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Agriculture — Part 1: Types of Farming, Seasons and Reforms

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Lesson

Agriculture

Part 1 — how Indians farm, when they sow and harvest, and how governments have tried to make farming more secure.

In this lesson you will

Compare primitive subsistence, intensive subsistence, commercial and plantation farming
Distinguish the rabi, kharif and zaid seasons with crops grown in each
Explain how inheritance fragments land holdings
Evaluate land reforms, the Green Revolution, crop insurance and the Kisan Credit Card

Part 1 at a glance

Diagram

Four ways of farming

Table of four farming types: primitive subsistence with simple tools and family labour; intensive subsistence with heavy labour and inputs where population pressure is high; commercial with modern inputs for sale; plantation with one crop on large estates linked to industry
Type	Main features	Where or example
Primitive subsistence	Small patches, hoe, dao and digging stick, family labour, depends on monsoon and natural fertility	Hill and forest areas
Intensive subsistence	Too many people on too little land; labour, fertiliser and water poured into small plots	Densely populated plains
Commercial	HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides; crops grown for sale	Rice in Punjab and Haryana
Plantation	One crop on a large estate, capital and migrant labour, linked to industry	Tea in Assam, coffee in Karnataka