Agriculture Test - 2

Pulses boost soil fertility and reduce the need for industrial nitrogen fertilizers because they fix nitrogen (N) from the atmosphere and provide organic matter to soils. When included as a rotation crop with cereals, they could save up to 120 kilograms of nitrogen per hectare.

The most ideal soil would be a well drained loam with a pH range from 4.7 to 7.5. Heavier soils with more water retention capacity are considered ideal for its cultivation. Loam to clay loam soil with neutral pH are the best suited soils for urad bean.

Alluvial soils vary in nature from sandy loam to clay. These soils lack in nitrogen, phosphorus and humus. However, they are generally rich in potash and lime.

The Deccan Plateau has a dry season that lasts six to nine months. Much of its surface is covered by thorn scrub forest interspersed with small areas of deciduous broadleaf forest. The climate of the region varies from semi-arid in the north to tropical in most of the region with distinct wet and dry seasons. Rain falls during the monsoon season from about June to October. Hence, dry farming is carried out in Deccan region.

Canals are second most important source of irrigation in India after wells and tube wells. The Canals are irrigating those lands which have large plains, fertile soils and perennial rivers. The plains of North India are mostly canal irrigated.So the main source of irrigation of agricultural land in India are wells.

Wet farming is a type of farming which depends mainly upon rain. This type of farming is prevalent in the North, North-Eastern, Eastern India and the Western slopes of the Western Ghats. Kerala lies on the Western slopes of the Western Ghats. So, in Kerala, wet agriculture is practised.

Nearly one-thirds of farmers have land parcels smaller than 1 ha, showed a Nabard survey released on Thursday. While 37 per cent of farm households owned land parcels of smaller than 0.4 ha, another 30 per cent had holdings which fall between 0.41 and 1.0 ha. Only 13 per cent agricultural households owned landholdings bigger than 2 ha. The survey also showed only 5.2 per cent of agricultural households in the country owned a tractor and 1.8 per cent a power tiller. Access to drip irrigation and sprinkler was limited to 1.6 per cent and 0.8 per cent families respectively. There were wide variations among States with respect to average land size possessed by agricultural households. While the States like Nagaland (2.1 ha), Rajasthan (1.9 ha) and Haryana (1.7 ha) reported higher land sizes per household, average land parcel was around 0.5 Ha in the States like Bihar, West Bengal, Tripura, Sikkim and Jammu & Kashmir. Out of given states , Rajasthan has the largest average size of agricultural holdings. 

All the above factors contribute to the reason for West Bengal being the largest producer of jute in India. The fertile soil of Ganga-Brahmaputra delta region produces 90% of country's total jute.
Coal is the main source of power for jute mills, which are obtained from Raniganj fields, which are about 190 km away.
Humid climate of West Bengal is helpful in spinning and weaving
Sufficient cheap labour is available from high density regions of West Bengal and Bihar.

Karnataka is the largest coffee production state in the country, accounts for nearly 71 per cent. Chikmagalur, Kodagu and Hassan districts of Karnataka are major coffee producer regions of the state.

Central India is the main producer of beedi patta (beedi wrappers) and Madhya Pradesh leads the way in production, supplying nearly 30 percent of the total Tendu leaves in the country. Tendu patta (Diospyros melanoxylon) leaves are used for making beedis or "Indian cigar".

Operation Flood was started by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in 1970s. The objective of this programme was to create a nationwide milk grid. The result was that India became the largest producer of Milk and Milk Products. Operation flood is called White Revolution of India.