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GREEN REVOLUTION IN PUNJAB

by

M. S. RANDHAWAD.Se., I.e.s. (Reed.). F.N.I.S.A.

Vice-Chancellor

Punjab Agricultural University

GREEN REVOLUTION IN PUNJAB

DURING the last decade, some countries haveachieved spectacular success in food production.Thickly populated Japan and Formosa achievedphenomenal increase in rice production. Out ofwheat growing countries, Mexico is a strikingexample of a deficit country becoming self-support­ing and even achieving a small exportable surplus.India, which has been facing a grave food shortagesince World War II, on account of rising popu1atio~is also showing promise of solving its food problem.Progress achieved is uneven in the different Statesof India, but it is Punjab which has experienced areal green revolution in wheat productIon.

Observant foreigners, who happen to visit Punjab,often ask the question, "Why is it that GreenRevolution is more evident in Punjab than in therest of India". Green Revolution in Punjab isnot a sudden development but culmination of aprocess which started in 1950, when land was allottedto the refugees from West Punjab and the modern­ization of agriculture was started. There is no otherState in India in which the entire farming areahas been consolidated into blocks of land, thusproviding a sound base for land development. ThePunjab Agricultural University which is the pivotof Green Revolution in Punjab is a modelUniversity in every respect. This is the only Uni­versity which controls the entire research In theState and is also responsible for a good deal ofextension. There is no other State in India whichhas such hard working and intelligent farmingpopulation.

Here it would be relevant to give some factsabout Punjab. The total geographical area ofPunjab is 5.03 million hectares of which 3.94 million

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hectares is cropped. The total irrigated area is2.65 million hectares, out of which 1.29 millionhectares are irrigated by canals and 1.35 millionhectares by tubewells. Tubewell-irrigated area ex­ceeds the canal-irrigated area. It is 51 % ofthe irrigated area while canal-irrigated area is48.6 %. Thus a good balance between surfaceand ground water irrigation has been achieved.The total population of the State is 13.47 millions(based on 1971 census). The rural populationis 76.9 per cent of the total. The density ofpopulationper square kilometer is 268 against 148 of India.The literacy percentage is 33.39 as compared with29.35 for the country as a whole.

THE HUMAN ELEMENTA study on the Green Revolution in Punjab

has indicated that apart from introduction ofMexican wheat material, which is the major factor,it is the human element which has played an impor­tant role in the Green Revolution. The Sikhfarmer like the Reddies of Andhra Pradesh andGounders of Coimbatore are efficient farmers.Their love for land is almost mystical. Educationis widespread among them, and they easily under­stand the intricacies of balanced chemical fertilizersand plant protection chemicals. From amongthem are about half a million serving soldiers,ex-soldiers and pensioners who have aptitude andknowledge of machinery. Similarly, there arelarge numbers of police men, school teachers, andgovernment servants of various categories whoare sons of farmers. Most of these persons investtheir savings in land development. The villagerswho have migrated to foreign countries also investthier savings in agriculture. Recent developmentin this direction is the import of gift tractorsin Punjab from foreign countries. In fact,Punjab is the only State in India in whichthe gap between the rural and urban areas isnarrowest, and rural living is not equated withbackwardness.

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The most progressive among the farmers arethe refugees from the canal colonies of West Punjab.On account of creation of Pakistan and consequentpartition of Punjab, the Sikh and Hindu popu­lation had to migrate enmasse to India. The Punjabiland-owners lost an area of 67 lac acres in WestPakistan out of which 43 lac acres were irrigated.In East Punjab only 47 lac acres were availableout of which only 13 lac acres were irrigated. Thisland was allotted to refugee land-owners. Dueto gap in area of about 20 lac acres the refugeeland-owner was subjected to a cut of 25 % andin the case of large land-holders it was as muchas 95 %. These farmers had to pay a real pricefor freedom by losing their fertile irrigated landsbut they met the challenge with courage. In fact,it is these refugee farmers who have played aconspicuous role in green revolution in the Punjab.

