One might rightly ask at the outset why a comparative study such as this has been undertaken, when socio- economic conditions of the two countries are so different that the nature of the problems confronting them hardly show any resemblance, and, therefore, a study of the approach involved in tackling the problems of the one is unlikely to be of much use in solving the problems of the other. In Scotland, for example, the necessity of introducing mechanisation to farm practices arose mainly fro the problem of shortage of farm labour and increasing level of wages, while in contrast, such conditions are almost absent in India. In India, on the contrary, surplus agricultural labour itself constitutes a serious unemployment problem and mechanisation alone in this context is therefore likely to aggravate the problem further. Sharp contrast also emerges when the economic conditions of the two countries are taken into consideration. The net income of an average Indian farmer, for example, hardly exceeds £25 or £30 annually whereas the net 2. yearly income of a backward Scottish stock - rearing farmer is above 2400. This feature is significant, and reflects the meagre financial capacity of an Indian farmer, a capacity which is too low to offer him any great possibility of mechanising his farm himself. Similarly, on the criterion of average size of holding, India stands very low (average size seldom exceeds 5 or 6 acres) in comparison with Scotland where the average size of holding is as high as 66 acres, which is obviously a significant factor in the application of mechanisation. These highlight the sharp contrasts that exist between the two countries leading to possible doubts concerning the usefulness of this study. The study has, however, been undertaken with two main objectives in view. In the first place, there is a pressing need to increase agricultural productivity in India in order to solve her own food problem and to cope with the developmental pace of Western countries To reach the same goal, it is a matter of urgency to develop and apply modern technology 3. to the processes of production and thereby to promote agriculture from audepressed industry" to an industry of prosperity. Mechanisation can perhaps play a vital role in this respect. In the second place, a country like India which happens to start her economic development late has some advantages in taking over and applying techniques that have been worked successfully in a more advanced country. Scotland, in this respect , deserves attenuion by her record of spectacular achievement in this field. She started mechanising her agriculture from the middle of the nineteenth century and development has gone on almost unchecked since then. Today, Scotland has one of the most highly mechanised mixed agricultures in the world. It is therefore likely that one who feels the necessity of modernising agriculture in his own home country will be interested to study the Scottish approaches to modernising farm practices, the economic background that stimulates the growth of mechanisation, the effect of farm mechanisation on employment of labour, skill of labour, type of farming and farm costs and incomes.