What is Organic Farming?

It is a method of farming where crops are grown without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides

Organic Farming helps to restore, maintain and enhance the ecological balance

Food produced using Organic Farming is called Organic Food.

Problems with Conventional Agriculture

Conventional Agriculture relies heavily on chemical fertilizers and pesticides

These harmful chemicals enter food supply and penetrate water sources

Harmul Effects

This harms the livestock

This deplete the soil (reduce its fertility)

These devestate natural ecosystems

Benefits of Organic Farming

1. Cheaper inputs

Farmers do not need to use expensive High yielding Variety seeds and fertilizers/pesticides

They can replace it with cheaper inputs like organic manure

2. Export Income

There is high demand for Organic food all over world

Hence, these could be exported to increase Farmers income

3. More Employment Opportunities

Organic Farming requires more labour as compared to conventional farming

Hence, they provide more job opportunites to labour

4. Environment Friendly

Organic Farming helps to restore,maintain and enhance the ecological balance

5. Healthy Food

Food produced is pesticide free and more healthy

What are Challenges/issued faced in Organic Farming?

1. Lack of Awareness among Farmers

Many Farmers are not aware about the benefits of Organic farming

They are not willing to change and adapt themselves to Organic farming

2. Inadequate Infrastructure

Farmers do not have adequate infrastructure to grow and sell their produce

3. Problem of Marketing

Farmers do not know how to maket and sell their organic Produce

4. Lower Yield

In initial years of use, yield from organic farming is less as compared to modern farming

5. Shorter Shelf Life

Organically grown food has a shorter shelf life.

It gets damaged faster as compared to food grown by conventional methods

6. Less choice of Off season Crops

In off season, farmers grow other crops like pulses

However, if organic farming is used, there are less choices

Difference between Conventional Agriculture and Organic Farming

NCERT Questions

Question 15

What is organic farming and how does it promote sustainable development?

Question 16

Identify the benefits and limitations of organic farming.

Question 17

Enlist some problems faced by farmers during the initial years of organic farming.

MCQ Other Books

Question 1

In the following questions, select the correct answers:

Organic Farming is beneficial because:

1. It generates income through international exports
2. It makes use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides
3. It is produced in an environmentally sustainable way
4. All of these

Question 2

Which of these is not a benefit of organic farming?

1. Cheaper Inputs
2. Attractive returns on investment
3. Greater import possiblities
4. Higher nutritional value

Question 3

Read the following hypothetical case study carefully and answer the questions follow on the basis of the same.

Since ages, farmers in India have taken recourse to debt.

In the earlier times the same was from informal sources.

Since independence with the efforts of the government, formal sector has actively come into picture.

Farmers borrow not only to meet their investment needs but also to satisfy their personal needs.

Uncertainty of income caused by factors likes crop failure caused by irregular rainfall, reduction in ground water table, locust/other pest attack, etc.

These reasons push them into the clutches of the private money lenders, who charge exorbitant rates of interest which add to their miseries.

Various governments in India, at different times for different reasons, introduced debt relief/waiver schemes.

These schemes are used by governments as a quick means to extricate farmers from their indebtedness, helping to restore their capacity to invest and produce, in short to lessen the miseries of the farmers across India.

The costs and benefits of such debt relief schemes are, however, a widely debated topic among economists.

Some economists argue that such schemes are extremely beneficial to the poor and marginalised farmers while others argue that these schemes add to the fiscal burden of the government, others believe that these schemes may develop the expectation of repeated bailouts among farmers which may spoil the credit culture among farmers.

Question 4

Uncertainty of income for farmers in India is majorly caused by ________________.

1. Irregular rainfall
2. Unavailability of loans
3. locust/other pest attack
4. All of the above

Question 2

Some economists argue that debt waiver schemes are extremely beneficial to the poor and marginalised farmers, as these schemes reduce the burden of ________________.

1. Indebtedness
2. Personal Expenditure
3. Crop failure
4. None of the above

Question 3

The rural banking structure in India consists of a set of multi-agency institutions _____________ is expected to dispense credit at cheaper rates for agricultural purposes to farmers.

1. Regional Rural Banks
2. Small Industries Development Bank of India
3. Both (A) and (B)
4. None of the above

Question 4

_________ is the most prominent body responsible for providing loans for long term land development.

1. Regional Rural Banks
2. Land Development Banks
3. Both (A) and (B)
4. None of the above