Apart from the farmers, the Sikh blacksmithsand carpenters called Ramgarhias played a vitalrole in regeneration of agro-industry in Punjab. Bystudying foreign designs they invented chaff-cutters,sprayers, threshers, and seed-cum-fertilizer drillsto suit local conditions. No doubt, they were helpedby the agricultural engineers of the Punjab Agri­cultural University in these efforts. The Ramgar­hias have effectively supported the Green Revolutionby supplying the tools of modern agriculture tothe farmers.

LAND REFORMSWhat land reform hopes to achieve in other

States in India, has to a large extent been alreadyachieved in Punjab. For this, there is a historicalbackground. The first large-scale land reformwas achieved by the Sikh revolutionary leader,Banda Bahadur during the reign of Mughal Emperor,Farukhsiyar. Banda distributed land to the tillersin the area east of the Ravi which came under hissway. The Sikh Missals derived their followingfrom among the peasant cultivators. Partition of

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The most progressive among the farmers arethe refugees from the canal colonies of West Punjab.On account of creation of Pakistan and consequentpartition of Punjab, the Sikh and Hindu popu­lation had to migrate enmasse to India. The Punjabiland-owners lost an area of 67 lac acres in WestPakistan out of which 43 lac acres were irrigated.In East Punjab only 47 lac acres were availableout of which only 13 lac acres were irrigated. Thisland was allotted to refugee land-owners. Dueto gap in area of about 20 lac acres the refugeeland-owner was subjected to a cut of 25 % andin the case of large land-holders it was as muchas 95 %. These farmers had to pay a real pricefor freedom by losing their fertile irrigated landsbut they met the challenge with courage. In fact,it is these refugee farmers who have played aconspicuous role in green revolution in the Punjab.

Apart from the farmers, the Sikh blacksmithsand carpenters called Ramgarhias played a vitalrole in regeneration of agro-industry in Punjab. Bystudying foreign designs they invented chaff-cutters,sprayers, threshers, and seed-cum-fertilizer drillsto suit local conditions. No doubt, they were helpedby the agricultural engineers of the Punjab Agri­cultural University in these efforts. The Ramgar­hias have effectively supported the Green Revolutionby supplying the tools of modern agriculture tothe farmers.

LAND REFORMSWhat land reform hopes to achieve in other

States in India, has to a large extent been alreadyachieved in Punjab. For this, there is a historicalbackground. The first large-scale land reformwas achieved by the Sikh revolutionary leader,Banda Bahadur during the reign of Mughal Emperor,Farukhsiyar. Banda distributed land to the tillersin the area east of the Ravi which came under hissway. The Sikh Missals derived their followingfrom among the peasant cultivators. Partition of

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Punjab in 1947 itself resulted in levelling of holdings.Then came the land reform measures of 1951-58,when the occupancy tenants were made the ownersof land which they cultivated, absentee land-Iordismwas abolished, and ceiling on land-holdings wasimposed at the level of 30 acres of irrigated-land.

CONSOLIDATION OF HOLDINGSAnother scheme which provided the base for

the Green Revolution in Punjab is the scheme ofConsolidation of Holdings. Everyone knows thedisadvantages of fragmented and scattered holdings.It is a wasteful method of land utilization and manyimproved agricultural practices cannot be adopted.A good deal of land is wasted in embankmentsand field boundaries. Canal irrigation is practicallyan impossibility on tiny scattered plots. A tube­well cannot be economically sunk. It is only in thestates of Punjab and Haryana that the entire culti­vated area has been consolidated. Some progresshas been made in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtraand Madhya Pradesh but considering their totalcultivated area it is not significant. The schemehas made least progress in Eastern India in thestates of Bihar, Assam and West Bengal. Theseare the problem states of India in which the stateof agriculture is deplorable. In Punjab, the schemeprovided a unique opportunity of re-planningthe countryside which includes the planning ofroads, so that every field is accessible by a road.The most beneficent effect of the scheme of Consoli­dation of holdings was that the farmers were en­abled to sink tubewells in their farms which werein one or two compact blocks. In 1950, Punjabhad hardly any tubewell, and now it has 1,67,000private tubewells.

