chapter v cropping pattern, crop diversification and value addition

The emphasis on foodgrains has another positive implication for Bihar. As reportedearlier, a large proportion of its cultivated land is concentrated in small and marginalholdings, and foodgrains occupy a significant portion of the land under these holdings. Anemphasis on foodgrains will also help them meet their goal of food security. In addition,even the foodgrain crops have ample scope for value addition. The use of maize used forproducing bio-fuel or starch and for other industrial uses is an excellent example ofthis.The scope for value addition by substituting more suitable crops in different agro-climaticregions needs to be exploited. For example, upland paddy can be replaced by arhar orurad. Wheat can be replaced by winter maize. With the extension of irrigation, currentfallow land can be brought under pulses. The indicative targets for the proposed changes inthe cropping pattern in foodgrains, fruits and vegetables, along with their production, areprovided in Tables 5.5 to 5.7.Apart from the fact that dairying is already a widely practised enterprise diversificationstrategy (there is more on this in the next section), small patches of land even on the smallholdings can be devoted to non-foodgrain crops. This is what the farmers in several areasare doing to generate cash incomes. It is important to advise and help them selectappropriate non-foodgrain crops. Crops which can contribute to value addition even on thesmall holdings are maize, horticulture crops and vegetables.The main reason for adopting a cautious approach to large-scale crop diversification is therisk involved in the latter. Even for a limited extent of crop diversification, it is important tostrengthen marketing linkages as also to ensure easy access to and reasonable prices ofstaple foodgrains to the small and marginal farmers. There are numerous examples offarmers being pushed to grow some unfamiliar crop and then left to themselves to findmarkets. Similarly, with inadequate and unsatisfactory functioning of the PublicDistribution System (PDS) in foodgrains, the farmers may have to face double jeopardy ifthey abandon foodgrains.5.2 STRATEGY FOR VALUE ADDITION ON SMALL FARMSA multi-pronged strategy for value addition on the farms, especially on small farms,needs to be adopted and the following sub-sections detail the important aspects ofthe proposed strategy.5.2.1 Filling-in Productivity Gaps in the Staple Crops3