Pathak, P.S. and Devakumar, C.
(2011)
Carrying Capacity of Indian Agriculture.
Working Paper.
National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, New Delhi.
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Abstract
Ecologists define the Carrying Capacity (CC) of the ecosystems as the population
of humans and animals that can be sustained, based on the primary productivity
of plants, with the available resources and services without damaging the resource
base – soil, water and environment. Others identify CC as the maximum number
of individuals of a given species that can be supported on a sustainable basis. A
more detailed definition is the maximum rate of resource consumption and waste
discharge that can be sustained indefinitely in a defined region without progressively
impairing the productivity and ecological integrity. CC is not a static number as land
productivity can be enhanced with inputs of water, energy, plant nutrients, crop
genotypes and using advanced technologies / products from these.
Carrying capacity provides the physical limits for the maximum rate of resource
consumption and waste discharges. The concept further implies that improvement
in the quality of life is possible only when the patterns and levels of production
and consumption do not have more than the acceptable adverse ecological impact.
Further, CC following the law of limiting factors, is determined by the single vital
resource in least supply, such as water in the rain-fed agriculture.
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