Mechanization in Agriculture: A Study of Kamrup District, Assam

Abstract

Mechanization of agriculture has contributed to the enhancement of agricultural production and productivity to a great extent in India. However, deployment of the process has been highly uneven in the country. States like Assam lagged far behind in this regard compared to Punjab and Haryana. Kamrup district is located in the west-central part of the state, ranging an area of 4345sq. Kilometres, boarded by Brahmaputra River. It is notable for its fertile and river system.( https://en.wikipedia.org ). The economy of the district is basically agriculture based. Despite of the frequent occurrences of flood, diverse topography and agro-climatic condition of the region made it very conducive for cultivation of wide range of varieties of agricultural crops. The term “Mechanisation in Agriculture” covers in a broader sense, which includes tillage, harvesting, threshing along with irrigation, haulage of farm produce and farm requisites such as seed, manure and fertilizers. The main source of irrigation in the district are shallow tube wells, in terms of canals, tanks etc. However, no such study was done on mechanization of agriculture in the district. Therefore, the present study is taken up to fill this gap to some extent. The objective of the paper is to analyse the impact of mechanisation over agricultural productivity in the said area.

Keywords: Mechanization, Productivity, Irrigation, harvesting, shallow tube wells, canals.