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Agriculture is defined as the practice of cultivating the land or raising stock. Agriculture courses in India are helpful in understanding these practices and putting them into practice. Agriculture education in India is a specialised one, provided by agriculture universities in India. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is the apex body for coordinating, guiding and managing research and education in Agriculture including Horticulture, Fisheries and Animal Sciences in India. ICAR, New Delhi, conducts All India Entrance Exam to fill 15% seats in all Agriculture Universities all over India. Indian economy is largely an agriculture based one. Careers in Agriculture thus become relevant to employment. Agriculture professionals are known as Agriculturist or Agriculturalist. Agriculturists are specialists in all areas of cultivation and raising livestock. They are also referred as Agriculture Scientists as agriculture itself is a science. As per their designations they advise farmers on soil management, breeding animals, crop protection, disease, harvesting and other concerned aspects. Apart from theoretical knowledge, agriculture syllabi also includes research in a variety of areas that directly impact the food and agriculture industry. Agriculture is a vast field and its sub fields include horticulture, dairying, poultry farming and so on.

List of Agriculture courses in India

Some of the Specialized Fields

• Agronomy
• Turf-grass management
• Plant pathology
• Horticulture
• Hydroponics
• Weed sciences
• Pasture management
• Animal nutrition and Husbandry

Agriculture Course Content

The study of this science includes all or few of these –

1. Theoretical study.
2. Field study.
3. Lectures with audio visual aids.
4. Interactive sessions.
5. Exposure visits.

Agricultural Course Objectives

• To understand the critical importance of agriculture and allied areas.
• To develop basic knowledge on the elements and practices of agriculture.
• Formulating national policies, schemes and programmes for achieving rapid growth through the optimum utilisation of land, water, soil and plant resources.
• To bring about the proper development of marketing of agricultural produce to safeguard the economic interests of the farming community.

Agriculture courses in India: Basic Requirements

There are different agriculture courses for which different levels of eligibility criteria are applicable.

Agricultural Courses can be thus divided into:

Graduate Level Courses – These require 10+2 or equivalent in Science Stream from a recognized board. These are the basic or entry level courses for those who want a career in agriculture.

Post Graduate Courses – These require Graduation or equivalent from a recognized Institute. These are a step above the Graduate Level Courses, simply because they require a deeper study or specialization in various sub specialties.

Doctorate Level Courses – These require Post Graduation from a recognized Institute. These are the topmost courses one can achieve. They require more of practice i.e. research rather than theoretical study.

Clearance in the Entrance examination is required for almost all the courses.

Some of the Major Agricultural Institutes

• Allahabad Agricultural Institute, Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh)
• Central Agricultural University, Imphal (Manipur)
• Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh)
• National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal (Haryana)
• Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana (Punjab)

Personality Attributes – To become an agriculturist, it is essential that one should be a sharp observer taking note of even minor things. These small observations can lead to big profits. A candidate should also possess a liking for field work and an adaptive nature which can take both failure and success in the same stride. This is because agriculture is largely dependent on weather and weather is becoming largely unpredictable all over the world. Researchers should have a strong and scientific bent of mind, intense concentration and a keen analytical thought process.

Job Perspectives

Agriculture is a vast and diversified field, offering numerous career options. Jobs in Agriculture in India are abundant and profitable. This is because India is major producer and exporter of various cash crops. India holds the number one rank in the world when it comes to production of certain crops like millets - Bajra, Jowar, and Ragi. India is also the world’s  second largest producer of wheat, rice, cotton, sugarcane, and groundnuts. Agriculture is a profitable profession for anyone. Many professionals from unrelated fields are using advanced, efficient and intelligent use of land. Some even get training from other agriculturally advanced countries for effective and economically viable agriculture practices. Other than those directly engaged in farming and other such activities, the industry needs people in areas of research and development and agro industry. In recent years, there has been an ever-increasing demand for salaried agricultural and food scientists for conducting lab research. There has also been a rise in demand in recent times for qualified staff for managing the technically challenging aspects of agribusinesses. Many indulge in research and teaching, inspection, supervisory work, commercial activities, establishing farms, plantations, orchards and carrying on exports of produce from them.

Remuneration - Salary in this field ranges from Rs. 10,000 as a fresher to Rs. 50,000 as an experienced person. Experience counts a lot in this field as everything is based on observation and knowledge of that person.

Some Employment Areas

• Agricultural Departments
• Extension Services
• Research Organisations
• Micro Finance institutes
• Fertilizer Companies
• Agri-Biotech Companies
• Commercial Farming
• Agricultural Finance Companies
• Agricultural Insurance Companies
• Agricultural Transportation
• Storage and Grading
• Agronomy Sales Jobs
• Food Chains
• Insurance Companies
• Dairy Consultancies
• Animal Industry

Agricultural Some Job Types

• Agricultural Scientist
• Agricultural Engineer
• Agricultural Science Teacher
• Breeding Manager
• Cattle Foreman
• Crop Consultant
• Farm Manager
• Feed Plant Manager
• Field Agronomist
• Food Technologist
• Pest Control Technician
• Plant Geneticist