ROLE OF AGRO-INDUSTRIES FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA

Agricultural sector is the mainstay of Indian economy. Therefore, agroindustries have been given high priority in India due to their significant potential for contributing to sustainable agricultural development. An attempt has been made in the present study to have an insight into the role of agro-industries for sustainable agricultural development in India. The results revealed that gross capital formation in agriculture and allied sector as percentage of agricultural GDP has increased from 14.9 percent in 200607 to 19.8 percent in 2011-12 and agro-industries have registered a positive growth in terms of capital invested. The results further revealed that the performance of food processing sector has improved substantially as it has been growing at an Average Annual Growth Rate (AAGR) of around 6 percent as compared to around 4 percent in agriculture. While comparing the share of agriculture and allied sector in total gross state domestic product, Arunachal Pradesh has shown maximum share (43.87 percent) followed by Punjab (28.92 percent) and Uttar Pradesh (28.23 percent) in the year 2012-13. So, there was a wide variation in the performance of different states.