The phrase 'Green Revolution' pertains to the latest farming methods invented by a group of agricultural specialists at the International Centre for Maize and Wheat Improvement in Mexico and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines during the 1950s and 1960s.
- From the 1960s onwards, India underwent a period known as the Green Revolution, characterized by the adoption of cutting-edge technologies such as high-yield variety (HYV) seeds, mechanized farm equipment, irrigation systems, and fertilizers and pesticides, which transformed agriculture into a modern industrial system.
History-
- The process of green revolution began with the initiation of agricultural research programme in early 1950s in Mexico by the Rockefeller Foundation team of agricultural experts, including Dr. Norman Borlaug.
- Dr. Borlaug intensively researched on the Mexican wheat and became successful in inventing high yielding varieties of dwarf wheat in mid-1950s.
- He is also known as Father of Green revolution in the world
In India
- India faced severe food shortages during 1950s and 1960s and had to import food grains
- During the 1960s, the Indian government authorized the Ford Foundation to start the Intensive Agricultural Area Program (IAAP) to increase agricultural productivity with advanced technology.
- The IAAP was commonly referred to as the "PACKAGE PROGRAMME" and was introduced in 1961, succeeding the Community Development Programme.
- The primary goal of the IADP was to generate economic growth and social well-being through improved agricultural productivity.
- The IADP was extended and later replaced by the Intensive Agriculture Area programme (IAAP)
- Dr. Norman Borlaug and Dr. M. S. Swaminathan (agricultural scientists) and Shri. C. Subramanian, the then Minister of Agriculture had been the key persons in bringing the new agricultural technology to India.
Components of Green revolution
The key elements of the revolution include:
1) Use of the latest technological and capital inputs-
- Credit facilities for capital input were enhanced in the country
2) Adoption of modern scientific methods of farming-
- Modern scientific methods and Machineries were introduced and scientific research were encouraged through National and Regional level institutions
- The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) was reorganized in 1965
3) Use of high yielding varieties of seeds
- The number of HYV seeds of wheat, paddy, maize, and bajra have been developed and widely distributed throughout the country.
4)Use of chemical fertilizers-
- To increase the productivity of the soil intensive use of Chemical fertilizers were increased
5) Multiple Cropping Programme:
- The approach in the new agricultural strategy is the introduction of multiple cropping programmes in the country. It aims at maximizing production per unit of land and per unit of time by taking three or four crops in a year
6) Role of Public Institutions:
Many public institutions were incorporated to enhance the objective of green revolution
i) The National Seeds Corporation was set up in 1963 with soleresponsibilities in the field of seed production, particularly the foundation stock of HYV seeds.
ii) The State Farms Corporation of India was set up in 1969 fordeveloping quality seed and farm yields.
iii) Starting with 1965, agro-industries corporations have been set up in different states.
iv) The National Co-operative Development Corporation was setup on a statutory basis in 1963.
7) Increase in Use of Irrigation:
- In India, availability of irrigation is highly scanty and more than 70 per cent of agriculture is dependent on rainfall.
- Water along with HYV seeds and fertilizer forms a significant input, to raise agricultural production. Thus, availability of water is possible either from rain or surface flow or below ground. Therefore Irrigation infrastructure was enhanced in India
8)Increase in Use of Pesticides
- This was also another component to protect Agricultural crops from the attack of Pests
9)Consolidation of Small holdings-
- Small land holding was one of the major hurdle in Green revolution therefore Consolidation of Small holdings was introduced
Important Crops in the Revolution:
- Main crops were Wheat, Rice, Jowar, Bajra and Maize.
- Non-food grains were excluded from the ambit of the new strategy.
Positive Impacts of Green Revolution
1.Increase in Food grain production due to focus of Green revolution food grain crops like wheat etc.
2.Diffusion of Rice and wheat cultivation to Non traditional areas like Rice to some southern states too and wheat in Northern Gangetic regions
3.Rise in Income of Farmers due to increase in agricultural production
4.Reduction in import of food grains
5.Rise in Capitalistic Farming due to consolidation of small land holdings
6.Increase in Net sown and Gross Sown area of the country
7.Industrial growth like increase in agriculture based industries like sugar industries etc.
8.Decrease in Poverty due to Rural employment.
9.Postive change in the attitude of farmers towards agriculture
Negative Impacts of Green revolution
1.Inter crop imbalance due to more focus on food grain crops like Wheat, jowar,rice etc.
2.Regional disparities because of focus of this revolution in specific areas like Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil nadu etc. and ignorance of other parts of the country
3.Increase in Inter Personal Inequalities due to Increase in Regional Disparities
4.Degradation of Traditional agricultural practices
5.Enviornmental concerns
6. Deforestation
7. Depletion of underground water
8. Soil pollution due too use of different pesticides
9. Health hazard due to Pollution of Natural resources
From Green to Gene Revolution
- After development of technologies in gene editing etc.we have seen increase in use of genetic engineering in agriculture and one of them is GM crops
Genetically Modified( GM )Crops
- GM crops are plants that have had their DNA altered through genetic engineering to introduce a new trait not found naturally in the species.
- The goal of genetic engineering is to overcome natural barriers by inserting a foreign gene into the seeds to achieve the desired effect. This gene could come from a plant, animal, or even a soil bacterium.
- In India, only one GM crop, Bt cotton, has been authorized for commercial cultivation.
Bt cotton
- Bt cotton is a type of cotton that has been genetically modified to resist pests.
- It is a plant variety that produces its own insecticide to fight bollworms.
- Bt cotton is the only genetically engineered crop approved by the GEAC.
- This cotton is specifically designed to be resistant to pests, which reduces the need for chemical pesticides.
HT Mustard
- DMH-11 is a type of transgenic mustard that is locally developed.
- It is a modified version of Herbicide Tolerant (HT) mustard, created through barnase/barstar technology.
- The modification involves introducing genes from a soil bacterium to enable the plant to self-pollinate.
- In 2017, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) endorsed the use of HT Mustard for commercial purposes.
- However, the Supreme Court put a hold on its release and directed the government to gather feedback from the public.