Uttarakhand, located at the foothills of the Himalayas, is characterized by diverse geographical features ranging from snow-capped mountain peaks in the North to tropical forests in the South. It has been divided into two regions- the western region- Garhwal Mandal and the eastern region- Kumaon Mandal. It is divided into 13 districts which consist of 95 blocks. The table below gives key demographic indicators and their comparison with pan-India numbers-
SN |
Indicators |
Unit |
Uttarakhand |
India |
1 |
Geographical Area |
Lakh Sq. Km |
0.53 |
32.87 |
2 |
Population |
Crore |
1.01 |
121.02 |
3 |
Decadal Growth Rate |
Percentage |
19.17 |
17.64 |
4 |
Density of Population |
Population/Sq. Km. |
189 |
382 |
5 |
Urban to Total Population |
Percentage |
30.49 |
31.16 |
6 |
Sex Ratio |
Females/1000 Males |
963 |
940 |
7 |
Literacy Rate (LR) |
Percentage |
79.60 |
74.04 |
2. Land Use
Out of a total geographical area of 5.35 million ha in the state, 4.6 million ha (86%) is hilly area and 0.74 million ha (14%) is plain area. Only about 14 percent of the geographical area is cultivable which is mainly attributed to the topography of the state. Because of its location and diverse climate, the State has certain unique advantages for development of horticulture, agro processing industries, organic farming, off season vegetable cultivation and cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants which can be gainfully exploited. Similarly, service sector, particularly tourism offers a large potential for employment generation in both urban and rural areas. The State is having about 61.1% area under forests. The share of net sown area is only about 14 % as against the national average of 43.37%. The share of culturable wasteland is about 7% which provides a huge potential for fodder trees and other plantation crops including fruits.
Agriculture is a predominant sector in the state economy which contributes around 23.4% in State Domestic Product (GDP).The average size of land holding in the state is 0.95 ha (Marginal-0.39, Small-1.38, Medium-3.33 and Large-36.00) as against the National Average of 1.57 ha. The share of small and marginal holdings is higher in Uttarakhand State as compared to National Average. The agriculture sector in the state continues to remain heavily depended on rainfall. The net Irrigated area in the State is 3.45 lakh ha. Out of which 85.83% is in plains and 14.17% are is in hills. The irrigation intensity in the State is 159% which varies between 155% in plains to 184% in hilly region.
3. Agro Climatic Zones
The state has different agro-climatic conditions, slopes and height. Details of Physiographic Zones and farming situations in the state are as under:
S.N |
Zone |
Farming situation |
Soil |
Rainfall (mm/year) |
Districts |
Principal farm produces and Livestock |
1 |
Zone A up to 1000 M |
Tarai irrigated |
Alluvial |
1400 |
U.S. Nagar, Haridwar |
Rice, wheat, sugarcane, lentil, chickpea, rapeseed mustard, mango, Litchi, guava, peach and plums. Livestock: Buffalo and cattle |
Bhabar Irrigated |
Alluvial mixed with boulders and shingles |
1400 |
