Publications

If one looks at the overall agricultural pattern across the country, almost 85 million ha, that is, about 60% of the 142 million ha of cultivable land is under rainfed conditions. These make a significant contribution to the production of pulses, oil seeds and cereals in the country. Public investment in irrigation has steadily declined. In addition, even if the entire irrigation potential of the country is developed, 50% of the arable land is likely to remain rainfed. There is, therefore, an urgent need to give attention to improving the agricultural productivity and diversifying the economy of these areas.