ICAR, KAB-II, Pusa, New Delhi-110 012.
India produces about 750 million tones of raw food materials through agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry and aqua culture including marine fishery. All these are transformed into various edible products to. derive nutrition and sustain life. Indian agriculture supports the livelihood of 65–70 per cent of population. Engineering inputs are vital for modernization of agriculture in all aspects. Mechanization of agriculture helps in optimal utilization of natural resources and other inputs, leading to higher productivity, reduced production cost, more profit, economic competitiveness and sustainability. Mechanization also enables the farmers to carry out farm operations timely, precisely, with dignity, comfort and free fram drudgery, making the farming agreeable vocation for educated youthas well Small and marginal farmers now make use of high capacity agricultural machines on custom hire basis. Modernization of production and post production agriculture utilizing a proper blend of conventional and renewable energy sources facilitate the application of cutting edge agricultural engineering technologies for food, nutrition and environmental security to the ever increasing Indian population and also to that of the world.