Nainital, Dehradun and Pauri Garhwal |
Rice, wheat, sugarcane, rapeseed mustard, potato, lentil, mango, guava and litchi. Livestock: Buffalo and cattle |
||
Irrigated lower hills (600-1000M) |
Alluvial sandy soil |
2000-2400 |
Champawat, Pauri Garhwal, Dehradun, Nainital, Tehri Garhwal |
Rice, Wheat, onion, chilly, peas, potato, radish, cauliflower, pulses, oilseeds, soybean, mango, guava, plums and peaches. Livestock: Buffalo and cattle |
||
Rain-fed lower hills (600-1000M) |
Residual sandy loam |
2000-2400 |
Champawat, Nainital, Pauri Garhwal, Dehradun, Tehri Garhwal, Bageshwar |
finger millet, Maize, rice, wheat, pulses, mango, guava, plums and peaches. Livestock: Buffalo, cattle and goat |
||
2. |
Zone B 1000-1500M |
Mid hills south aspect (1000-1500 M) |
Sandy loam |
1200-1300 |
Champawat, Nainital, Almora, Dehradun, Tehri Garhwal, Bageshwar |
Rice, finger millet, wheat, potato, tomato, peas, cole crops, pulses, peach and plums. Livestock: Cattle, sheep & goat |
3 |
Zone C 1500-2400M |
High hills (1500-2400 M) |
Red to dark |
1200-2500 |
Pithoragarh, Almora, Chamoli, Bageshwar |
Amaranth, finger millet, French-beans, Cole crops, potato, peas, peaches, plums, pear, apple and stone fruits. Livestock: Cattle, sheep and goat |
4. |
Zone D> 2400 M |
Very High hills |
Red to dark Black clay |
1300 |
Pithoragarh, Chamoli and Uttarkashi |
Amaranth, buckwheat, peas, Cole crops, apple and potato. Livestock: Sheep & goat |
4. Horticulture
The geographical attributes and climatic conditions of the state are ideal for production of temperate and subtropical fruit crops. In hilly areas, fruits like apple, pear, peach, plum, khumani and walnut are produced while mango, litchi, malta, santra, lemon, aonla, guava, and pomegranate are mostly grown in Tarai and valley areas. Major vegetables grown in the state are potato, cauliflower, tomato, onion, brinjal, pea, cabbage and okra. The state has a unique advantage of producing off-season vegetables in hilly areas, which fetches good price in the market. Major spices are ginger, garlic, turmeric and chilly. Details of area, production and productivity of major Horticulture crops in the state are as under (2015-16):
Crops |
Area (lakhs ha) |
Production (lakhs MT) |
Productivity (MT/ha) State |
Productivity (MT/ha) National level |
Rank in the Country-in terms of productivity |
Rank in the Country-in terms of production |
Fruit |
1.753 |
6.591 |
3.76 |
11.70 |
30th |
18th |
Vegetable (including Potato) |
0.898 |
9.454 |
10.52 |
17.30 |
23th |
19th |
Spices |
0.126 |
0.857 |
6.82 |
1.80 |
01st |
19th |
Flowers |
0.013 |
Loose-0.017, Cut-1471 lakh no |
- |
- |
- |
Overall 8th and 2nd in cut flowers |
Total |
2.790 |
16.919 |
|
|
|
|
District wise details of Horticulture Statistics
(Area in ha and production in MT)
SN |
District |
Fruits |
Vegetables |
Potato |
Spices |
Flowers |
||||||
Area |
Pro |
Area |
Pro |
Area |
Prod |
Area |
Prod |
Area |
Production |
|||
Spik(lakh No) |
Loose Flower (MT ) |
|||||||||||
1- |
Nainital |
10834.97 |
109389.31 |
5876.88 |
59700.30 |
1835.45 |
26472.60 |
1425.44 |
8769.69 |
61.62 |
338.12 |
200.07 |
2- |
US Nagar |
7556.20 |
