Agriculture
Agriculture is one of the major sectors of our country’s economy. It has been present in the country for many years. Over the years it has developed and the use of new technologies and equipment replaced almost all the traditional methods of farming. This is the only sector that contributed to the growth of not only itself but also of the other sectors of the country.
If we generally talk about agriculture then it means that agriculture is related to harvesting and cropping. But in economics the meaning of agriculture is a little different, here it does not only mean harvesting or cropping instead it also includes animal husbandry, dairy farming, poultry, fishing, and forestry.
No one can deny the fact that agriculture is the backbone of our nation. Our country largely depends on the agriculture sector. Agriculture is not just a means of livelihood but a way of living the life of our country. The government is continuously making efforts to develop this sector as the whole nation depends on it for food.
The agricultural sector is one of the major contributors to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and national income of the country. It requires a large labour force and employs around 80% of the total employed people. The agriculture sector not only employees directly but also indirectly.
Although agriculture is very beneficial for the economy and the people, there are some negative impacts too. These impacts are harmful to both the environment and the people involved in this sector.
Deforestation is the first negative impact of agriculture as many forests have been cut down to turn them into agricultural land. The use of river water for irrigation causes many small rivers and ponds to dry off which disturbs the natural habitat.
Most of the chemical fertilizers and pesticides contaminate the land as well as water bodies nearby. Ultimately it leads to topsoil depletion and contamination of groundwater.
Farmers have to face many problems during agriculture. A few of the major problems are instability, land ownership, subdivision and fragmentation of landholding, land tenure, grain storage problem, etc.
It is not wrong to say that the food we eat is the gift of agriculture activities and farmers who work their sweat to provide us with this food.
We get benefited a lot by agriculture in many ways. People nowadays are getting distracted from agriculture and moving towards cities for their butter and bread, which is not good for the country and its people.
Agriculture has given so much to society. But it has its own pros and cons that we can’t overlook. The government is doing every bit to help in the growth and development of agriculture. Still, it needs to do something about the negative impacts of agriculture to save the environment and the people involved in it.