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Introduction

• Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, MoA&FW conducts a quinquennial Agriculture Census ( every five years) in the country to collect key information about the structure and agriculture holdings in the country and monitor changes that take place over time.
• 2015-16 census was the 10th Agri census conducted in the country. (the first census was done in 1970-71)
  • Note: As of Jan 2024, 11th Agi-Census is going on. It was launched in July 2022.
• In the census, the unit of enumeration is defined by the term ‘Operational Holding‘ and it corresponds to the person who actually cultivates the land rather than its ownership. The concepts followed are broadly in conformity with the World Census of Agriculture, FAO of the UN.
• Some other terms to understand
  • Operational Holding
    • All land which is used wholly or partly for agricultural production and is operated as one technical unit by one person alone.
  • Operated Area
    • Include both cultivated and uncultivated area, provided part of it is put to agricultural production during the reference period.
  • Size Classes

S.No.	Group	S.No.	Classes (in ha.)
I	Marginal	1.	Below 0.5 ha.
		2.	0.5 – 1.0 ha.
II	Small	3.	1.0 – 2.0 ha.
III	Semi-medium	4.	2.0 – 3.0 ha.
		5.	3.0 – 4.0 ha.
IV	Medium	6.	4.0 – 5.0 ha.
		7.	5.0 – 7.5 ha.
		8.	7.5 – 10.0 ha.
V	Large	9.	10.0 – 20.0 ha.
		10.	20.0 and above

• Key Highlights
  • Decline in total operated area by 1.53%
    • From 159.59 million hectares to 157.14 million hectares.
  • State wise total operated area is highest in:
    • Rajasthan, followed by Maharashtra, UP, MP and Karnataka.
  • Total Number of Land Units (Operational holdings)
    • Increase of 5% (from 138 million 2010-11 to 146 million in 2015-16)
    • Uttar Pradesh is the state with highest number of landholders, constituting 16% of the total number. UP is followed by Bihar and Maharashtra.
  • Small and marginal landholdings (<2 hectare area) constituted
    86.21% of the total landholding, an increase of 1.2% points
    compared to 2010-11.
    • Farmers holding 10 hectares and more account for just
      0.57%.
    • Semi-Medium and Medium: 13.2%
  • Decline in average size of landholding from 1.15 hectare to 1.08 hectare.
  • Average size of farm holding was the highest in Nagaland at 5.06 hectares and lowest in Kerala at 0.18 hectares.
  • It is noteworthy that small, marginal and medium landholdings constitute the lion’s share of operated area – large landholding account for only 9% of the total operated area.
  • Marginal Increase in number of Small and Marginal agricultural land holdings in the country.
    • This means that there are more people now who own smaller parcel of land.
  • Percentage of women landholders have increased
    • From 12.79% in 2010-11 to 13.87% in 2015-16
    • There is also a corresponding increase of 1.2% () in operated area.