🌱 Chapter 4 – Agriculture (Class 8 Geography, NCERT)

🔹 1. Introduction to Agriculture

• Agriculture = The primary activity of growing crops, fruits, vegetables, flowers, and rearing of livestock.
• Derived from Latin words:
  • Ager = field
  • Culture = cultivation
  • So, Agriculture = Cultivation of fields.

👉 Importance:

• Provides food for survival.
• Provides raw material for industries (cotton, sugarcane, jute, etc.).
• Provides employment to more than 50% of India’s workforce.
• Basis of trade and commerce since ancient times.

🔹 2. Factors Influencing Agriculture

Agriculture depends on both natural factors and human factors.

🌍 Natural Factors

1. Climate – Crops need specific temperature & rainfall.
   • Rice → hot & wet climate
   • Wheat → cool & moderate rainfall
2. Soil – Fertile soil gives better yield.
   • Alluvial soil → wheat, rice, sugarcane
   • Black soil → cotton
3. Relief (landform) –
   • Plains → crop cultivation (easy for irrigation, fertile)
   • Mountains → tea, coffee, spices
   • Deserts → less farming, mostly millet

👨‍👩‍👦 Human Factors

1. Labour – Availability of workers.
2. Technology – Modern machinery, irrigation, HYV seeds.
3. Market – Farmers prefer crops that sell easily.
4. Government policies – Subsidies, crop insurance, MSP, etc.

🔹 3. Types of Economic Activities

All human activities are divided into:

1. Primary activities → Directly use natural resources.
   • Farming, fishing, forestry, mining.
2. Secondary activities → Convert raw materials into goods.
   • Industries (sugar mill, textile, steel, etc.).
3. Tertiary activities → Services.
   • Teachers, doctors, banking, transport.
4. Quaternary activities → Knowledge-based.
   • Research, IT, consultancy.

👉 Agriculture = Primary activity.

🔹 4. Farming Types Based on Methods

1. Subsistence Farming

• Farmers grow food mainly for their own family.
• Small fields, traditional tools, less use of fertilizers.
• Examples: Rice, wheat, maize, pulses.
• Common in India, Bangladesh, China.

2. Intensive Subsistence Farming

• Small plots of land with maximum output.
• Uses more labour, irrigation, and fertilisers.
• Common in densely populated areas like India, China, Japan.

3. Primitive Subsistence Farming

(a) Shifting cultivation (Slash & burn)

• Forests are cleared, crops grown, then abandoned after soil loses fertility.
• Called Jhumming in NE India, Milpa in Mexico, Ladang in Malaysia.
  (b) Nomadic Herding
• People move with animals in search of pasture.
• Found in Sahara, Central Asia, Mongolia.
• Animals: sheep, goats, camels, yaks.

4. Commercial Farming

• Crops grown for sale in markets.
• Large farms, use of machinery, chemical fertilisers, irrigation.
• Examples: Cotton, sugarcane, tea, coffee.
• Common in USA, Canada, India, Brazil.

🔹 5. Major Crops in the World

🌾 Food Crops

1. Rice
   • Needs high temperature (25°C+) & heavy rainfall.
   • Grown in plains, river valleys, deltas.
   • Leading producers → China, India, Indonesia.
2. Wheat
   • Cool climate, moderate rainfall.
   • Grown in winter in India.
   • Producers → USA, Canada, Russia, India.
3. Millets (Coarse grains)
   • Grown in dry areas with low rainfall.
   • Crops → Jowar, Bajra, Ragi.
   • Countries → India, Nigeria, China.
4. Maize (Corn)
   • Grows in moderate climate, rainfall.
   • Producers → USA, Brazil, China.
5. Pulses
   • Rich in protein, need less water.
   • India → world’s largest producer.

🌱 Fibre Crops

1. Cotton
   • Needs black soil, hot climate.
   • Countries → India, USA, China, Egypt.
2. Jute
   • Known as “Golden Fibre.”
   • Hot, wet climate → West Bengal, Bangladesh.

💧 Beverage Crops

1. Tea
   • Cool climate, well-drained soil.
   • Producers → India, Sri Lanka, China, Kenya.
2. Coffee
   • Grown on hillsides, tropical areas.
   • Producers → Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia, India.

🔹 6. Agricultural Development

Agricultural Development = Efforts to increase farm production.

Methods:

• Use of High Yield Variety (HYV) seeds.
• Mechanisation – tractors, harvesters.
• Irrigation facilities.
• Use of chemical & organic fertilisers.
• Scientific research.

🔹 7. Case Studies (NCERT Examples)

✅ (A) India – Wheat Farming (Developing Country)

• Region: Punjab, Haryana, UP.
• Small farms, manual labour, use of irrigation.
• Wheat grown mainly for domestic consumption.

✅ (B) USA – Wheat Farming (Developed Country)

• Region: Prairies (Midwest USA).
• Very large farms (100s of hectares).
• Mechanised farming – combines, tractors.
• Wheat grown mainly for export.

🔹 8. Shifts in Agriculture (Green Revolution)

• 1960s → Green Revolution in India.
• Use of HYV seeds, irrigation, fertilisers, pesticides.
• Advantages → Increased yield, self-sufficiency in food.
• Disadvantages → Overuse of chemicals, soil degradation, water scarcity.

🔹 9. Challenges in Agriculture

1. Over-dependence on monsoon.
2. Fragmentation of land.
3. Soil depletion, erosion.
4. Lack of modern technology for small farmers.
5. Market fluctuations.

🔹 10. Future of Agriculture

• Shift towards sustainable farming.
• Use of organic farming.
• Hydroponics & vertical farming in cities.
• Use of AI, drones, satellite mapping.

📝 Quick Recap (Keywords)

• Agriculture = Cultivation of fields.
• Types = Subsistence, Commercial, Shifting, Nomadic, Intensive.
• Major crops = Rice, Wheat, Maize, Millets, Cotton, Jute, Tea, Coffee.
• Factors = Climate, Soil, Relief, Labour, Technology.
• Case study = India (subsistence, small farms) vs USA (commercial, mechanised).