Student Contributor: Sulekha Roy (B. Sc Biotechnology 4^th semester)

Indian agriculture is undoubtedly the biggest livelihood giver. Sustainable agriculture helps for comprehensive development as it contributes very significant value to the GDP. The agriculture sector is gaining importance regarding food security, environmentally sustainable technologies followed by the scope for employment.  Such environment sustainable technologies include conservation of soil, management of sustainable natural resource as well as protection of biodiversity. Indian agriculture and its related activities all together had seen a green revolution, a yellow revolution, a white revolution, and many more. India has diverse climates where we can grow different types of the crop at the same time of the year on different locations.  Our nation is blessed to have such geographical variations we are not dependent on particular weather.

            Let’s discuss what agriculture is all about. As we all know that science is a kind of art or in other words, science is a combination of art with logical thinking and creativity. So we can say agriculture is the scientific approach, art of cultivating plants and rearing livestock. It includes farming in all of its sectors which includes growing and harvesting crops and livestock. Also, agriculture was an opening door in the emergence of humans and opened a new area of interest in science. Now a day so many scientific tools and techniques involved in agriculture used to improve plants, animals, and microorganisms.  The implementation of biotechnology in agriculture is known as Agricultural Biotechnology. Through biotechnology, a scientist can customize the crop plant by identifying specific traits. Technology has indeed played a role in developing the agricultural sector. These technologies modernized the agricultural field India has experienced numerous revolutions to substantially improve and increase productivity, food demands, and crop growths without associated with any ecological or social harm. The green revolution brought immense change in all sectors of agriculture giving it an all-new approach.

            While the Gene revolution, in which a global and agriculture research system disease-free planting material, and produces crops that resist pest or disease and decreases the uses of chemicals that are harmful to the environment and humans also. The journey from green to gene revolution has seen enormous growth in agriculture techniques, irrigation patterns, and a different scientific approach. The biotechnological tools that are important for Agricultural biotechnology:

(a) Conventional plant breeding

(b) Tissue culture & Micropropagation.

(c) Molecular Marker

(d) Genetic engineering

(e) Molecular diagnostic.

Scientists provide a set of tools which is incorporated suitability with other technologies that can get implemented for the sustainable development of agriculture and food industries. As with each passing of the year, the population is increasing food is becoming one of the top priority, thus with an increasing demand for foodstuff, better quantity and better quality yield are necessary.

 FUTURE OF AGRICULTURE

            We face numerous challenges with the growth of the population, with the climate crisis. The Earth population is presumed to grow to 9.7 billion over the next 30 years. That’s a lot of individuals to feed, especially when we consider the vast hunger issue the world face today. More than one-quarter of the planet’s population that is around 7.5 billion people suffer from malnutrition, nearly are 1 billion are hungry.

HOW TO BE A FOOD PROVIDER TO THE PLANET OF NEXT GENERATION?

            If we want to be food providers for the world of next-generation, the next 40 years we need to produce the same amount of food as we did over the last 1000 years.  The real secret is sustainable production which should be with fewer inputs, less water, with less fertilizer, fewer pesticides moreover this also needs to be viable. To address this enormous issue of food security agriculture system requires new approaches and techniques, which can not only increase productivity but also ensure environmental protection and conservation of limited natural resources. We can go for many techniques as follows:

Enhanced hybridization– To imprint the quality and quantity of crop products.

Farming desert– Proper usage of barren lands to cultivate appropriate crops with various irrigation systems.

Continued digitization– Self-driving tractors, robots, and drones operated by a farmer’s mobile phone or tablet will enable farming round the clock during unfavorable seasons. Artificial intelligence, satellite imagery, and the software will help and allow farmers to make a decision in real-time which will lead to saving time, money, and even maybe a crop from the destructive impact of pest or extreme weather.

Replace chemical fertilizer– Chemical fertilizers have an obnoxious effect on the environment.

Organic farming- Usage of natural fertilizer and manure to improve the quality of food. New emerging technologies have shown positive impacts on agriculture. In most countries, agricultural researches and pieces of training, are offered by both government and private sectors. India is one of the leading countries across the globe.

 The agricultural education system in the country offers various degree programs such as Agriculture, Veterinary science, agricultural engineering, horticulture, fisheries, food science, and many more. Agriculturalists are the backbone of the country, without them country is unable to provide good quality food to individuals. Not only this but its also the fact that we won’t be unable to wear clothes. The business and job market has been improved every day with increasing demand in the food industry.

Some career opportunities are

1. Environmental Engineer
2. bioinformatician
3. Agriculture teacher
4. Food scientist
5. Biophysicist or Biochemist
6. Agricultural Engineer
7. Veterinarian
8. Plant Molecular biologist
9. Genetic researcher
10. Crop production analyst
11. Agricultural Biotechnologist etc.

Reasons to study Agriculture:

            Within another three decades, the population of the Earth is likely to be increased many times than today, and to provide good quality nutritious food available to individuals all of the countries will have to be dependent on agricultural products to fulfill the need for food. New agriculture reforms a technology that will indeed help a large section of people with new job opportunities and livelihood. The raw material produced from agriculture and improvement in agribusiness will further help in the development of the industrial sector.

Impacts of COVID 19 on agriculture across the globe

            As the pandemic COVID 19 unfolds, every country is facing various kinds of challenges. As per statistical data, before COVID 19 pandemic struck, 800 million people worldwide were suffering from chronic undernourishment. The developing countries and the countries facing pervasive poverty and lack of health care systems have been intensely affected. Food security has become a fight across the globe. The international communities and governments throughout the world have emphasized food and food-based safety. With improved technological advancements, a high yield of crops can be cultivated and harvested economically. Farmers and consumers will enjoy the benefits of these technological developments. Recent improvements in the agricultural field will accelerate the economic prosperity of the country.