Agricultral Profile of Uttarakhand :

Uttarakhand state with diverse agro-climatic endowments, the plains and hills present differing scenarios for agriculture while commercial agriculture is practiced in the plains. The hill farmers mainly practice subsistence farming. The hills practice mixed cropping, while in the plains in a given season single crops are grown mostly. Irrigated land is freely available in the plains, with over 87 per cent land being irrigated as against a mere 10 per cent in the hills. The seed replacement rate for the plains stands at 15-20 per cent, while for the hills it is 3-4 per cent. Productivity across the same crops also differs greatly between the hills and plains.

In Uttarakhand more than 75 percent of the population depends on agriculture for their livelihood. The average size of holding in the state is around 0.98 hectare. Another feature typical of hill farming is the small and scattered land holdings. Out of the total cultivated area, about 50 per cent of landholdings (in number) are sub marginal, and 21 per cent of landholdings measure between 0.5–1 hectares. Over 27 per cent of the area under cultivation consists of plots less than 1 hectare in size. Another 26 per cent of land holdings are between 1 and 4 hectares in size, and account for 51 per cent of the total cultivated area. 22 per cent of the cultivated land consists of plots over 4 hectares in size, and these account for 3 percent of the land holdings in number. The productivity of various crops is also low. Thus the government of Uttarakhand is promoting the cultivation of some selected crops like Basmati rice, Aromatic and Medicinal plants, Vegetables cultivation, Flower cultivation, Litchi production and Milk production. Major crops grown in Uttarakhand are rice, wheat, sugarcane, maize, soybean, pulses and oilseeds. Major fruits grown in Uttarakhand are Mango, litchi, guava, apricot etc while major vegetables grown in Uttarakhand are Potato, tomato, green pea, cauliflower and capsicum etc. Farmers or primary producers face many challenges, of both technical and economic nature.

Land Use Pattern :

Out of a total geographical area of 5.35 million ha in the state, 4.6 million ha (86%) is hilly area and 0.74 million ha (14%) is plain area. Only about 14 percent of the geographical area is cultivable which is mainly attributed to the topography of the state. Because of its location and diverse climate, the State has certain unique advantages for development of horticulture, agro processing industries, organic farming, off season vegetable cultivation and cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants which can be gainfully exploited. Similarly, service sector, particularly tourism offers a large potential for employment generation in both urban and rural areas. The State is having about 61.1% area under forests. The share of net sown area is  only about 14 % as against the national average of 43.37%. The share of culturable wasteland is about 7% which provides a huge potential for fodder trees and other plantation crops including fruits.

Agriculture is a predominant sector in the state economy which contributes around 23.4% in State Domestic Product (GDP).The average size of land holding in the state is 0.95 ha (Marginal-0.39, Small-1.38, Medium-3.33 and Large-36.00) as against the National Average of 1.57 ha. The share of small and marginal holdings is higher in Uttarakhand State as compared to National Average. The agriculture sector in the state continues to remain heavily depended on rainfall. The net Irrigated area in the State is 3.45 lakh ha. Out of which 85.83% is in plains and 14.17% are is in hills. The irrigation intensity in the State is 159% which varies between 155% in plains to 184% in hilly region.

The net sown area is only about 13.52% of the total reported area. The cropping intensity is about 161 %, and the ratio of gross irrigated area to gross sown area is only 44.50 %. In the hills the major crops grown include wheat, paddy, Mandua, Ramdana and Potato whereas in the plains the major crops are wheat, paddy, pulses and sugarcane. Uttarakhand is blessed with rare bio-diversity. Over 175 rare species of aromatic and medicinal plants are found in the State, which gives it a unique opportunity for diversification of activities within the primary sector.

Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure in the State :

   Uttarakhand Krishi Utpadan Mandi Parishad (UKUMP) is the nodal agency responsible for agricultural marketing in the state. UKUMP has created state-wide network for marketing of agricultural produce with 25 Principal Market Yards, 31 Sub Market Yards and 27 Weekly Markets. To ensure marketing of horticulture produce, 18 separate marketing yards have been established in the state .Under RKVY(Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana), 3 Farmer Consumer Markets have been setup in Dehradun viz Majri Grant in Doiwala Block, Danda Lakhond and Nanurkhera in Raipur Block. Government of Uttarakhand has established a separate Uttarakhand Horticulture Marketing Board to assist farmers of the state in Marketing of horticulture produce.

Status of APMC(Agricultural Produce Marketting Committee) Act: The state government has amended the APMC Act, in line with Model Act 2003.The amended Act facilitates setting up of private markets, farmer consumer markets, reduced fee on perishable horticulture produce, contract farming, e NAM ( National Agricultural Mission) for e-trading etc.