Double Y-axis chart of India cereals production per capita and production yields compared with population growth from 1961 to 2007.  Cereals production per capita increased from 192 to 223 kilograms per person, at an annual average rate of 0.3%. Yields grew much faster from 947  kilogram/hectare in 1961 to 2,619 in 2007, at an annual average rate of  2.2%. Meanwhile India's population grew from 455 million in 1961 to 1.2 billion in 2007, at an annual average rate of 2.1%.

India's population almost trebled from 455 million in 1961 to 1.17 billion in 2007, at an annual average growth rate of 2.1%. In spite of a comparable increase of total cereals production, production per capita could not change significantly without major productivity improvements. Such improvements did not happen, notwithstanding sizeable yield increases from 947 kilogram/hectare in 1961 to 2,619 in 2007, at an annual average rate of 2.2%, above the world equivalent rate of 2% but well below China's rate of 3.3%. Inevitably India's production per person could only grow modestly. It went from 192 kg per person in 1961 to 223 kg in 2007, at an annual average rate of 0.3%. This can hardly satisfy the country's cereals requirements current and for the years to come.
[Primary Y-axis: production per person in kilograms, and yield in kilogram/hectare. Secondary Y-axis: population in millions. Dots represent actual data, for which the corresponding regression lines are provided in the same colour.]

 

India
Cereals Yields & Per Capita

Year

Population
(million)

Yield
(kilogram/hectare - kg/Ha)

Production/person
(kilogram - kg)

1961455947192
1962464930188
1963474966191
1964484994194
1965494854161
1966504864159
1967515994185
19685261,037195
19695381,054198
19705491,135207
19715611,136202
19725741,108189
19735871,153204
19746001,074178
19756141,261208
19766281,199194
19776431,331215
19786581,370217
19796731,222188
19806891,350204
19817051,399209
19827211,346189
19837371,564226
19847541,564218
19857711,592215
19867881,585209
19878061,584194
19888241,776223
19898421,916237
19908601,891225
19918791,926220
19928982,025224
19939172,085228
19949352,116227
19959542,112220
19969732,181225
19979922,229225
19981,0102,248225
19991,0282,314230
20001,0462,294224
20011,0642,423228
20021,0822,187191
20031,0992,399215
20041,1172,350206
20051,1342,412212
20061,1522,456212
20071,1692,619223
Average change/year2.1%2.2%0.3%

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Sources: see FAOSTAT for cereals production data, and United Nations Statistics Division for population data.

 

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