Agro Climatic Zone

Throughout history, different cultures have evolved themselves and their food habits and eventually their food growing habits based on their location on Earth, the availability of sunlight, required nutrients, and moisture status. The agro-climatic zones are some of those potential tools that can increase the productivity of a specific land or landmass. In India, almost all agricultural commodities can be grown, but productivity is still very low compared to many other countries in the world.

Agro-Climatic zones of India are the land units of major climates suitable for different cultivars. So, based on the environment of a landmass, it is classified keeping in mind the suitability of agriculture. From the above classification, now we got some idea about what is agro-climatic zone.

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How many Agro-Climatic Zones are in India?

The nation stretches itself to 329 Mha of the area in total, and it has climate diversity unparalleled with anything else. Based on water surplus, water deficit, and cropping patterns, the Planning Commission of India has classified agro-climatic zones of India into fifteen parts(Under the 7th 5year plan). The fundamental objective was to integrate climate and location-specific agriculture to state and national strategies and enable policy development based on techno-agro-climatic considerations. The government has invested resources like setting up zonal research centers at agro-climatic zones to develop and encourage climate-specific, location-specific, need-based agriculture.

Classification of Agro-Climatic Regions of India

Agro-Climatic Zones in India are mainly Classified into 15 regions such as-.

• Western Himalayan Region: It includes cool and humid regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, hilly areas of Uttarakhand with high rainfall of 200cm. It is divided into three sub-regions. The cropping intensity of Jammu and Kashmir is low and high in Himachal Pradesh. The productivity is below the national average. The primary field crops grown are maize, barley, oats, and wheat; the major horticultural crops include peaches, apricot, pears, cherry, litchis, walnut, saffron, almond, etc.

• Eastern Himalayan Regions: The eastern Himalayan regions mainly consist of Assam Sikkim's hills, Meghalaya Nagaland, Manipur Mizoram Tripura Arunachal Pradesh, and the Darjeeling district of West Bengal. The Red brown soil dominates among these regions and is not that protective in agriculture. The main crops grown in these regions are maize, potato, and rice, and in the case of horticulture, there are orchards of oranges, lime litchi, and pineapple. 

• Lower Gangetic Plain Region: The lower Gangetic plain region comprises the eastern Bihar West Bengal, except the hilly areas and the Brahmaputra valley, which lie in the region. The main crop is rice, which has three successive crops in a year ( Aman, Aus, and boro). Crops like maize, pulses, jute, and potato are also grown in these regions.

• Middle Gangetic Plain Region: The middle Gangetic plain region mainly consists of the majority of parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Rice maize millets, sweets, gram piece mustard, potato in Rabi barley, etc., are essential crops. Alternate farming systems and utilizing challenges for pisciculture are some of the majors used to boost agriculture production.

• Upper Gangetic Plain Regions: It comprises the central and the Western parts of Uttar Pradesh and the Haridwar and Udham Nagar districts of Uttarakhand, which belong to the northern part of India. This is an intensive agricultural region where the main crops are wheat, rice, sugarcane millets, maize gram oilseeds, barley pulses, and cotton.

• Trans Ganga Plains Region: This is also called the Satluj Yamuna plains, and it extends over various States such as Punjab Haryana Chandigarh Delhi, and the Ganganagar district of Rajasthan. The crucial crops include those who eat sugarcane rice, gram maize millets, pulses, cotton, and various oilseeds. This region is responsible for introducing the green revolution in the country and has adopted many modern methods to increase productivity in agriculture. That doesn't mean that it has no issues. 

• Eastern Plateau and Hills: The eastern plateau and hills mainly include a Chhota Nagpur plateau which extends from Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Dandakaranya. Crops like rice millet, major oilseeds, and ragi are grown by the practice of rainfed agriculture. To increase productivity in agriculture and income, one has to cultivate high-value crops of pulses such as groundnut soybean.

• Central Plateau and Hills: The central plateau and hills spread over Bundelkhand, Baghelkhand, Bhander plateau, Malwa plateau, and Vindhyachal hills. If there is significantly less rainfall, that is the highest scarcity of water, and crops like wheat, millets, gram cotton, and sunflower are grown here. To increase productivity in this area, better irrigation systems are needed to be installed.

• Western Plateau and Hills: Western plateau and hills mainly comprise the southern part of Malwa plateau and Deccan plateau, Maharashtra. The black soil dominates in this region; cotton pulses, groundnut, and oilseeds are some of the few crops are grown in the rainfed areas file in the irrigated areas, crops such as rice wheat, and sugarcane are grown. Attention should be given to increasing the water use efficiency by using sprinklers and drip systems.

• Southern Plateau and Hills: The southern plateau and hills come under the interior Deccan plateau, which includes parts of Southern Maharashtra, Karnataka Andhra Pradesh, and Tamilnadu uplands from the South the Adilabad district in the north to the Madurai district in the south. Various plantation and spice crops such as coffee tea, cardamom, and spices are also grown along the hilly regions of the Karnataka plateau. 

• Eastern Coastal Plains and Hills: As the name suggests, the eastern coastal plains and hills mail include India's eastern part, the Coromandel, and the northern circar coast of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Principal crops are grown in the main crops are rice, jute tobacco, sugarcane maize millets, etc. Many agricultural strategies are being employed in the cultivation of spices which are mainly pepper and cardamom.

• Western Coastal Plains and Ghats: The Western coastal plains and ghats extend over the Malabar and Konkan coastal plains and the Sahyadris. The reason is very Coconut oil seeds, rice sugar cane millets, and pulses, and cotton is the main crop. 

• Gujarat Plains and Hills: As the name suggests, the Gujarat plains and hills are located in Gujarat, which includes the hills and plains of Kathiawar and the fertile valleys of the Mahi and Sabarmati rivers. Groundnut cotton rice millets are the main crops, and water aquaculture development is highly promoted in the coastal zones and refers to delta's to increase the productivity in Marine farming.

• Western Dry Region: The dry western region extends over the state of Rajasthan west of the Aravali hill. Low water required crops such as Bajra Jor and mouth at the main crops of Kharif and wit and grammar grown in Rabi. In this desert ecology, the livestock contributes significantly. The development needed is in rainwater harvesting, increasing the level of horticultural crops such as guava and date palm, and adopting high-quality germplasm in cattle to improve their breed.

• Island Region: The island region includes Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the Lakshadweep islands. The main crops which are grown here are rice pulses Erica, not turmeric and cassava. Only half of the cultivated region is covered with plantation crops such as coconut. Most of the areas are covered with thick forests, and Agriculture is in the backward stage of this region.

How many Agro-Ecological Zones are in India?

According to various agro-climatic conditions, soil characteristics, land use patterns, and vegetation, the agro-ecological zones of India are mainly classified into 20 parts. Agro-Ecological Zones of India are significant, from the crop production point of view as we can select the crop that best suits the agro-climatic region. Previously it was very tough to cultivate in certain agro-ecological zones of India, but now we have advanced technology and immense knowledge about the agro-climatic regions of India. We can even produce from the harsh agro-ecological zones in India by implementing scientific tools, advanced technology, and proper strategy. Agro-Ecological Zones of India are a great parameter for both farmers as well as for scientists.