Status of agricultural mechanization in himachal pradesh a comprehensive assessment of power sources, challenges, and policy pathways

Agricultural mechanization in the hill and mountain ecosystems of India plays a vital role in reducing drudgery, enhancing productivity, and ensuring timeliness in farming operations. Himachal Pradesh, a predominantly agrarian state located in the north-western Himalayas, offers a distinctive case where steep topography and fragmented landholdings shape the mechanization landscape. The present paper compiles and analyses state-level data related to land use, operational holdings, power sources, farm machinery population, and labour economics to evaluate the prevailing status of mechanization. The findings reveal that the state continues to rely heavily on animal and manual power, which together account for nearly 78% of total farm power, while mechanical sources contribute only about 22%. The mechanization intensity (MI) is estimated at 1.34 kW/ha well below the national average of 2.50 kW/ha indicating considerable potential for improvement.During the course of the study, challenges emerged due to inconsistencies in data availability, variation in regional record-keeping, and the absence of disaggregated information for hill-specific operations. The difficult terrain and scattered machinery records further limited the ability to establish precise spatial linkages between power use and landholding patterns. Despite these limitations, the study offers an important and timely contribution by presenting a consolidated picture of the mechanization scenario in Himachal Pradesh. It identifies key bottlenecks such as the lack of Custom Hiring Centers (CHCs), weak service networks, and the limited policy emphasis on terrain-suitable machinery. Beyond identifying the existing gaps, the paper calls for targeted policy actions that encourage the use of renewable energy-driven power sources, promote small-scale and terrain-adaptive technologies, and foster green mechanization approaches aligned with environmental and social sustainability goals. The outcomes of this study extend their relevance beyond Himachal Pradesh, offering valuable perspectives for other hill and mountain regions of India, and enriching the ongoing dialogue on achieving sustainable mechanization in topographically challenging farming systems.