53138.00 |
7437.00 |
89986.00 |
2757.00 |
61036.00 |
1107.00 |
9341.00 |
99.00 |
184.44 |
54.86 |
3- |
Almora |
24162.00 |
175647.00 |
4436.00 |
43511.00 |
2444.00 |
53813.00 |
1222.00 |
9070.00 |
22.55 |
52.87 |
6.84 |
4- |
Bageshwar |
3538.00 |
12632.54 |
1576.75 |
8227.25 |
3490.00 |
5613.00 |
436.30 |
3532.07 |
13.60 |
0.00 |
3.70 |
5- |
Pithoragarh |
15717.00 |
46030.00 |
5359.00 |
72344.00 |
1783.00 |
45718.00 |
493.00 |
4826.00 |
4.81 |
2.42 |
6.32 |
6- |
Champawat |
8178.00 |
13471.00 |
3095.00 |
20965.00 |
1100.00 |
11670.00 |
660.00 |
4163.00 |
6.30 |
10.85 |
1.60 |
7- |
Dehradun |
26408.00 |
40059.00 |
9669.00 |
70755.00 |
2552.00 |
14853.00 |
1083.00 |
9002.00 |
194.50 |
101.21 |
506.32 |
8- |
Pauri |
20781.00 |
33330.00 |
4773.00 |
34508.00 |
1008.00 |
13973.00 |
791.00 |
3724.00 |
35.00 |
7.00 |
103.00 |
9- |
Tehri |
20942.58 |
28510.07 |
8220.92 |
73896.35 |
2528.10 |
49118.12 |
2434.65 |
16550.27 |
12.84 |
0.00 |
83.96 |
10- |
Chamoli |
3632.73 |
15212.13 |
2037.95 |
12216.83 |
538.61 |
6026.36 |
511.38 |
2686.50 |
37.29 |
0.00 |
10.63 |
11- |
Rudraprayag |
3110.25 |
2366.90 |
1004.50 |
3085.30 |
691.10 |
8720.00 |
544.70 |
2283.10 |
61.10 |
1.69 |
61.50 |
12- |
Uttarkashi |
15132.92 |
30625.50 |
6301.27 |
37371.15 |
3559.00 |
27927.00 |
767.33 |
2804.45 |
20.14 |
0.89 |
0.064 |
13- |
Haridwar |
15336.25 |
98682.70 |
4158.00 |
60552.45 |
1603.50 |
33304.15 |
1087.80 |
8986.85 |
766.61 |
771.25 |
709.45 |
|
Total |
175329.90 |
659094.15 |
63945.27 |
587118.63 |
25889.76 |
358244.23 |
12563.60 |
85738.93 |
1335.36 |
1470.74 |
1748.31 |
Commodity- wise Details of Area and Production of Fruits, Vegetables, Spices and Flowers)
Fruits ` Vegetables
SN |
Fruits |
Area in ha |
Production in MT |
|
SN |
Vegetables |
Area in ha |
Production in MT |
1 |
Mango |
35911.50 |
149727.23 |
|
1 |
Tomato |
8550.15 |
93223.49 |
2 |
Citrus |
21152.51 |
88728.72 |
|
2 |
Pea |
11822.76 |
83009.48 |
3 |
Pear |
13029.11 |
78778.12 |
|
3 |
Cabbage |
6118.12 |
67568.69 |
4 |
Apple |
24982.03 |
61940.80 |
|
4 |
Radish |
4995.26 |
56533.50 |
5 |
Peach |
7855.77 |
57933.81 |
|
5 |
Onion |
4066.81 |
41587.06 |
6 |
Plum |
8837.89 |
36154.89 |
|
6 |
French bean |
5681.54 |
39953.57 |
7 |
Apricot |
7954.21 |
28197.76 |
|
7 |
Cauliflower |
3007.04 |
38484.61 |
8 |
Litchi |
10253.18 |
23742.47 |
|
8 |
Brinjal |
2494.29 |
26355.51 |
9 |
walnut |
17243.84 |
19322.83 |
|
9 |
Okra |
3278.76 |
24261.28 |
10 |
Guava |
3367.25 |
19084.56 |
|
10 |
Capsicum |
2472.30 |
13770.27 |
11 |
Aonla |
814.10 |
2369.07 |
|
11 |
Others |
11458.24 |
102371.17 |
12 |
Others |
23928.51 |
93113.89 |
|
|
Total |
63945.27 |
587118.63 |
|
Total |
175329.90 |
659094.15 |
|
1 |
Potato |
25889.76 |
358244.23 |
Spices Flowers
SN |
Fruits |
Area in ha |
Production in MT |
|
SN |
Flowers |
Area in ha |
Production |
|
|
Spikes( in Lakh no) |
Loose Flower (in MT) |
|||||||
1 |
Ginger |
4875.64 |
47120.46 |
|
1 |
Gerbera |
93.25 |
899.40 |
- |
2 |
Turmeric |
1407.53 |
12205.84 |
|
2 |
Carnation |
20.46 |
86.83 |
- |
3 |
Garlic |
1530.45 |
9768.25 |
|
3 |
Rose |
104.70 |
- |
130.18 |
4 |
Chilli |
2556.43 |
8607.26 |
|
4 |
Marigold |
730.59 |