The failure of monsoon in 1965 and 1966 andagain in 1968 provided a great stimulus to thetapping of ground water. In fact, it was a blessingin disguise. It is the tubewells which not onlysaved the northern region from a great disaster

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but also provided a food surplus in 1968, a yearin which monsoon had calamitously failed. Itwas a year of the total failure of the winter monsoonand but for the tubewells and the high-yieldingvarieties of wheat, a famine would have prevailed.The high-yielding varieties of wheat require copiousand frequent irrigation which the canals cannotprovide. As such sinking of tubewells is necessaryeven in the canal-irrigated areas where irrigationintensity is low. Apart from supplementing irri­gation, the tubewells also maintain water-level at anoptimum depth thus saving the land from the evilsof water-logging and salinity.

RURAL LINK ROADSThe scheme of rural link roads has also promoted

the Green Revolution in Punjab. In fact, as soonas production of wheat mounted up in the villages,the need for transport of marketable surplus to thetowns and rail-heads became an imperative necessity.The State Government launched a crash programmefor construction of village link roads in 1968. Oncea village is linked by a pacca road with a town itseconomy undergoes remarkable transformation. Thefarmers market their produce with facility and arealso enabled to purchase inputs like fertilizersand agricultural implements from the market townwith ease. This has led to rapid transformationin agriculture. Villagers who had no experienceof growing commercial crops, like potatoes andvegetables, adopted them easily. The use of tractorsand machinery also received an impetus. Thebenefits economic, social and cultural to all sectionsof the village community have been tremendous.In 1969-70 alone, 1,200 miles of link roads wereconstructed in the State which is more than themileage added in the whole of the First Five-YearPlan period in undivided Punjab. The villagersprovided land and in many cases labour for earth­work free of cost. The new roads have materiallychanged the road accessibility in the State. Two­thirds of villages and an equal proportion of the rural

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population have either come on the metalled roadsor are within one mile of the roads. The intensityis almost double in comparison with Andhra Pradesh,Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. Withthe provision of roads to the villages the numberof vehicles has increased, higher education hasbecome accessible to the villagers, health and familyplanning services have become more effective andthe efficiency of farmers has greatly improved. Noother development programme initiated so far inthe villages got such a unanimous applause fom therural people as this road construction programme.

RURAL ELECTRIFICATIONElectric power is playing a vital role in the

Green Revolution. It supplies the mechanicalpower to the tubewells, pumping-sets, threshersand chaff-cutters. The share of agriculture in powerconsumption rose from 15 %in 1960 to 35 %in 1970.In Punjab, the per capita consumption of electricityhas gone up from 0.03 KWH in 19S1 to 10.86 KWHin 1968. It is higher than the other states exceptingTamil Nadu, another progressive state, where it is27.83 KWH per capita. About 80,000 privatetubewells have been electrified and a similar numberawait electric connections.. However, it is powershortage \\'hich is now standing in the way. In1970-71, power availability is 230 MW againstthe power demand of S02 MW. Thus there is adeficit of 269 MW which has to be met if agriculturehas to make further progress. Augmentation ofpower resources is the key to further agriculturalprogress not only in Punjab, but in other parts ofIndia and particularly in the states with good groundwater supplies.

MECHANIZATION OF AGRICULTUREMechanization of cultivation has played an im­

portant role in the agricultural revolution. Withouttubewells which have placed water at the commandof the cultivators, Agricultural Revolution wouldnot have taken place. With tubewelI irrigation

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the intensity of cropping could even be more than200 %. The short period available between harvest­ing and threshing of one crop and the sowing ofthe next imposes a serious limitation on intensivecultivation. Bullocks are unable to meet this situ­ation. The raising of two or more crops is practicableonly through mechanization of these operations.Timeliness of sowing is most important. The Mexicanwheats sown from the middle of November to theend of November give the highest yields and thosewhich are sown late in December show a steep fallin production.

