agriculture review
by aditya abhishek
Commercialisation of agriculture is the transformation from subsistence agriculture system to business oriented system for increasing productivity, efficiency, and profits.
It involves adoption of modern techniques such as precision agriculture which includes use of GPS, Drones, Farm machinery, Soil testing, IPM, etc. & following better marketing strategies.
Commercialisation of agriculture started in India during the British rule. It took place after 1813, at the same time when industrial revolution was flourishing in Britain.
It helped farmers to increase crop yield and reduce input cost during initial days. Many farmers got connected with new technological advancements whic increased efficiency.
With the introduction of tillage machinery, spraying drones, soil testing etc., labour cost & farm waste reduced. However, initial investments increased.
It helped farmers to connect directly with the market and business owners. Earlier farmer used to sell produce at local markets only. But now, they are also selling in international markets.
Although it is beneficial for large scale farmers, but it creates lot of challages for small scale or marginal farmers. Due to small land holdings, they could not compete with large scale farmers.
Another challenge is the issue of market access. Many small-scale farmers lack the necessary infrastructure and connections to local and international market.
Additionally, small-scale farmers often lack the bargaining power to negotiate fair prices with middlemen and traders because of the small quantity of produce.
And even if they try to adopt modern techniques such as drones, precise agriculture then their cost of production increases. But, for large scale farmers, consequences are just opposite.
Adopt modern farming techniques according land holdings, soil type, local climate and market. Using drones in large farm is effective but in small farms it will be costly. That's why choose wisely!
thanks for reading!