Agriculture Production In India

Agriculture Production In  India 

introducation

                          India has a very large land area with diverse climatic zones. Throughout its history, agriculture has been its predominant productive activity. During the Mughal period, large tracts of land were under the plough. Contemporary Indian and foreign writers praise the fertility of Indian soil. A wide range of food crops, fruits, vegetables and crop were grown in India. However, we would take a stock only of the main crop grown during this period. We will also discuss the methods of cultivation as also the implements used for cultivation and irrigation technology. While focusing on the area under Mughal control, we will also include the areas lying outside it. We have very little information about the economic condition of the people under the Delhi Sultanate. The historians of the period were more interested in the events at the court than in the lives of ordinary people.

                                    However, they do sometimes tell us the price of commodities. Ibn Battutah, a resident of Tangier in North Africa, visited India in the fourteenth century and lived at the court of Muhammad Tughlaq for eight years. He travelled widely all over India and has left a very interesting account of the products of the country, including fruits, flowers, herbs, etc. the condition of the roads and the life of the people. The food grains and other crops, the fruits and the flowers mentioned by various travellers are familiar to us. Ibn Battutah says that the soil was so fertile that it could produce two crops every year, rice being sown three times a year. Sesame, sugarcane and cotton were also grown. They formed the basis of many village industries, such as oil pressing, making of jaggery, weaving, etc.

Village Economy and Peasantry:

                                                              As before, peasants formed the overwhelming majority of the population. The peasant continued to work hard and to eke out bare subsistence. There were recurring famines and wars in different parts of the country and these added to the hardships of the peasant. All the peasants did not live at the level of subsistence. The village headmen (muqaddams) and smaller landlord (khuts) enjoyed a higher standard of life. In addition to their own holdings, they held lands for which they paid revenue at concessional rates. Sometimes, they misused their offices to force the ordinary peasants to pay their share of the land revenue also.

These people were prosperous enough to ride on costly Arabi and Iraqi horses, wear fine clothes and behave like members of the upper classes. As we have seen, Alauddin Khilji took stern action against them and curtailed many of their privileges. Even then they continued to enjoy a higher standard of life than to ordinary peasants. It seems that after the death of Alauddin, they were able to resume their old ways.

Mughal Period:

                            During the 16th and 17th centuries, 85 per cent of India’s population lived in rural areas. The largest section in the village consisted of peasants or cultivators. There were three main classes of peasants.

Khud-kasht (riyayati):

                                   Those residential peasants living in their own village, owning their own land and implements, paying the land-revenue at a concessional rate, formed the governing body of the village community. Also called mirasdars in Maharashtra and gharu-hala in Rajasthan.

Pahi-kasht:

                      These peasants were basically outsiders but cultivated the rented land in a village either by staying in the same village (residential pahi-kasht) or by staying in the neighbouring villages (non-residential pahi-kasht).

Muzarian (raiyatis):

                                   Those who belonged to the same village but who did not have either land or implements and hence were dependent on the Khud-kasht for their supply. They were divided into two groups; tenants-at-will and those who had hereditary tenant rights, called as paltis in Rajastan.

                                                            The Indian peasantry in the Mughal Empire was highly stratified and there was considerable difference in the size of holdings, produce and resources of peasants within the same locality. India had a well diversified economy with the cultivation of a large variety of crops. Cotton, indigo, chay (red dye), sugarcane, oil seeds paid land revenue at a higher rate and had to be paid in cash hence, called cash crops or superior crops. The peasants not only shifted his cultivation from one crop to other but also adopted new crops. Tobacco and maize were introduced in the 17th century. The adoption of potato and red chillies followed during the 18th century.

                                                        During this period, India also exported food grains, especially rice and sugar. The peasant was not disposed from his land as long as he paid the land revenue. Although the life of the peasant was hard, he had enough to eat and meet his simple requirements.

Prosperous agriculture:

                                             According to Ibn Batuta, a traveller who came from North Africa in India during the fourteenth century, agriculture was in a state of great progress. The soil was so fertile that it produced two crops every year; rice being sown three times a year.

                                                     Sesame, sugar-cane and cotton were grown in abundance and these formed the basis of several village industries. Rice of Sarsauti, sugar-cane of Kanauj, wheat and betel leaf of Malwa, wheat of Gwalior, ginger and spices of Malabar, grapes and pomegranates of Daultabad, betel nuts of the South India and a large variety of oranges were popular in and outside India. Cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables etc. were produced in almost all parts of India.The Ganga-Yamuna Doab remained always famous for its fertility and large scale production.Animal husbandry was in a very advanced stage. Ordinarily there was plenty of food production. However, on account of the failure of rains, there were periods of draught.

Condition of peasants:

                                       Peasants formed the overwhelming majority of the population. They had to work hard to eke out bare subsistence. Usually they were required to pay one-third of their produce as land revenue.

Industry:

               Textile industry was the primary industry. Cotton, silk and woolen clothes of different varieties was produced in large quantity. The clothes were studded with gold, diamond, pearl, silver and other stones. Indian textiles were in great demand in foreign countries. The skill of Indian craftsmen was of a high order. Indian cotton textiles were introduced in China as well where these were valued more than silk. Bengal and Gujarat were famous for their fine quality fabrics.

Important handicrafts were such as carpet weaving, mat work and leather work. Besides textile industry, sugar industry, paper industry, metal work, stone cutting, pearl driving out of the sea, ivory and sandal wood work were other important industries of India. The Sultans had set up several ‘Karkhanas’ (workshops).

