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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | 'Farmers having land holdings below 10 acres under threat of poverty' -Shishir Arya

'Farmers having land holdings below 10 acres under threat of poverty' -Shishir Arya

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published Published on Sep 20, 2016   modified Modified on Sep 20, 2016
-The Times of India

NAGPUR: "Farmers need to increase their land holdings to at least 10-12 acres in order to earn a decent income from agriculture. Unfortunately, not many farmers in the state own land up to this level," said Sukhdeo Thorat, the chairman of Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR).

Thorat, who was speaking at a seminar on farm crisis organized by Dr Ambedkar Agricos Association of India, said the methodology followed by National Sample Survey Organsiation (NSSO) considers only those households with 50% of income from agriculture as farmers. Considering this yardstick the latest survey released in 2013 pegs the number of farmers at 37% of the rural population in Maharashtra.

When it comes to holdings, the share of tribals and those under schedules castes (SC) is less, added Thorat. Citing the survey, he said the tribals' share in the number of farmers is 28%, SCs are 22%, other backward class (OBC) are at 33%. "The income is minuscule, ranging from Rs17000 to Rs23000 per household," he said citing the NSSO report on farmers' socio economic conditions. Among these the least earners are the tribals, he added.

"Unless the farm holding is in the range of 10-12 acres the farmers are poor or are facing the threat of poverty. Out of this, at least 6 acres should be irrigated. Even among the bigger holdings, the ratio of irrigated land is less in the state," said Thorat.

The solution lies in what Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar had suggested during his time as a labour minister in British India. A similar problem was faced by farmers with small holdings during the early 1990s. Ambedkar had suggested that the land holdings needed to be increased.

According to Ambedkar, there was surplus labour in the agriculture sector, which ended up being in the low income group. Industrialization needed to be boosted where the surplus labour from agriculture sector could be accommodated. "This will reduce the burden on agriculture, increasing the returns, and those remaining in the profession will get chance to invest in fresh holdings," said Thorat.

He said Ambedkar's thrust was on industrialization which was also reflected in the second five year plan of the country. "Ambedkar was also the pioneer in harnessing water resources of the country. For example, the Damodar Valley project, which was his initiative to have dams for storing water to be used for drinking, irrigation and also power generation," Thorat said.

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The Times of India, 19 September, 2016, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Farmers-having-land-holdings-below-10-acres-under-threat-of-poverty/articleshow/54396624.cms


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