1Division of Dairy Economics, Statistics and Management, ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, 132001, Haryana, India
2Division of Agricultural Economics, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, 110012, India
In India, the green revolution accelerated agricultural growth and productivity and made the nation food-sufficient. It made high use of modern agricultural techniques and increased use of fertilizers. However, since the high use of fertilizers is unsustainable and negatively impacts the environment, some states, such as in the north-east, moved towards organic agriculture, which is sustainable. There was a sharp decline in the growth rate of fertilizer use per ha during TE 1993–94 and TE 2005–06 for almost all major states, but the highest decline was found in north-eastern India in TE 2014–15. These results are supported by the decline in the amount of subsidy per ha and share of area treated with chemical and organic inputs, which was strikingly low than in other, agriculturally progressed states. This marks the beginning of the change in the rural landscape and of the north-east's move towards organic farming.