The total number of farms in the Punjab Stateis 7,24,365. Out of these, 69,365 farms fall in thesize group of 12 hectares and above, 3,20,000 inthe group 4 to 12 hectares and the rest are under4 hectares. It is the owners of farms of first twocategories which are viable who have significantlycontributed to surplus production. The mecha­nization of small farms will depend greatly on theextent of development of custom operation. Ata reasonable estimate, 2,50,000 farms will beoperated with tractors. To meet the needs ofthe Punjab State alone, the production capacityof 13,000 tractors per year is necessary. Thedemand for tractors is mostly in the range from15 to 30 h.p.

A study carried out by the Punjab AgriculturalUniversity has shown that the pattern of mechaniza­tion which has been followed in Punjab has resultedincreased employment of human labour, due toincrease in crop intensity and increased productionper unit by time and area. It has not resulted inunemployment as was feared by some people. Ithas shown that labour and machinery are essentiallycomplementary, and when they combine they cantackle vastly increased volume of work. Thereis more demand for human labour and less forbullock power which is a highly desirable develop­ment. It saves the land for food production

which was put under fodder production to feed thebullocks. The same land can sustain larger numberof milch animals, thus leading to more milk pro­duction. Due to increased intensity of cropping,Punjab has experienced a labour shortage at peakperiods which is being met to some extent by mig­ration of labour from densely populated areas ofUttar Pradesh. Farm wage rates have risen fast, jand landless farm workers have shared the newprosperity.

SYSTEM OF SERVICE TO SUPPORT AGRICULTURALDEVELOPMENT

Here the system ofservices which has been develop­ed in Punjab to support agricultural developmentdeserves mention. The extension agency from theDevelopment Commissioner to the Village LevelWorker played a key role in new agriculture.The contacts made by the agricultural extensionworkers with the farmers, their educationaleffort and demonstrations arranged by them,made a deep impact on the farming community.The Co-operative Department, the Marketing Fede­ration, and the Agro-Industries, Poultry and DairyDevelopment Corporations effectively supportedthe agricultural revolution. The crop loan systemof the Co-operatives has proved to be of great benefit Ito the small farmers. In 1969-70, crop loans ofthe value of Rs. 61 crores were issued to the farmers,mostly for the supply of fertilizers and other agri-cultural inputs through the Marketing Federation.While 1965-66, the consumption of chemical ferti-lizers in Punjab was 2.3 lac tonnes of the value ofRs. 9.03 crores, in 1970-71, it was 11.30 lac tonnesof the value of Rs. 47.50 crores. Apart from thisabout 20,000 diesel engines were supplied to thefarmers. The Marketing Federation also playedan effective role in the purchase of wheat from thefarmers. In 1968-69, it purchased 82 lac quintalsof wheat at price of Rs. 64.83 crores. This wasof great help to the farmers. The Agro-IndustriesCorporation supplied tractors to the farmers,

which was put under fodder production to feed thebullocks. The same land can sustain larger numberof milch animals, thus leading to more milk pro­duction. Due to increased intensity of cropping,Punjab has experienced a labour shortage at peakperiods which is being met to some extent by mig­ration of labour from densely populated areas ofUttar Pradesh. Farm wage rates have risen fast,and landless farm workers have shared the newprosperity.

