Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India
India: Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures was 3.45 percent in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
3.45 percent
Change on year
down 0.6%
World rank
173rd
of 209 countries
All-time high
4.98 percent
in 1966
All-time low
3.45 percent
in 2013
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in percent.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India is 3.45 percent, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India peaked at 4.98 percent in 1966 and was at its lowest, 3.45 percent, in 2013.
That places India 173rd out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India, year by year
| Year | percent | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 4.7 percent | — |
| 1962 | 4.74 percent | +0.9% |
| 1963 | 4.74 percent | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 4.91 percent | +3.6% |
| 1965 | 4.96 percent | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 4.98 percent | +0.4% |
| 1967 | 4.71 percent | -5.4% |
| 1968 | 4.64 percent | -1.5% |
| 1969 | 4.48 percent | -3.4% |
| 1970 | 4.37 percent | -2.5% |
| 1971 | 4.46 percent | +2.1% |
| 1972 | 4.36 percent | -2.2% |
| 1973 | 4.27 percent | -2.1% |
| 1974 | 4.3 percent | +0.7% |
| 1975 | 4.32 percent | +0.5% |
| 1976 | 4.24 percent | -1.9% |
| 1977 | 4.22 percent | -0.5% |
| 1978 | 4.15 percent | -1.7% |
| 1979 | 4.08 percent | -1.7% |
| 1980 | 4.08 percent | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 4.03 percent | -1.2% |
| 1982 | 4.04 percent | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 4.01 percent | -0.7% |
| 1984 | 4.05 percent | +1.0% |
| 1985 | 4.04 percent | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 3.96 percent | -2.0% |
| 1987 | 3.98 percent | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 3.94 percent | -1.0% |
| 1989 | 3.88 percent | -1.5% |
| 1990 | 3.8 percent | -2.1% |
| 1991 | 3.84 percent | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 3.8 percent | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 3.73 percent | -1.8% |
| 1994 | 3.69 percent | -1.1% |
| 1995 | 3.71 percent | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 3.72 percent | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 3.66 percent | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 3.65 percent | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 3.66 percent | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 3.65 percent | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 3.59 percent | -1.6% |
| 2002 | 3.54 percent | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 3.51 percent | -0.8% |
| 2004 | 3.53 percent | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 3.52 percent | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 3.51 percent | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 3.5 percent | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 3.49 percent | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 3.48 percent | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 3.48 percent | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 3.46 percent | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 3.46 percent | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 3.45 percent | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 3.45 percent | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 3.45 percent | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 3.45 percent | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 3.48 percent | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 3.48 percent | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 3.49 percent | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 3.52 percent | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 3.5 percent | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 3.47 percent | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 3.45 percent | -0.6% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 3.45 percent is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 26.9 percent, 13% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- India's 3.45 percent is below the median for South Asia, which is 5.87 percent, 59% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.76 percent | 4.48 percent | 4.98 percent | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.28 percent | 4.08 percent | 4.46 percent | 10 |
| 1980s | 4 percent | 3.88 percent | 4.08 percent | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.73 percent | 3.65 percent | 3.84 percent | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.53 percent | 3.48 percent | 3.65 percent | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.46 percent | 3.45 percent | 3.49 percent | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.49 percent | 3.45 percent | 3.52 percent | 4 |
Countries ranked near India
More reference data data for India
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 20.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 68.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 246.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 15.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 246.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 70.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 19.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 309.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,063 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 85.03 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India?
- Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in India was 3.45 percent in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 4.98 percent in 1966.
- What is the lowest share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.45 percent in 2013.
- How does India rank for share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures?
- India ranks 173rd out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Permanent meadows and pastures are areas used permanently (five years or more) for herbaceous forage crops, either cultivated or growing wild (wild prairie or grazing land).