Agriculture is the primary source of the Indian economy. Agriculture employs 58% population of the country and contributes 19.9 % of the total GDP. 70 % of the rural household depends on agriculture.
The agriculture census is the main source of the information at a very minute level. It collects data regarding land holdings, land use, class-wise distribution, tenancy, crop pattern, use of fertilizers, and insecticides. An agricultural census is conducted after every five years. The first census was done in the 1970s and the reference year for the same was 1970-71. It is part of the program of the world census of agriculture. Funds for the census are provided by the center to the state and the entire work is conducted by states. The authority responsible is the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture.
Agriculture Census 2015-16:
The data is collected on the primary and secondary levels on the structure of operational holdings. Operational holdings include all the land which is used completely or partially for agricultural production.
It is divided into three categories of states for data collection:
- First Category States: Revenue agency collects land holdings as a part of land records, done by village officials. Data are aggregated at the level of tehsil, district, and state by the officers of revenue and agricultural departments.
- Second Category States: Information is collected on a sample area under principal crops and land utilization. States like West Bengal, Orissa, and Kerala.
- Third Category States: States and UTs mostly in the Northeastern region (Except Assam), data is collected based on the personal knowledge of revenue officers and agricultural officers.
Types of Landholdings:
- Marginal Holdings: Size 1 hectare or less.
- Small Holdings: Size 1 to 2 hectares.
- Semi-Medium Holdings: Size 2 to 4 hectares.
- Medium Holdings: Size 4 to 10 hectares
- Large Holdings: Size above 10 hectares.
11th Agricultural Census 2021-22:
- The fieldwork for data collection started in August 2022.
- Data collection will be done through smartphones and tablets to have data in time. it will include the use of digital land records, apps, and software. It includes enumeration of all villages and monitoring of progress.
- The majority of states have digitized their land records and surveys to further accelerate the collection the census data.
- Digitized records and the use of technology will help in the creation of the database.
Use of the Technology in Digital Census:
- Digital Agriculture- It is a data ecosystem for the development and delivery of targeted information for making farming sustainable and profitable while meeting the need of people. It is done through agricultural biotechnology.
- Agricultural biotechnology- It includes traditional breeding techniques and hybrid seeds. It functions after altering the parts of a living organism.
- Digital and wireless technology- It is used for data measurement and monitoring of weather.
- Remote satellite data- It reduces the cost of agriculture by monitoring crop growth and quality of land, and water and giving accurate information.
Initiatives are Taken by the Government:
- Agristack: The Ministry of Agriculture and farmers’ welfare planned it, which is a collection of technology-based interventions in agriculture. It is a unified platform for the end-to-end service of the food chain.
- Unified farmer service platform: It is a combination of infrastructure, data, applications, and tools that enables a seamless agricultural ecosystem. It will work as a central agency and registers farmers’ service providers and farmers. Enforces rules, and standards for the delivery process.
- Digital Agriculture Mission: This was in 2021-2025 by the government for advanced technology like artificial intelligence, blockchain, remote sensing, drones, and robots.
- The National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGP-A) was launched in 2011 only to achieve rapid development in the country to provide essential information to the farmers.
- Soil health card, Kisan call centre, and Agri market app are there for grassroots development of farmers.
Difference from the World Census of Agriculture:
The concept of agricultural holding adopted in India differs from the FAO standard because the Indian census does not include that are extensively used in poultry, livestock, and fishing.
Conclusion:
India is a country of Agriculture. This field needs to be taken care of at its best as it is still the primary reason lower-class people are surviving. Policymakers should have a keen eye for costs, risks, potential benefits. They should not ignore small farmers who are illiterate and not able to keep up with technology and new development. Robust infrastructure should be built considering grassroots reality.