AgricultureID

State · IN-PB

Punjab

Punjab lies in the northwestern Indo-Gangetic plain, with hot summers, cool winters, and most rainfall arriving with the southwest monsoon between July and September. The southwest (Malwa) is semi-arid, while the northeast is a wetter, monsoon-influenced subtropical belt.

Major crop systems

  • Irrigated wheat–rice (paddy) rotation — the Green Revolution belt
  • Basmati and non-basmati rice
  • Cotton in the semi-arid Malwa belt
  • Maize
  • Sugarcane

Major livestock systems

  • Dairy (buffalo and crossbred cattle)
  • Commercial poultry

Agricultural land: One of India’s most intensively farmed states: almost the entire cultivable area is cropped, very largely irrigated, and double-cropped through the wheat–rice cycle, leaving little fallow or natural vegetation. Irrigation: Agriculture is overwhelmingly irrigated through an extensive canal network and dense tubewell pumping, and sustained groundwater over-extraction for paddy is a widely recognised concern.

Agroecological zones: BSh (Hot semi-arid (steppe)), Cwa (Dry-winter humid subtropical)

Documented crops & livestock

Official institutions

  • Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) — National agricultural research system coordinating research and variety development.
  • Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana — State agricultural university; a lead institution of the Green Revolution.
  • Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of Punjab — State authority for agricultural administration and statistics.

Data coverage & limitations

Descriptive profile; subnational agricultural statistics for Punjab are published by ICAR, Punjab Agricultural University, and the state Department of Agriculture (with national aggregates by FAO) and are not reproduced numerically here.

  • Administrative boundaries and the region code follow the official ISO 3166-2 system; this profile does not redraw them.
  • Any agricultural statistics are dated and source-specific; where an official figure is not reproduced here, consult ICAR and the state Department of Agriculture directly.
  • Punjab’s intensive wheat–rice system is highly productive but is associated with falling water tables and paddy-residue management challenges; this profile describes the system qualitatively rather than assessing its sustainability.

Sources

This article draws on the following authoritative sources. See our sources & methodology for how they are selected.

  1. [1]ICAR — national agricultural research system of India (opens in a new tab)

    Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)

    High

    Cited for: Crop systems and agricultural research context

    Type:
    Research institute
    Jurisdiction:
    India
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  2. [2]FAO — Food and Agriculture Organization (opens in a new tab)

    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: National agricultural context

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12