- |
1499.09 |
5 |
Fenugreek |
568.57 |
3245.57 |
|
5 |
Gladuolous |
280.77 |
467.69 |
- |
6 |
Coriander |
1146.65 |
3191.12 |
|
6 |
Rajnigandha |
17.00 |
- |
32.52 |
7 |
Large cardamom |
74.51 |
99.58 |
|
7 |
Lilium |
9.25 |
16.82 |
- |
8 |
Others |
403.82 |
1500.85 |
|
8 |
Others |
79.34 |
- |
86.52 |
|
Total |
12563.60 |
85738.93 |
|
|
Total |
1335.36 |
1470.74 |
1748.31 |
5. Ranking of Uttarakhand in Horticulture in India
6. Departmental Infrastructure:
7. Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure in the State
Uttarakhand Krishi Utpadan Mandi Parishad (UKUMP) is the nodal agency responsible for agricultural marketing in the state. UKUMP has created state-wide network for marketing of agricultural produce with 25 Principal Market Yards, 31 Sub Market Yards and 27 Weekly Markets. To ensure marketing of horticulture produce, 18 separate marketing yards have been established in the state .Under RKVY, 3 Farmer Consumer Markets have been setup in Dehradun viz Majri Grant in Doiwala Block, Danda Lakhond and Nanurkhera in Raipur Block. Government of Uttarakhand has established a separate Uttarakhand Horticulture Marketing Board to assist farmers of the state in Marketing of horticulture produce.
Status of APMC Act: The state government has amended the APMC Act, in line with Model Act 2003. The amended Act facilitates setting up of private markets, farmer consumer markets, reduced fee on perishable horticulture produce, contract farming, e NAM for e-trading etc.
8. Cold storages: Total 17 cold storages and 3 CA storages with capacity of 59900 MT have been set up in the state.
9. Policy / Administrative Measures in Horticulture Sector:
10. Status of Food Processing Industry in Uttarakhand
ü Four Agri Export Zones (AEZs) have already been declared under the AEZ scheme of Government of India for litchi, floriculture, herbs & medicinal plants and basmati rice.
ü Two Mega Food Park (Patanjali Food & Herbal Park Ltd, Haridwar and Himalaya Food park, Kashipur) have been set up under Mega Food Parks Scheme of Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
ü Leading players in food processing industry like Nestle, Britannia, Dabur, ITC, Flex Food, Indian Glycol, Apis India have setup their processing facilities in the state with cumulative investments of over Rs. 1000 crore. In addition, there are a number of small and medium sized food processing units in the state.
ü The status of Food Processing Industry in the State is as under:-
11. Policy Framework Governing the Industrial Sector
11.1The MSME Policy, 2015 Uttarakhand
State Government has formulated MSME Policy 2015, to provide incentives for setting up of industries including food processing industries which has subsumed the Special Integrated Industrial Promotion Policy 2008 for Hilly & Remote Areas of Uttarakhand.
The salient features of the fiscal incentives and concessions provided under the Scheme are-
a) Land development promotional scheme
ü Allotment of land for setting up of industrial units on priority basis with availability of general facilities like electricity, road, water supply, connecting roads etc.
