Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 150
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 151
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 148]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 181]
LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Can we achieve 4% farm growth? by T Nanda Kumar

Can we achieve 4% farm growth? by T Nanda Kumar

Share this article Share this article
published Published on Aug 29, 2010   modified Modified on Aug 29, 2010


The prime minister, in his Independence Day address said: “I am happy that the growth rate of our agriculture has increased substantially in the last few years. But we are still far from achieving our goal. We need to work harder so that we can increase the agricultural growth rate to 4% per annum” .

Is it possible? If so how? The production shortage of wheat in India in 2006 and the global food shortage in 2007 raised major concerns of food security and resulted in a series of initiatives in agriculture. The most prominent among them were the Rastriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) and the National Food Security Mission (NFSM).

While the RKVY is a ‘flexible’ , district plan based, public investment scheme, NFSM targets selected districts for increased production of rice, wheat and pulses. RKVY allocations are also used to incentivise state governments for increased investments in agriculture. These programmes are doing well in many states while some potential ones are lagging behind.

Are the present set of interventions adequate ? Can there be a doable strategy and a road map? Most economists agree that demand for milk, edible oils, pulses, vegetables, fruits and eggs will grow at a rate much higher than that for cerealsand that there is adequate statistical evidence to show that per capita consumption of milk, eggs, vegetables, edible oils and fruits increased between 1993-94 and 2004-05 .

They feel higher purchasing power at ‘the bottom of the pyramid’ (service sector growth, higher farm prices, NREGA, etc) will further push up demand for these items (dal, roti, subzi as someone put it). These are important from a nutrition point of view as well. (25% of world’s undernourished live in India)

The exact estimates of growth to meet this demand may vary from time to time, but let us take the oft-quoted numbers of 2.5% growth for cereals, 4% for pulses and oilseeds (if we take the current deficit in pulses and oilseeds, this could be much higher) and 6% for milk, eggs and vegetables . Almost all of this growth has to come from yield increases. Area expansion is not an option.

What are the main constraints? Land will remain limited, may even shrink. Water will be a scarce resource in times to come. The first green revolution areas have limited potential to increase yields particularly of cereals. Seed replacement remains a concern. Varietal replacement is still lower.

Transgenic technologies are limited but effective , but acceptability issues remain. Extension systems are weak. Private investment in agriculture is woefully inadequate. And our farmers, most often, do not get the benefit of best prices.

While policy interventions at the macro-level vis-à-vis public investment have mostly been initiated, private investment is lacking, particularly in warehousing and storage; cold chain logistics ; affordable high-yielding / hybrid / transgenic seeds; pest and disease surveillance and control; agricultural machinery suitable for small farmers; extension services that deliver; and in reliable market information.

The finance minister, in his two Budget speeches (Februry 2010, July 2009), had announced a slew of concessions for private investment in agriculture. In spite of these, we see the problem of inadequate storage space threatening even food security. Why is it that the industry is not investing in agrilogistics ? Is it due to the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act or other regulations?

India’s achievement in the production of fruits and vegetables during the last 5-10 years has been impressive. In spite of these, there are problems of availability and high prices.


We end up losing substantial volumes in ‘transit’. The cost of these losses is borne by the farmer. In times of shortage, this gets passed on to the consumer. Even a cursory look at the way we handle, transport and sell perishables will expose the weaknesses in our handling systems.

A casual visit to the Azadpur Mandi will prove my point. Should we protect and support inefficient systems for historical reasons? Is it not time that we take a big step forward and encourage large investments to come in this retail segment?

The general perception about large investments in retail as investments in urban retail space must change. It is more about investments in backward linkages, better handling and storage, cold chain logistics, better seeds and extension methods, acceptable pest management practices, etc.

Such investments could release the farmers from the low productivity, low technology trap and help enhance their incomes significantly while ensuring the availability of good quality fruits and vegetables through the season.

Given the constraints of land and water , there is no way other than embracing the latest technologies to take care of our food security and nutrition needs. We must have an unambiguous policy on technologies and their adoption.

Public research agencies, with active support from the private sector, need to take a proactive role and lead the country to the next levels of technology in agriculture.

While diversification has been a ‘mantra’ for sometime, the diversification strategy will now be determined by climate change adaptation. We need to be in readiness to assist the farmers change crops and practices (technology, seeds, pest management , etc) at short notice when climate variability occurs.

There are vast regions in India that have the potential to grow more. Eastern India is the most quoted example. There are other areas as well with potential.

They may need to shift to different crops or methods of cultivation. This can be done if we have a region specific strategy backed by appropriate plans technology and investments.
The biggest challenge for the government will, however, be the timely delivery of quality inputs and services for the farmers.

These are largely in the domain of the state governments. Access to markets is not being examined here. Suffice to say that the creation of a Unified National Market is urgent.

To sum up, increased private investment , adoption of new and appropriate technologies and effectively addressing the delivery deficit hold the key.

(The author is retired food & agriculture secretary to government of India. Views are personal.)


The Economic Times, 30 August, 2010, http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/comments--analysis/Can-we-achieve-4-farm-growth/articleshow/6459128.cms


Related Articles

 

Write Comments

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

Video Archives

Archives

share on Facebook
Twitter
RSS
Feedback
Read Later

Contact Form

Please enter security code
      Close