Farming on the cusp of change

The concept of interlinking different agricultural activities to make an integrated farming system has begun to catch on

Indian agriculture needs a complete makeover to become lucrative for small and marginal landholders, who constitute 85 per cent of the farmers. Piecemeal revamping, as has happened so far, has yielded perceptible results but the farm sector’s potential is yet to be fully realised. For that, agriculture centred on the present crops needs to give way to integrated farming systems involving a blend of crops, livestock, and other allied or subsidiary enterprises. Judiciously conceived combinations of diverse but compatible activities allow the byproducts or leftovers of one component to be used as the inputs for the other, thereby making optimal