SYSTEM OF SERVICE TO SUPPORT AGRICULTURALDEVELOPMENT

Here the system ofservices which has been develop­ed in Punjab to support agricultural developmentdeserves mention. The extension agency from theDevelopment Commissioner to the Village LevelWorker played a key role in new agriculture.The contacts made by the agricultural extensionworkers with the farmers, their educationaleffort and demonstrations arranged by them,made a deep impact on the farming community.The Co-operative Department, the Marketing Fede­ration, and the Agro-Industries, Poultry and DairyDevelopment Corporations effectively supportedthe agricultural revolution. The crop loan systemof the Co-operatives has proved to be of great benefitto the small farmers. In 1969-70, crop loans ofthe value of Rs. 61 crores were issued to the farmers,mostly for the supply of fertilizers and other agri­cultural inputs through the Marketing Federation.While 1965-66, the consumption of chemical ferti­lizers in Punjab was 2.3 lac tonnes of the value ofRs. 9.03 crores, in 1970-71, it was 11.30 lac tonnesof the value of Rs. 47.50 crores. Apart from thisabout 20,000 diesel engines were supplied to thefarmers. The Marketing Federation also playedan effective role in the purchase of wheat from thefarmers. In 1968-69, it purchased 82 lac quintalsof wheat at price of Rs. 64.83 crores. This wasof great help to the farmers. The Agro-IndustriesCorporation supplied tractors to the farmers,

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and saved them from illegal premium which thedealers charge.

MEXICAN WHEATSThe Wheat Revolution in India is the result of

well-planned plant breeding research strategy andco-ordinated work approach of highly experiencedagricultural scientists and bold administrative andpolicy decisions. However, the single major factorwhich helped start the Wheat Revolution in Punjabwas the introduction of high-yielding, nitrogen res­ponsive dwarf strains of wheat from Mexico. Thesimple fertilizer trials conducted in farmers' fieldsduring 1959-61 had revealed that the tall varietiesthen cultivated in India do not respond well tonitrogen application. Hence, in 1962 the IndianAgricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, sent aproposal to the Government of India that Dr N.E.Borlaug of the International Maize and WheatResearch Centre, Mexico, may be invited to Indiaand supply us with dwarf wheat material containingthe "Norin" dwarfing genes in order to break thebarrier to high yields in wheat. Dr Borlaug acceptedthe invitation and visited the major wheat growingareas of India in March 1963. This visit pavedthe way for our getting seeds of four commercialMexican semi-dwarf wheats along with a few seedsof 613 different breeding lines. Seeds of thismaterial were distributed by IARI in collaborationwith the Rockefeller Foundation to the PunjabAgricultural University, Ludhiana, and to severalother institutions. The performance of theMexican varieties was very impressive even in thefirst year inspite of bad weather.

- At that time, I was Director-General of theIntensive Agricultural Programme with the Ministryof Food and Agriculture of the Government of India,with the responsibility of organizing production offood-crops in irrigated districts. I then suggestedthat we should import more seeds of these varietiesas soon as possible. In 1965, at the All-India

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Wheat Workshop held at Ludhiana a decisionwas taken to import 250 tonnes of seeds of thevarieties Sonora 64 and Lerma Rojo. These seedswere distributed to farmers all over the country byIARI. Their performance was so impressive thatat the Chief Ministers' Conference held at NewDelhi in April 1966, a decision to import 18,000tonnes of seeds of Mexican varieties was taken.At that dme, this was the biggest seed import madeby any country from another. The seeds werepurchased from Mexico by a team of experts.led by the late Dr S. M. Sikka and includingDr S.P. Kohli, which was specially sent to Mexicofor this purpose. For this bold step, credit goesto Mr C. Subramaniam, the then Minister for Food& Agriculture of the Government of India.

Out of the seed obtained from Dr Borlaug whichwas segregating, selections were made by the Indianplant breeders, Dr D. S. Athwal, of the Punjab Agri­cultural University, Ludhiana, named his selectionas Kalyan after his native village, Kalyanpur,and a similar selection made at the Indian Agricul­tural Research Institute was called Sona. Thesetwo re-selections were derived from the same parentalS-227 line and were found to be similar in perfor­mance. In 1967, these lots ~ere merged into asingle variety called Kalyan Sona-227. A yearafter the release of this variety, Pakistan releasedthe same variety under the name Mexi-Pak. Ascompared with the red grained Lerma-Rojo,Kalyan-Sona-227 was amber-grained, a colourliked by Indians.

