Discuss the cultivation of sugarcane in India.
Sugarcane is a crop of tropical areas. Under rainfed conditions, it is cultivated in sub-humid and humid climates. But it is largely an irrigated crop in India.
(i)In Indo-Gangetic plain, its cultivation is largely concentrated in Uttar Pradesh. Sugarcane growing area in western India is spread over Maharashtra and Gujarat.
(ii)In southern India, it is cultivated in irrigated tracts of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. India is the second largest producer of sugarcane after Brazil.
(iii)Uttar Pradesh produces about two-fifth of sugarcane of the country. Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh are other leading producers of this crop where yield level of sugarcane is high. Its yield is low in northern India.
