Agriculture

Agriculture in Sikkim is the main occupation and the highest contributor to the state treasury every year. Agriculture at Sikkim is practiced in terraced fields which are created on steep hillsides. Most of the agricultural land lie in the rural areas of Sikkim.

The main crop that earn revenue to the state is cardamom. It is the crop that generates maximum revenue in the sector of agriculture at Sikkim. Most of the land under agriculture around Sikkim is used for the growth of cardamom. Tea and coffee are the other two crops that generate revenue to the state economy.

Another reason why agriculture of Sikkim is an important element of the economy of this north eastern state is the fact that most of the people here are employed in the agricultural sector. The agriculture department of Sikkim has various achievements in its banner. To start off with, it achieved the highest net state domestic product from agriculture in the year 1988-89 which was Rs.1852 in Sikkim while the rest of the India average was Rs.1564.

The only barrier to the growth and improvisation of agriculture in Sikkim is the topographical location of the state. The state is located at a very high altitude which ruins the possibility of growing of crops. Another barrier is that a lot of labor is required to create the terraced land for cultivation in the sloping lands.

The state government is taking various steps including providing high yielding variety of seeds, good quality fertilizers and pesticides, etc. so as to increase the revenue from agriculture in Sikkim.