Agriculture in India: Crops and Cultivation PDF

Rice is grown in the plains of north and north-eastern India, coastal areas and the deltaic regions. Development of dense network of canal irrigation and tubewells have made it possible to grow rice in areas of less rainfall such as Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh and parts of Rajasthan. W...

Rice is grown in the plains of north and north-eastern India, coastal areas and the deltaic regions. Development of dense network of canal irrigation and tubewells have made it possible to grow rice in areas of less rainfall such as Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh and parts of Rajasthan. Wheat: This is the second most important cereal crop. It is the main food crop, in north and north-western part of the country. This rabi crop requires a cool growing season and a bright sunshine at the time of ripening. It Fig. 4.6: Bajra Cultivation requires 50 to 75 cm of annual rainfall evenly- distributed over the growing season. There Bajra grows well on sandy soils and are two important wheat-growing zones in the shallow black soil. Major Bajra producing country – the Ganga-Satluj plains in the States are Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, north-west and black soil region of the Deccan. Maharashtra, Gujarat and Haryana. Ragi is The major wheat-producing states are a crop of dry regions and grows well on red, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya black, sandy, loamy and shallow black soils. Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan. Major ragi producing states are: Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Jharkhand and Arunachal Pradesh. Maize: It is a crop which is used both as food and fodder. It is a kharif crop which requires temperature between 21°C to 27°C and grows well in old alluvial soil. In some states like Bihar maize is grown in rabi season also. Use of modern inputs such as HYV seeds, fertilisers and irrigation have contributed to the increasing production of maize. Major maize-producing states are Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Fig. 4.5: Wheat Cultivation Millets: Jowar, bajra and ragi are the important millets grown in India. Though, these are known as coarse grains, they have very high nutritional value. For example, ragi is very rich in iron, calcium, other micro nutrients and roughage. Jowar is the third most important food crop with respect to area and production. It is a rain-fed crop mostly grown in the moist areas which hardly needs irrigation. Major Jowar producing States are Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh Fig. 4.7: Maize Cultivation and Madhya Pradesh. 34 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II Reprint 2024-25