ü Full concession on stamp duty for purchase / lease of land from industrial areas developed by State Govt. / private sector
ü The process of land use change to be simplified
b) Special State Capital Production Incentive: Industries making investment in certain areas of the state shall be provided capital incentives depending on the areas- at the rate of 25 percent of the total investment subject to a maximum of Rs. 40 lakh in certain areas and at the rate of 20 percent of the total investment subject to a maximum of Rs. 25 lakh in other areas
c) Interest subsidy: Industries (in specified geographies) seeking loan through Banks/Financial Institutions shall be given incentives of loans at concessional rates- of simple interest up to @ 6 percent per annum on term loan, with a ceiling of Rs. 5 lakh per unit per annum to units in some areas and @ 5 percent subject to ceiling of Rs 3 lakh per unit per annum in other designated areas.
d) Power Concession to new Industrial Units: All new industrial units (in designated areas) engaged in manufacturing and production of goods including the industrial enterprises engaged in the activities in service sector shall be entitled for 100 percent rebate or exemption on electric bills for a period of ten years. This is not applicable to hotels, resorts, furnaces etc. The industries based on fruit preservation, herbal and medicinal plants and domestic produce shall be given due preference and priorities in this scheme.
e) Grant towards transport subsidy in hilly areas: In order to promote industrial units based on raw material produced in hilly areas, the transport subsidy @ 5 percent of annual turnover (maximum of Rs 5 lakh) will be provided by the State Government to compensate the higher cost of transportation for units in designated areas and 3 percent of annual turnover (maximum of Rs 3 lakh) for units in other designated areas.
f) State Government will provide grant-in-aid to set up the industrial unit @ 75 percent of expenditure with a ceiling of Rs. 2.00 lakhs per project towards payment of ISO certification, ISI mark, quality marking, BIS & FPO license, trade mark & copyright registration by the national and internationally approved agencies / institutions.
11.2 Mega Industrial and Investment Policy, 2015:
Government of Uttarakhand has promulgated Mega Industrial and Investment Policy 2015 to promote large scale units above Rs. 75.00 crore investments.
11.3 Sector Specific State Bodies/Agencies
State Infrastructure and Industrial Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Limited (SIDCUL) plays a key role in industrial development of the state- both in terms of policy formulation and infrastructure development. Industries Association of Uttarakhand (IAU) is an apex body of small and medium scale industries of Uttarakhand and assists in the development of small and medium scale enterprises in the state. For promotion and growth of food processing industries in the state, Department of Horticulture & Food Processing is the nodal agency. Beside scheme of MSME,food processing industries are setup under HMNEH and state food processing mission.
12.Technology Interventions:-
Department of Horticulture & Food Processing, Uttarakhand has been adopting various technologies in different schemes for enhancement of production and productivity and quality of fruit, vegetable, spices and flowers by adopting cluster approach, which include setting up of nurseries, tissue culture labs and distributions of planting material, vegetable seed production, area expansion, rejuvenation of old and senile orchards, creation of community and individual water sources, protected cultivation, INM/IPM, organic farming, pollination support through bee keeping, promotion of mushroom cultivation, mechanization, training of farmers and officials, awareness campaign, post harvest management and marketing and food processing. PHM components includes on farm handling units, cold storages, CA storages, pre-cooling units, ripening chambers, primary processing / value addition units, refrigerated vans, under marketing component rural markets, whole sale & terminal markets, functional infrastructure for collection, sorting, grading packing, establishment of horticulture produce based new processing units, modernization and up-gradation of existing units are taken up.
13. New Initiatives taken by State
14. Way Forward
a) Market Intervention Scheme
b) Weather based Crop Insurance scheme
Key Links
http://www.doiuk.org/ (Department of Industries, Uttarakhand)
http://agriculture.uk.gov.in/ (Department of Agriculture, Uttarakhand)
http://ukmandi.co.in/ (Uttarakhand Krishi Utpadan Mandi Parisad)
http://uk.gov.in/contents/view/1/6/ (Directorate of Food Processing)
http://www.sidcul.com/ State Infrastructure and Industrial Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Limited (SIDCUL)
http://des.uk.gov.in/ (Department of Economics and Statistics, Uttarakhand)
http://www.ahduk.org/ (Department of Animal Husbandary, Uttarakhand)
http://www.mpstateagro.nic.in/EZ.HTM (agro industries related information)
http://nhb.gov.in/ and http://agricoop.nic.in/ (for all horti and agri production information)