Indian oilseeds cultivation has so far grown quantitatively. It now needs to take a qualitative leap forward. Edible oils, which provide vital proteins, are produced from oilseeds. However, the production of oilseeds is next in importance only to cultivation of food grains and cash crops in India and the rest of the world. Thus, oilseeds have to fight with other crops, such as rice and wheat, for land, soil, climate, water and fertilisers.

According to Sandeep Bajoria, President, Solvent Extractors Association of India, “India must make efforts to increase the productivity of its oilseeds sector by at least 50 per cent to achieve self-reliance and come on par with the rest of the world.”

This can be achieved through the use of improved farming techniques, hybrid seeds, fertilisers, organic and inorganic pesticides, mechanisation and defragmentation of farmlands besides improving irrigation facilities.

During 2000-2001, the world production of 10 major oilseeds was estimated at 3,069 lakh tonnes with a yield of 1.5 tonnes per hectare. In comparison, the average yield of oilseeds in India was estimated at 0.63 tonnes per hectare. The production of 10 major oilseeds in India was estimated at 207.9 lakh tonnes, of which the production of soybean was estimated at 48 lakh tonnes compared to the world production of 1,711 lakh tonnes.

The average yield of 10 major oilseeds during the current year is estimated at 0.63 tonnes per hectare for India while the world average yield is 1.5 tonnes per hectare, with Brazil topping the chart at 2.54 tonnes per hectare.

In the early 80s, India’s oilseed production was between 75 and 120 lakh tonnes, which increased to 180 lakh tonnes at the beginning of the nineties. It is now stagnant around 210 lakh tonnes. In 1986-87, the world production of oilseeds was 1,926 lakh tonnes, of which India’s share was 135 lakh tonnes (7.02 per cent). The per capita availability of oil in India was five kilograms.

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