The high-yielding Mexican varieties require muchmore care in cultivation, as compared with theold Indian wheat varieties. Here we may mentionthe work done by the agronomists who standar­dised cultural practices to enable the new varietiesto reach their full yield potential. The culti­vation of Mexican wheats promoted the use of seed­cwn-fertilizer drills for proper placement of seed

JI

I

•

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and fertilizers, as well as harvesting and threshingmachinery. The farmers learned the use of ferti­lizers and agricultural machinery for the first timeon a large scale and what they learned for use inwheat cultivation, they could also apply to othercrops. Now the Indian breeders at the PunjabAgricultural University, Ludhiana, V.P. AgriculturalUniversity, Pantnagar, and Indian AgriculturalResearch Institute are selecting new lines and byhybridization are producing wheats which havegood grain quality as well as superior yield and rustresistance. The greatest danger to these wheatsis the possibility of their resistance to rust breakingdown, and once it happens there is a real danger ofa famine on a continental scale.

The yield potential of Mexican wheats is as highas 60 quintals per hectare as against 30 quintalsof the best indigenous tall wheats. This is mainlydue to the fact that they are short-stemmed andcan absorb large quantities of fertilizers withoutlodging as compared with the traditional varietieswhich grow too high, become top heavy and falldown. They are much more responsive to ferti­lizers at all levels of applications. A given amount offertilizer produces a much greater increase in yieldin the new varieties than in the old varieties. Besides,they are adapted to a broad range of latitudes.A number of them can also be sown late and thishas proved to be a boon when there is not sufficientmoisture in the soil for preparing the seedbed andlarge areas are irrigated by tubewells for almosttwo months, from November to the end of December.However, the best yields are obtained when sowingis done between 15th and 30th November.

IMPACT ON WHEAT PRODUCTIONThe improved varieties which were available

before the Green revolution were only marginallysuperior to the varieties cultivated by the farmerswhereas the new wheats provide a sharp contrastby doubling or even trebling the crop yield. The

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and fertilizers, as well as harvesting and threshingmachinery. The farmers learned the use of ferti­lizers and agricultural machinery for the first timeon a large scale and what they learned for use inwheat cultivation, they could also apply to othercrops. Now the Indian breeders at the PunjabAgricultural University, Ludhiana, U.P. AgriculturalUniversity, Pantnagar, and Indian AgriculturalResearch Institute are selecting new lines and byhybridization are producing wheats which havegood grain quality as well as superior yield and rustresistance. The greatest danger to these wheatsis the possibility of their resistance to rust breakingdown, and once it happens there is a real danger ofa famine on a continental scale.

The yield potential of Mexican wheats is as highas 60 quintals per hectare as against 30 quintalsof the best indigenous tall wheats. This is mainlydue to the fact that they are short-stemmed andcan absorb large quantities of fertilizers withoutlodging as compared with the traditional varietieswhich grow too high, become top heavy and falldown. They are much more responsive to ferti­lizers at all levels of applications. A given amount offertilizer produces a much greater increase in yieldin the new varieties than in the old varieties. Besides,they are adapted to a broad range of latitudes.A number of them can also be sown late and thishas proved to be a boon when there is not sufficientmoisture in the soil for preparing the seedbed andlarge areas are irrigated by tubewells for almosttwo months, from November to the end of December.However, the best yields are obtained when sowingis done between 15th and 30th November.

