Cropping Patterns and Major Crops of India: Part One

Agricultural activities employ two-thirds of India’s population. It’s a primary activity that provides food grains and industrial raw materials. Because India is such a large nation, it has a diverse range of food and non-food crops that are grown throughout the three primary agricultural seasons of zaid, kharif, and rabi.

The following are some of the most common crops:

Rice, wheat, millets, maize, and pulses are some of the most important food crops.
Sugarcane, oilseeds, horticulture crops (tea, coffee, rubber, cotton, and jute), and cash crops (sugarcane, oilseeds, horticulture crops, tea, coffee, rubber, cotton, and jute) are all examples of cash crops.

Seasons of Cropping

S.No.	Seasons of Cropping	Duration	Crops	States
	Zaid	March-July are the months for sowing and harvesting (between Rabi and Kharif)	Fruits, vegetables, and fodder crops are all available in season.	The majority of the states in the north and northwest
	Kharif	June-July are the months when the seeds are sown. Harvested between September and October	Rice, maize, jowar, bajra, tur, moong, urad, cotton, jute, groundnut, and soybean are some of the crops grown in India.	Assam, West Bengal, Odisha’s coastal districts, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Maharashtra are all coastal states.
	Rabi	October-December are the months when the seeds are sown. April-June are the months when the crops are harvested.	Wheat, barley, peas, gramme, mustard, and other grains	Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh are the states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh.

The Most Important Food Crops

Rice

Temperatures range from 22 to 32 degrees Celsius, with considerable humidity.
Rainfall ranges between 150 to 300 cm.
Soil type: Loamy, deep clayey soil.
West Bengal > Punjab > Uttar Pradesh > Andhra Pradesh > Bihar are the top rice-producing states.
It is the bulk of Indians’ principal food crop.
After China, India is the world’s second-largest rice producer.
Paddy is cultivated three times a year in states like Assam, West Bengal, and Odisha. Aus, Aman, and Boro are their names.
A few government programmes to boost rice growing include the National Food Security Mission, Hybrid Rice Seed Production, and Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana.

Wheat

Temperatures should range from 10-15°C (sowing time) to 21-26°C (ripening and harvesting period) in strong sunshine.
75-100 cm of rain is expected.
Well-drained fertile loamy and clayey loamy soils (Ganga-Satluj plains and black soil region of the Deccan)
Uttar Pradesh > Punjab > Madhya Pradesh > Haryana > Rajasthan are the top wheat-producing states.
After China, India is the world’s second-largest producer.
This is the second most significant cereal crop and the principal food crop in north and north-western India.
The success of the Green Revolution aided the growth of Rabi crops, particularly wheat.
A few government programmes to boost wheat-growing include the Macro Management Mode of Agriculture, the National Food Security Mission, and the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana.

Millets

Temperatures range from 27 to 32 degrees Celsius.
Rainfall ranges between 50 to 100 cm.
Because they are less susceptible to soil shortages, they may be cultivated on poor alluvial or loamy soil.

Jowar is a rain-fed crop that is cultivated in wet locations with little or no irrigation.
Sandy soils and shallow black soils characterise Bajra.
Ragi grows on soils that are red, black, sandy, loamy, and shallow black.

Rajasthan > Karnataka > Maharashtra > Madhya Pradesh > Uttar Pradesh are the states that produce the most millets.
Maharashtra > Karnataka > Madhya Pradesh > Tamil Nadu > Andhra Pradesh Jowar: Maharashtra > Karnataka > Madhya Pradesh > Tamil Nadu > Andhra Pradesh
Rajasthan > Uttar Pradesh > Gujarat > Madhya Pradesh > Haryana. Bajra: Rajasthan > Uttar Pradesh > Gujarat > Madhya Pradesh > Haryana.
These are also known as coarse grains, and they are abundant in nutrients. Ragi has a lot of iron, calcium, and other micronutrients, as well as a lot of roughage.
In terms of acreage and output, jowar is the third most significant food crop.
The government’s attempts to encourage millet production include the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme and the Program for Nutrition Assurance via Comprehensive Millets Advancement.

Maize

Temperatures range from 21 to 27 degrees Celsius.
Rainfall: A lot of rain.
Old alluvial soil is the soil type.
Karnataka > Maharashtra > Madhya Pradesh > Tamil Nadu > Telangana are the top maize producing states.
India is the world’s sixth-largest producer.
It may be utilised as both diet and manure.
Maize output has increased due to the use of contemporary inputs such as High-Yielding Variety seeds, fertilisers, and irrigation.
One of the government’s maize efforts is the Maize Technology Mission.

Pulses

Temperatures range from 20 to 27 degrees Celsius.
Rainfall is expected to be between 25 and 60 cm.
Sandy-loamy soil is the soil type.
Madhya Pradesh > Rajasthan > Maharashtra > Uttar Pradesh > Karnataka are the states that produce the most pulses.
India is both the world’s greatest producer and consumer of pulses.
In a vegetarian diet, these are the main sources of protein.
Tur (arhar), urad, moong, masur, peas, and gramme are the most common pulses farmed in India.
With the exception of arhar, all of these crops are leguminous crops that help restore soil fertility by fixing nitrogen from the air. As a result, they’re usually produced in a round with other crops.
The government’s plans to encourage pulse production include the National Food Security Mission for Pulses, the Pulses Development Scheme, and the Technological Mission on Pulses.