Uttarakhand - Department of Land Resources

distribution in village markets; there is not much statistical evidence of development of
mandis and markets to dispose off any surpluses.
As expected, the yields are not very high in Uttarakhand as a whole and also the
productivity of the hill districts is generally lower than the state average. This is because
of the small and fragmented land holdings, low use of quality seeds, limited irrigation
facilities, lack of extension and low farm mechanization. Due to the small size of the
land holdings, farm mechanization was not technically feasible. On an average, about
two-third of the land holdings are marginal in size with an average land of less than 0.66
ha in all the districts.
The majority of Uttarakhand agriculture is rainfed and there is not much surplus for the
market. As a result most of the able-bodied men have migrated to other places in
search of employment. Only women are left in the hills and they have started looking
after the farms. The challenge is to change this structure and create employment
through agriculture. This could be done by diversifying the agricultural pattern so as to
create alternative income and better living standards. The alternative areas of
diversification are towards horticulture crops, spices and condiments, tea plantations,
and herbal and medicinal plants. Development of organic farming is another option for
agriculture-based hill regions. Development of animal husbandry and forest resources
are already a part of hill livelihood, which has limitations on its further expansion.
Horticulture: In addition to staple foods, the hill districts of Uttarakhand have diversified
into the production of condiments and spices like chillies, ginger, and garlic. The area
under these is as high as 2275 ha in Almora, 1098 ha in Champawat and 962 ha in
Pithoragarh. Some areas in Pauri grow sugarcane also. The area under fruit cultivation
is quite high in Uttarkashi and, in almost all the hill regions, substantial areas are under
vegetable cultivation. There is great potential for diversification into oilseeds like
sesamum, rapeseed, mustard and soybean that will contribute towards increasing
income in the hill regions.
22