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General Studies 2022 GS Paper III 15 marks 250 words Compulsory Explain

GS Paper III — Q14

What is Integrated Farming System? How is it helpful to small and marginal farmers in India? (Answer in 250 words) 15

हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें

समेकित कृषि प्रणाली क्या है? भारत में छोटे और सीमांत किसानों के लिए यह कैसे लाभदायक हो सकती है? (250 शब्दों में उत्तर दीजिए)

Q14 of the 2022 UPSC Mains General Studies GS Paper III, as printed
The question as printed in the 2022 General Studies paper
Evaluate your answer to this question → See all 2022 General Studies questions

Model answer

Written by UPSC Answer Check against this question's marking rubric, to the 250-word length. UPSC does not publish answers for Mains — this is one way to score well, not an official key.

Integrated Farming System (IFS) is a holistic agricultural approach that synergistically combines multiple enterprises—such as crops, livestock, aquaculture, agroforestry, and beekeeping—on a single holding. It relies on closed-loop nutrient flows where the waste product of one enterprise becomes the input for another: crop residues serve as livestock fodder, animal dung fuels biogas units and enriches soil as organic manure, and poultry droppings fertilise fish ponds. This internal recycling achieves input self-sufficiency and maximises resource-use efficiency.

Significance for Small and Marginal Farmers

For India’s small and marginal farmers, who comprise over 86% of operational holdings, IFS offers critical socio-economic and ecological safeguards:

  • Year-Round Income and Risk Diversification: Unlike mono-cropping, integrated enterprises yield regular daily or weekly income through milk, eggs, or vegetables, cushioning farmers against crop failure and price volatility.
  • Input Cost Reduction: On-farm generation of bio-fertilisers and green fodder drastically cuts dependence on expensive external inputs like chemical fertilisers and commercial feed, lowering debt burdens.
  • Nutritional Security: Simultaneous production of cereals, pulses, milk, and fish directly addresses household malnutrition through diversified diets.
  • Climate Resilience and Employment: Integrating trees and perennial crops aids carbon sequestration, improves soil moisture retention, and absorbs family labour round the year.

Challenges and Way Forward

Adoption is constrained by high initial capital requirements, technical knowledge gaps in handling diversified components, and poor market linkages for perishable produce.

To overcome these barriers, government initiatives like the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA), Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), and Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) must be leveraged through Krishi Vigyan Kendras and Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) to provide credit, training, and integrated supply chains.

What "Explain" is asking you to do

Make the working of something clear — what sets it off, what follows from what, and what it produces. Explain is the Commission's mechanism word: it dominates the technical papers and the “explain why” stems, where the marks sit in the causal chain and not in the label.

Structure that answers it

State what it is → the initiating condition → the chain of cause, step by step → an instance where it plays out → what the chain produces

Where marks are lost

Describing what something looks like instead of why it works that way. Naming the stages without linking them reads as description too.

All UPSC directive words, compared →

How this answer will be evaluated

Approach

Framework: Situation > Analysis > Measures > Assessment. explain: definition/context > points in order > small example > short close Full marks: Clear definition, detailed mechanism of integration, and specific economic benefits for small farmers.

Key points expected

  • Define IFS as a multi-component system (crop+livestock+forestry)
  • Explain the circular flow of resources (e.g., manure to soil)
  • Link IFS to risk diversification for small farmers
  • Mention reduction in input costs (fertilizer/seed)

Evaluation rubric

Each sub-part is marked on its own, against the marks and word limit printed on the paper.

  1. The answer Define Integrated Farming System and detail its specific benefits for small and marginal farmers.  · 250 words

    explain— definition/context → points in order → small example → short close

    Must cover

    • Define IFS as a multi-component system (crop+livestock+forestry)
    • Explain the circular flow of resources (e.g., manure to soil)
    • Link IFS to risk diversification for small farmers
    • Mention reduction in input costs (fertilizer/seed)

    Loses marks

    • Treating IFS as just 'mixed farming' without integration
    • Generic agricultural advice not specific to IFS
    • Ignoring the 'small and marginal' context

    Earns more

    • Mention specific components like poultry or fishery
    • Reference to soil health improvement
    • Mention of income stability
    • Reference to sustainability or climate resilience

    Extra mark

    • Mention of specific scheme (e.g., PM-KISAN or NABARD support)
    • Simple flowchart of IFS components

Practice this exact question

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