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Indian agriculture began by 9000 BCE as a result of early cultivation of plants, and domestication of crops and animals.〔Gupta, 54〕 Settled life soon followed with implements and techniques being developed for agriculture.〔〔 Double monsoons led to two harvests being reaped in one year.〔 Indian products soon reached the world via existing trading networks and foreign crops were introduced to India.〔〔 Plants and animals—considered essential to their survival by the Indians—came to be worshiped and venerated.〔 The middle ages saw irrigation channels reach a new level of sophistication in India and Indian crops affecting the economies of other regions of the world under Islamic patronage.〔〔 Land and water management systems were developed with an aim of providing uniform growth.〔〔 Despite some stagnation during the later modern era the independent Republic of India was able to develop a comprehensive agricultural programme.〔Roy (2006)〕〔Kumar (2006)〕 ==Early history== Barley and wheat cultivation—along with the rearing of cattle, sheep and goat—was visible in Mehrgarh by 8000-6000 BCE.〔Harris & Gosden, 385〕〔Baber, 19〕 Agro pastoralism in India included threshing, planting crops in rows—either of two or of six—and storing grain in granaries.〔〔Possehl (1996)〕 In the period of the Neolithic revolution (roughly 8000-4000 BCE.), agriculture was far from the dominant mode of support for human societies. But those who adopted it, have survived and increased, and passed their techniques of production to the next generation. This transformation of knowledge was the base of further development in agriculture.〔Agarwal, Ankit (2011)〕 By the 5th millennium BCE agricultural communities became widespread in Kashmir.〔 Zaheer Baber (1996) writes that 'the first evidence of cultivation of cotton had already developed'.〔 Cotton was cultivated by the 5th millennium BCE-4th millennium BCE.〔Stein, 47〕 The Indus cotton industry was well developed and some methods used in cotton spinning and fabrication continued to be practiced till the modern Industrialisation of India.〔Wisseman & Williams, 127〕 A variety of tropical fruit such as mango and muskmelon are native to the Indian subcontinent.〔''agriculture, history of''. Encyclopædia Britannica 2008.〕 The Indians also domesticated hemp, which they used for a number of applications including making narcotics, fiber, and oil.〔Kerbs & Kerbs, 4-5〕 The farmers of the Indus Valley, which thrived in modern-day Pakistan and North India, grew peas, sesame, and dates.〔 Sugarcane was originally from tropical South Asia and Southeast Asia.〔 Different species likely originated in different locations with ''S. barberi'' originating in India and ''S. edule'' and ''S. officinarum'' coming from New Guinea.〔Sharpe (1998)〕 Wild rice cultivation appeared in the Belan and Ganges valley regions of northern India as early as 4530 BCE and 5440 BCE respectively.〔 Rice was cultivated in the Indus Valley Civilisation.〔Kahn, 92〕 Agricultural activity during the second millennium BC included rice cultivation in the Kashmir and Harrappan regions.〔Smith (2000)〕 Mixed farming was the basis of the Indus valley economy.〔 Denis J. Murphy (2007) details the spread of cultivated rice from India into South-east Asia:〔Murphy, 178〕 Irrigation was developed in the Indus Valley Civilisation by around 4500 BCE.〔 The size and prosperity of the Indus civilisation grew as a result of this innovation, which eventually led to more planned settlements making use of drainage and sewers.〔Rodda & Ubertini, 279〕 Sophisticated irrigation and water storage systems were developed by the Indus Valley Civilisation, including artificial reservoirs at Girnar dated to 3000 BCE, and an early canal irrigation system from circa 2600 BCE.〔Rodda & Ubertini, 161〕 Archeological evidence of an animal-drawn plough dates back to 2500 BC in the Indus Valley Civilisation.〔Lal (2001)〕 Outside of the Indus Valley area of influence there are 2 regions with distinct agricultures dating back to around 2800-1500 BCE. These are the Deccan Plateau and an area within the modern states of Orissa and Bihar. Within the Deccan the ashmound tradition developed c.2800 BCE. This is characterised by large mounds of burn cattle dung and other materials. The people of the ashmound tradition grew millets and pulses, some of which were domesticated in this part of India, for example, Brachiaria ramosa, Setaria verticillata, Vigna radiata and Macrotyloma uniflorum. They also herded cattle, sheep and goat and were largely engaged in pastoralism (Fuller 2006, 'Dung mounds and Domesticators'). In the east of India Neolithic people grew rice and pulses, as well as keeping cattle, sheep and goat. By 1500 BCE a distinct agriculture focused on summer crops, including Vigna and Panicum milliaceum was developed. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「History of agriculture in the Indian subcontinent」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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