IMPACT ON WHEAT PRODUCTIONThe improved varieties which were available

before the Green revolution were only marginallysuperior to the varieties cultivated by the farmerswhereas the new wheats provide a sharp contrastby doubling or even trebling the crop yield. The

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impact which these Mexican varieties have madeon wheat production is starting. In 1961-62t theproduction of wheat in the Punjab was It763tOOOmetric tonnes valued at Rs. 630 millions while in1967-68t the production was 3,335tOOO metric tonnesvalued at Rs. It200 millions. In 1968-69t the droughtyeart the production was 3,950tOOO metric tonnesvalued at Rs. IAI5.3 millions at constant pricesof the year 1950-51. In 1970-71 t the yield was about4t 800tOOO metric tonnes. This is a real technologicalbreakthrough for it is for the first time that manhas acquired control over the vagaries of rainfallin this region.

BENEFIT TO FARMERSThe green revolution in Punjab has benefited

all farmerst bigt medium and small. A clichetoften repeated by the oreticians is that only bigfarmers have benefited from the green revolution.This is untrue. The success of a farmer in adoptingneW technology depends upon his luck in findingadequate ground water. Even small farmers withholdings of two to five hectares who have beenable to bore successful tubewells have adoptedthe new technology. The green revolution hasbenefited not only the farmers t but also farmlabourers who command high wages in cash and arealso fed by the farmers.

STIMULUS TO ECONOMYThe phenomenal increase in production of

foodgrains has not only saved the country from agrave political crisis but also provided stimulusto the economy. There is now less talk ofrecession in the industrial sector. A largedemand for consumer goods has arisen. Industrieswhich manufacture bicycles t sewing machines,watches t transistors and textiles have benefited agreat deal from the agricultural revolution.The stagnant economy of towns has receivedstimulus. Many new markets for sale of food­grains have developed. The shops are brighter

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and have more goods to sell. The numberof shops selling agricultural chemicals, machineryand implements, textiles, and country liquor havenoticeably increased. Repair shops for tractors,diesel engines and pump-sets have multiplied. Therequirements of new agriculture, in the terms offertilizers, plant protection chemicals, pump-sets,electric-motors, pipe sprayers and dusters aretremendous.

TIME ACQUIRES VALUEIt is for the first time that time has acquired value

for the Indian farmer. With the ready availabilityof water all the year round from tubewells, doubleor even triple cropping has become a commonpractice.

Small threshers powered by electricity or dieselare now a familiar sight in the countryside of thePunjab. Farmers no longer want to waste theirtime on harvesting and threshing wheat with tradi­tional bullock-power. The number of power­driven threshers in the year 1962 was negligible andhas suddenly increased to 80,000 in the year 1968-69.The need to prepare seedbed quickly and to plantthe next crop has generated a great demand fortractors. In 1961, the Punjab had only4,997 tractors and in 1970 there were about25,000 tractors with the Punjab farmers. Thetotal demand envisaged is about one-hundredthousand. The farmers use the tractors not onlyfor ploughing their land and threshing theirgrain but also use them for custom hiring totheir neighbours. Tractor cultivation, due todeep tillage, has also contributed to higherproduction. A study carried out in FerozepurDistrict has shown that yield per acre of Mexicanwheat was 24.70 quintals per hectare intractor-operated farms irrigated by tubewells,while in similar bullock operated farms itwas noticeably less, viz., 19.81 quintals perhectare.

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Intensive farming with the new technology hasgenerated demand for more farm labour. As a result,acute labour shortage has arisen. Another contri­butory cause is that the sons of Harijans who arelandless labourers after receiving education aregoing into professions and skilled jobs and areno longer interested in working on farms asunskilled labourers. The gap in labour supply isbeing partially filled by migrant labour fromover-populated eastern Uttar Pradesh and dry areasof Rajasthan.

Here it would be relevant to refer to thework done by the College of AgriculturalEngineering of the Punjab Agricultural Uni­versity. Besides training agricultural engineersand providing technical guidance to industry,this college has done research to developagricultural machinery, in the design ofirrigation systems, to reclaim water-logged land,and on storage bins for wheat. The pieces ofequipment developed by the College such asfertilizer-cum-seed drill, bullock and tractor-~operated reapers, potato-harvesting machines,groundnut digger, and storage bins have alreadybeen taken up by private industry formanufacture.

