Feb 1, 2020
Farm mechanization in India is quite low at 40-45 per cent compared to other countries such as USA (95 per cent), Brazil (75 per cent) and China (57 per cent)
As the land and water resources are shrinking as well as the labour force going down, the load goes on mechanization of production and post-harvesting operations. There is a linear relationship between availability of farm power and farm yield and Government has decided to enhance farm power availability from 2.02 kW per ha (2016-17) to 4.0 kW per ha by the end of 2030 to cope up with increasing demand for food grains.
Under the scheme, total funds allocated during 2014-15 to 2018- 19 was Rs 3377.07 crore and during 2018-19 it was Rs 1027.46 crore. In the last four years, Government has given massive thrust to promoting latest agricultural machineries, like laser leveler, happy seeder technology, combine harvesters and small equipment like power weeders.
The rise of mechanization in farm sector is evident from steady growth in the sale of tractors.
Indian tractor industry is the largest in the world, accounting for one-third of the total global production. During the past four decades, the tractor industry grew at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10 per cent. Farm mechanization market in India has been growing at a CAGR of 7.53 per cent during 2016-2018 due to thrust given by various government policies.