural and food policy in India and calculates a set of policy indicators providing a comprehensive picture of agricultural support. These indicators, developed by the OECD, are already used regularly in the analysis of the agriculture and food ...

Wheat and Barley Grain Biofortification addresses topics associated with the alleviation of malnutrition in globally diverse populations via wheat and barley biofortification. The book synthesizes the current trends of malnutrition across the globe, the need for wheat and barley nutritional enhancement and how agronomic, microbial and molecular understanding of biofortification can help in devising significant approaches and strategies. In addition, it includes discussions on potential genetic variability available and their efficient utilization in wheat and barley for molecular breeding for nutrients, challenges and opportunities for bioavailability, and technical advancement for analysis of bioavailability. - Addresses the need for wheat and barley biofortification to address global nutrition demands - Places emphasis on the current agronomic and molecular understanding of biofortification - Discusses the potential utilization of genetic variability - Highlights the economics of biofortification over fortification technology