Trade and commerce:

                                         India carried a brisk trade—both internal as well as external. Delhi was the largest city and the most important trading centre. Other important trade centres were: Daultabad, in the south, Lahore and Multan in the north-west, Kara and Lakhnauti in the east and Anhilwara (Patan) and Cambay (Khambayat) in the west. External trade was very profitable and it was one of the main causes of the wealth of India. India had trade relations with Iran, Arabia, European countries, Africa, China, Malaya, Afghanistan and Central Asia, etc.

Agricultural produce

                                         India with extensive land area, different types of soils and varying climatic conditions, could boast of a large variety of agricultural products. We will discuss agricultural produce under three heads-food crops, cash crops and fruits, vegetables and spices.

Food Crops

                       The majority of seasonal crops in North India were grown in two major crop seasons kharif (autumn) and rabi (spring). In some areas the peasants tended to grow even three crops by producing some short-term crops in between. Rice was the main kharif crop and wheat was rabi. In South India, these distinct crop-seasons with different crops were absent. Here, Rice and wheat were the two major food crops throughout the country. The regions with high rainfall (40″ to 50″) accounted for the bulk of rice production. The whole of Northeast, Eastern India (Bihar, Bengal, Orissa with parts of Eastern U.P.), southern coast of Gujarat and South India, were rice producing areas. As indicated above, in South India there were two main seasons of rice cultivation kuddapah-kar and samba-peshanam. However, Abul Fazl says that its consumption was. injurious to health. The same is confirmed by modern researches. It was believed for long that maize (makai or makka) was not known in India during 17th century. Some recent works establish beyond doubt that it was grown definitely in Rajasthan and Maharashtra and possibly other regions also during the second half of the 17th century.

Cash Crops

                       Crops grown mainly for the market are commonly termed as cash cops. These are referred in    Persian records as jinsi kamil or jinsi ala (superior grade crops). Unlike seasonal food crops, these occupied the fields almost the whole year. The major cash crops in 16th-17th centuries were sugarcane, cotton, indigo and opium. All these crops were known in India from historical times. However, in the 17th century their demand increased due to enhanced manufacturing and commercial activities. During this period, a large foreign market also opened for these commodities. The Indian peasant, quick to follow the market demand, increased the cultivation of these crops. Sugarcane was the most widely grown cash crop of the period. The Ain-i Akbari records it in most of the dastur circles of Agra, Awadh, Lahore, Multan and Allahabad. Sugar from Bengal was considered to be the best in quality. Multan, Malwa, Sind, Khandesh, Berar and region of South India all testify to the presence of sugarcane in the 17th century. Another cash crop grown throughout the country was cotton. The region with large scale cultivation were parts of the present day Maharashtra, Gujarat and Bengal. Contemporary sources refer to its cultivation in Ajmer, Allahabad, Awadh, Bihar, Multan, Thatta (Sind), Lahore and Delhi. Indigo was another cash crop widely cultivated under the Mughals. The plant yielded a blue dye (neel) which was much in

demand in India and European markets. Its presence is recorded in the dastur circles of Awadh, Allahabad, Ajmer, Delhi, Agra, Lahore, Multan and Sind. Its cultivation is referred in Gujarat, Bihar, Bengal, Malwa and Coromandal in South India and Deccan. The varieties high in demand were those of Bayana and Sarkhej. Bayana, a place near Agra, was considered as producing the

best quality of indigo and fetched high price. Sarkhej, near Ahmedabad, was considered second in quality and also fetched a high price. Other notable places for quality indigo were regions around Khurja and Aligarh (in U.P.), Sehwan (in Sind) and Telingana (in Deccan). Cultivation of opium is reported from a number of places in India. The Mughal provinces of Bihar and Malwa seem to have  produced good opium. It was also cultivated in Awadh, Bihar, Delhi, Agra, Multan, Lahore, Bengal, Gujarat, Marwar, and Mewar in Rajasthan. Cultivation of tobacco seems to have spread in India in a short time.

                                       The main oil yielding crops listed are rapeseed, castor, linseed. Rapeseed is reported in all provinces from Allahabad to Multan as also in Bengal. Cultivation of oilseed plants was relatively less widespread.

Fruits, Vegetables and Spices

Horticulture seems to have reached new heights during the Mughal period. The Mughal Emperors and the nobles planted lavish orchards. Almost every noble of consequence had his gardens on the outskirts of the towns where they resided. Orchards and groves were laid down with careful planning. A number of fruits available today were introduced in India during 16th and 17th centuries. Pineapple (anannas) is one such fruit which was brought from Latin America and introduced in India by the Portuguese. In a short period of time it became popular and was extensively cultivated all over the country. Papaya and cashew-nuts were also introduced through the same agency, but their spread was a bit slow. Leechi and guava seem to have been introduced later. Cherries were brought from Kabul and grown in Kashmir through grafting. The practice of grafting was in order to improve the quality of a number of fruits. Quality of oranges and other types of citrus fruits, apricots, mangoes and a host of other fruits was greatly improved through grafting. Coconut was grown not only along the coastal region but also inland. Seeds of different variety of melons and grapes were brought from Kabul and successfully grown in the gardens of Emperors and nobles. Ordinary melons were grown everywhere on riverbeds by the peasants. A large variety of vegetables were grown all over the country. The Ain-i Akbarl provides a long list of vegetables in use at that time. Potato and Tomato seem to have been introduced in the 17th century and after. For centuries India was known for its spices.

                                               The Southern coast of India witnessed large scale spice export to various regions in Asia and Europe. Pepper, clove, cardamom were plentiful. Ginger and Turmeric were grown extensively. The Dutch and English purchased large quantities for export. Saffron grown in Kashmir was celebrated for its colour and flavour. Pan (betel leaf) was produced in many areas. The Maghi Pan of Bihar and various other varieties from Bengal were famous. Betel-nut was also produced in coastal regions. Large forest tracts supplied a number of commercially important products. Lignum used for medicinal purpose and lakh were exported in large quantities.