Urban Agriculture: The Saviour of Rapid Urbanization

Abstract

Urban agriculture is a key solution to rapid population growth, urbanization, food crisis and climate change. According to reports of FAO, by 2050, more than 6 billion populations will be dwelling in urban areas, which is almost double the current population of 3.5 billion. In case of India, the reports by UN state of the world population 2007, by 2030, 40.76% of country’s population will reside in urban areas. Considering the above statistics, we can estimate the burden on rural production system to meet increasing demands of fruits and vegetables in urban markets. So, urban agriculture could be the saviour to avoid food crisis and inflation of market. The idea of urban agriculture is age old and started in the mid 19th century and has gained popularity in urban areas throughout the world. There are various types of urban agriculture, like, kitchen gardening, rooftop gardening, vertical farming, container gardening, urban beekeeping, aquaculture etc. Multiple auras of crops can be cultivated in the minimal available space, right from herbs, vegetables and fruits to aromatic and medicinal plants. There are large number of advantages of urban farming, like, providing employment and daily wages to poor farmers, educating children, strengthening the community, improving social and emotional wellbeing and environmental justice to tackle climate change. Many cities across the world are practicing urban farming and have achieved success in production, marketing and educating people. In India, urban farming is still in infant stage and has to be given much more importance by both Government and private agencies to popularize and harness the profitability of urban agriculture.