India's Agricultural Progress in the 1950's and 1960's

Excerpts from the report: When India became a free, sovereign nation in 1947, agriculture was the main source of livelihood for about three fourths of its 350 million people. Hence, the performance or agriculture in the ensuing years is one appropriate measure of fulfillment of the hopes of its people then so eloquently expressed by its first Prime Minister. The record of these years provides also an experience basis for evaluating the key ideas that have served as the guiding and organizing principles of India's recent agricultural development efforts. Moreover, because India is a highly diverse country, it is one in which such ideas can be examined under a wide variety of underlying physical, social, economic and institutional conditions. This report presents main finding from an economic analysis of India's agricultural production growth since its Independence. Its purposes are to indicate rates of growth in agricultural production in India, its states and districts; to identify and assess the importance of major physical, social, economic and institutional factors contributing to or impeding this progress; and to indicate implications of these findings for the Nation's agricultural production potentials and their resource and policy requirements.