Dr R.K.Gupta
No aspect of culture has had a greater impact on human history than Agriculture. As agriculture developed, social, economic and cultural practices also led the civilization. Unfortunately, it is sad that despite becoming a self-reliant nation of surplus food from the net importer of food, agricultural sector in India is facing a crisis today. It is being argued that the root cause of the crisis is that agriculture is no more a profitable economic activity as compared to other enterprises. Present Government’s initiative to transform agriculture and doubling the farmer income failed to convince farmers in general. There is no denying the fact that the Government is promising to turn the entire country into a free trade area benefiting 119 million farmers and 144 million farmhands and their families. However, navigating the complexity of a transformation is invariably tough for Governments, even though they may prioritize agricultural investment and recognize how important it is to get right. This is especially true in an era in which Governments are seeking agricultural transformations that meet multiple goals simultaneously.
The drivers of agricultural transformation are multidimensional, interrelated, and change over time, but farmers need to understand that the said transformation is going to provide them a better opportunity for pragmatic diagnostics and decision making on national priorities. An important strategy to ensure the sustainability and protection of the environment being promoted by the Government in the form of biological farming in a variety of names: organic, zero budget, permaculture, biodynamic, Vedic Krishi, natural farming etc. However, they still need a lot to update their skills in an organized manner. Farmers’ interests must not be sacrificed to keep consumer prices low. At the same time, the farmer need not be patronized but should be viewed as an entrepreneur who needs supportive institutional and policy frameworks to thrive environmental concerns. Simultaneously, it is sorry state of affair that agriculture and allied departments are not properly equipped in term of drudgery reduction machinery, crop planning and budgeting policy and even market assistance. The extension agencies are mere seed availability center. However, they need to be completely transformed into village-based resource centers that pool all available resources, machinery and other inputs besides technical and financial support system. This will reduce the cost of production to zero through natural, ecological, organic farming and saving, selecting, breeding, and exchanging indigenous open-source seeds.
Another important framework of this policy would be creating market network. The biggest issue cropping up these days is that farmers are vulnerable and exposed to volatile money markets. They are forced to throw and destroy their produce due to less price being offered to them. The time has now arrived for agriculture planning and budgeting wherein they are encouraged to diversify their production as per market requirement so that a glut is never created and they can get regular income from diverse sources. We can learn from the MOSHAV model of Israel agriculture in this direction. Secondly, they need to be encouraged for appropriate production timing through technology interventions like access to e markets when they can sell their produce at suitable rates or to do value addition through appropriate food processing techniques Thirdly, the most needed step is allowing them to create their own markets in nearby town/cities without any hindrances from Government. Let the farmers sell the produce on their own through online shopping marts. I have personally visited this kind of successful models commonly termed as SHUK in Israel where the produce is branded from particular farm and not corporate. This can end up exploitation they meet from vegetable and fruit mandi traders. Moreover, they can increase net incomes by saving on unnecessary expenses for toxics, including toxic seeds and growing diverse, healthy, nutritious, chemical free crops for diverse markets as well. Government can also facilitate their online shopping portals within municipal limits. MSP is in no way a solution to the ongoing agitation.
For a realistic Solution the policy should focus on their holistic development from producers to seller level with following measures.
Institutional measures: must start from the Agriculture Education itself. Presently human resource in agriculture and allied departments are acquainted with Production technology of crops. They are awarded degree in Bachelor of Science in Agriculture but the courses lack management aspects in agriculture like budgeting policy and even market assistance. The extension agencies are mere seed availability centers. However, they need to be completely transformed into a village-based resource and Farm advisory centers focusing on natural resource management in agriculture, emphasizing both on technical and financial support system for farmers welfare. The degree nomenclature should be changed to Bachelor of Agrotechnology and Management (BAM). Farming must be viewed as an enterprise with necessary supportive institutional and policy frameworks.
Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs): Since, majority (82%) of farmers in India are small or marginal, it is imperative to streamline the consolidation of land as well as integration of small land holders into agricultural value chain to feed the growing population of the world with shrinking resources and changing climate. Besides India, countries like China, Vietnam, and Indonesia etc. have also adopted the FPO approach. Farmers have to understand that such consolidation will certainly help them to achieve economic prosperity especially small and marginal farmers.
Market-driven models: Successful agricultural transformation plans give farmers the opportunity to raise their household incomes. Unfortunately, agricultural transformations often focus too much on volume rather than value and on productivity of raw crops rather than opportunities for high-value crops, downstream processing, and livestock. Farmers elsewhere in the world are business people. Therefore, Indian farm households must be encouraged to balance a portfolio of crops, livestock, and nonfarm work because they need to feed their families with some of the farm output as well as sell into markets. Such farming system models are successful in many developed countries and therefore must be replicated in India as well.
E-kissan Markrts/Karts: In every city/Town, farmers must be encouraged to sell their produce directly to end consumer i.e., Institution, Group Co-operative Societies, Citizen Associations or any other group buyers. Govt must provide full outsource dedicated marketing assistance to farmers from grading, packing, logistic support to sell their produce directly to end customers. In this way, farmers will get the best price of their agri- produce as compared to current APMC mandi price. This will benefit both producers and consumers
Nobody doubts that scientific platform and Agricultural experts of India advocate all these measures to pull out lower-middle-income group from debt trap, coupled with achieving 3 % share of global agricultural exports to increase. However, the legislation to promote barrier-free interstate and intra-state trade in agricultural produce and allow farmers to engage with processors, aggregators, wholesalers, large retailers, exporters in the form of contract farming is not being perceived in the right perspective by the farmers. Through these laws, Government aims to educate the agitating farmers on their motive to shift focus from production per se to farmers’ livelihoods, help farmers cope with weather risks and price volatility and enable farmers to realize better prices without rise in end consumer prices. The rationale behind these reforms is strong but probably farmers are in a state of confusion. Indian farmers have been for the past 10000 years “Annadata Sukhibhava”. The farmers continue to remain backbone to a prosperous India to nourish the society.
As a scientist, every time I meet farmers, the smiling faces will always be happy to practice agriculture but unfortunately their children are not interested in continuing with this profession. They want to start a simple enterprise by selling a piece of land. Why is this kind of attitude growing up? Is agriculture not profitable? The answer probably is that today’s farming is met with uncertainties and exploitation.
It is at the mercy of middle men traders. Perhaps the Government should have gone for a more comprehensive and ambitious agenda with respect to direct benefit transfer of indirect subsidies in agriculture on per unit landholding. At the same time, there is no doubt that these changes make it possible for the agricultural market to be integrated for the entire country and these laws were a logical next step once the Indian market has been integrated. At best, given the widespread protests and arguments against these reforms, it might be argued that these changes may appear odd to some farmers but in long term these reforms in the long way prove to be a decisive and positive shift in Indian economy.
(The author is Professor (Entomology), SKUAST-Jammu)
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