Agriculture has long been the foundation of India’s economy. The vast majority of its population are involved in the agriculture industry, so particular interest is placed on this industry when discussion of India’s economy occurs. In the first half of the 20th century, India was prone to food shortages as its farmers struggled to keep up with the demands of its growing population. In order to combat this problem, the Green Revolution was born in India, but it did not come without its faults.
The Green Revolution began soon after Jawaharlal Nehru came to power in 1947 and made India focus on developing the infrastructure needed to usher in the era of scientific agriculture. Fertilizers and pesticides were beginning to catch on in the world of agriculture and new farming techniques were being discovered to accommodate these new developments. Universities focused on agriculture studies began to form so the people could learn the new ways of farming. While India prepared itself to increase its food capacity by investing in this infrastructure, food shortages were still prevalent and the importing of food became essential to provide the needs of this growing population (Swaminathan 2010).
In order for India to improve its food production, it had to continue building on the infrastructure that it had already established. The next step was to implement irrigation and begin use of the new hybrid crops that had been developed. The crops of particular benefit were the dwarf varieties of wheat and rice. These crops could withstand harsh conditions, consume water and nutrients more efficiently, and produce a yield that was 2 to 3 times more then what had been previously grown (Swaminathan 2010). The success of the wheat and rice crops led to the expansion of crop varieties and a greater emphasis was placed on the production of pulses, oilseeds, vegetables, fruits, and milk. Needless to say, the culmination of these events, led to extraordinary growth of the agricultural sector. The food production rate in India was now exceeding the growth rate of the population, and thus lessening the occurrence of food shortages. (Swaminathan 2010). The increased efficiency and investment in the agricultural sector led to this Green Revolution and allowed India to be able to support its own population with food from within its borders.
The success of the Green Revolution eventually led to a false sense of security in India. While newspapers were boasting of the excesses of food in India, policy makers became more apathetic to the cause and decreased their investment to the advancement of the industry. This, along with the ever-present malnutrition present in India has led to some questions regarding the shortcomings of this revolution (Swaminathan, 2010). The policies enacted that resulted in the increased production of food, but the distribution was where the problem occurred. The farmers that were able to benefit from the new agriculture policies in India became powerful and were able to influence the future policies pertaining to agriculture so that they benefited themselves. The influence they were able to exert prevented additional infrastructure investments from being made in regions where the infrastructure improvements had not yet occurred (Das, 1999). In order for smaller farms to benefit from the new agriculture science innovations, they needed such tools as irrigation to be able to take advantage of their potential. Due to this, the impact of the green revolution was only able to greatly impact the farmers and regions who were fortunate enough to benefit from the initial investments made by the country (Das 1999). Those that were not a recipient of these investments, largely smaller farms in rural areas, were left behind and could not advance their food production capabilities (Das, 1999) This left many rural areas from enjoying the perks of the Green Revolution which had been felt by so many of their fellow citizens. The lack of policy intervention in these areas has resulted in the malnourishment that is still prevalent in India. The policy and infrastructure distribution was unequal during the Green Revolution and has adversely impacted the agriculture conditions between regions.
The Green Revolution increased the food production in India by an enormous amount, however, it cannot be forgotten that this period of time did not solve all of India’s food problems. There are many regions that were not the beneficiaries of this new era of technology and innovation in the field of agriculture and so are still struggling to produce enough food for their people. Despite these areas of neglect, the Green Revolution did result in increased food production and has benefited millions of Indians. Without this event in India’s history, there would be more Indians struggling to find food then there are today, and for that, the Green Revolution can be recognized.
References:
Das, Raju J. (1999). Geographical unevenness of India’s green revolution. Journal of Contemporary Asia, 29(2), 167-186.
Swaminathan, M.S. (2010). From green to evergreen revolution Indian agriculture: performance and emerging challenges. New Dehli: Academic Foundation.
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