EXTENSION EDUCATIONThe present programme of extension education

in agricultural engineering consists of short-termcourses for progressive farmers, young farmers,personnel from agricultural and extension depart­ments, participation in Rabi and Kharif campaignsand supply of technical advice to the farmersof the Punjab on different aspects of tube~ell

construction and operation, water management,tractors and farm machinery, farm structures andstorage. Farmers are turning up in increasingnumbers to learn tractor driving and managementof pumping-sets and electric-motors, and poultryfarming.

IS

PRICE SUPPORT POLICY, THE PIVOT OF THE GREENREVOLUTION

Agriculture has remained stagnant in countrieslike India as the producers never got remunerativeprices for their crops as the Government policieswere consumer-oriented. Another tragedy of thesecountries is that the administrative services areoverloaded with officials who have no experienceof agriculture and rural life. Most of them arefrom urban castes and classes who were the tradi­tional exploiters of the agriculturists. Hence, it is toomuch to expect that they would view their problemswith sympathy. This has been the bane of Indianagriculture. A radical departure came in 1966 onaccount of the compulsion of food shortages whenthe Government of India adopted the policy ofgiving remunerative price for food grains. It paidrich dividends in increased food production aswell as the stimulus it provided to the economy.

The price support policy for wheat adopted by theGovernment of India is a key factor which hasassured the success of the Wheat Revolution. Notonly the price offered is remunerative but arrange­ments are also made to purchase the foodgrainsthrough the Food Corporation of India and theState Marketing Departments. Thus the strategyof grain dealers who used to join together to depressthe price at the time of harvest when the farmerssell and raise it a few months later when there \\tasacute consumer demand was defeated. The impactof this policy can be judged from the fact that thewheat acreage in the country which was 12.8 millionhectares in 1966-67 rose to 15.8 million hectaresin 1969-70 and production rose from 11.3 milliontonnes to 20.4 million tonnes. The average yieldper hectare rose from 887 kg. to 1,263 kg. It isfor the first time that the empty grainaries of Indiafilled up, we are largely emancipated from dependenceon PL-480 supplies. The pivot of the programmeis remunerative price for the farmer~. So long

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as the farmers get a remunerative price for theirproduction which enables them to meet the costof inputs such as : fertilizers, plant protectionchemicals, qulaity seed, charges for family as well ashired labour, bills for electricity and diesel oil,depreciation of agricultural machinery, and alsomake a reasonable profit, they will continue toinvest and the agricultural revolution will roll alongbringing still larger areas under its sweep. How­ever, the temptation of whittling down the profit ofthe farmers should be resisted so that their enthusi­asm is not killed. The requirements of modernagriculture in terms of resources are tremendous.The farmers have been ploughing back their profitin land improvement, sinking of tubewells, installingunderground systems of irrigation, purchase oftractors, pumping-sets, sprayers and costly imple­ments. Let this process go on for a number ofyears and we will notice the liquidization of ruralslums over vast areas in India, and firm foundationwould have been laid for development in othersectors of economy.

The term Green Revolution conjures in theminds of some people visions of prosperity, whichare not in consonance with reality. The area whichhas experienced this agricultural change is confinedto Punjab, Haryana and Western V.P. So far, theonly crop in which spectacular increase in produc­tion has taken place is wheat. The production ofcotton, sugarcane and maize is still low. The standardof living of farmers is still miserably low. Theirhousing is wretched and furniture is practically non­existent in their homes. The only solid achievementof the agricultural change is that the farmers andtheir labourers eat better, they have provided foodto the city-dwellers of India, and they have liberatedthe country from its dependence on foreign countriesfor their daily bread. Besides they have earned abreathing spell of a few years against the torrent ofrising population during which the family planningprogramme should be effectively implemented.

M. S. Randhawa

Printed at Punjab Agricultural University Press, Ludhiana.July 3. 1971.