India is an agricultural country. Eighty percent of Indians earn their living by working on land. The Indian farmer is the backbone of the Indian society because he feeds us and supplies us with food grains. He provides us with raw materials for cloth, fire-wood and timber. He works very hard from morning to evening.
He has to get up early in the morning and plough the land. From the ploughing of the fields he turns to the feeding of the cattle. Hardly does he finish hoeing when he takes to weeding or watering. He takes his breakfast in the fields and works on till noon.
He enjoys simple food, fresh air and sound sleep at night. His living depends on the rain god. He is ruined if his crops fail due to lack of rain or drought. He is happy if the harvest is growing. When the crop fails, he borrows money and runs into debt. The Indian farmer spends his life in the lap of nature. An Indian farmer is generally illiterate. He is often used to drinking heavily. Since the freedom of the country, the lot of the Indian farmer is improving. He is being encouraged by the government to improve his lot by increasing production. He is being given loans to buy farm inputs and to have tube wells and pumping sets. Free and compulsory education goes a long way in bringing about a great change. The Indian farmer is growing more, earning more and has a better standard of living.