AGRICULTURE : AN ALTERNATIVE NARRATIVE IS NEEDED

Rural transformation is one of the most important agenda of Prime Minister's- reform, perform and transform trinity. Agriculture happens to be the key sector, which can bring a turnaround in the economy by doubling the farmers' income by 2022. Demand expansion in the core sectors, which is expected to come from the expansion of farmers' income and overall expansion of the rural infrastructure are dependable growth boosters. Half of India’s work force comes from farming. If India needs to thrive, then its path will pass through agriculture sector. Therefore, action agenda for a strong transformation program in agriculture sector happens to be the center of any transformation initiative. While productivity, remunerative prices, productive use of the land and aggressive implementation of relief measures are some of the key steps, structure reforms are imperative for long term results.

     

      Agricultural productivity requires efficient use of inputs, operating new technology and shifting to high value commodities. Irrigation too happens to be one of the core areas. Encouraging the balanced use of fertilizers are also significant. Horticulture, poultry, piggeries, animal husbandry, fisheries, forestry are the areas that shouldn’t be considered as supplementary, but these areas should be the new focal areas for agri-incomes. In essence, the agriculture sector needs a re-look.

      GRAM Agritech was an imaginative effort in this direction. In this highly ambitious project of Rajasthan, 18 MoUs amounting Rs. 488 Crores have been signed in 3^rd GRAM Agritech meet, 2017.  Bringing about more than 50,000 farmers and 200 corporates on a single platform was a formidable task. Likewise agriculture sectors which is still perceived as subsistence sectors received 77 MoUs of about 5,843 crores which is an astounding figure in itself.

This will eventually generate  more than 81,510 employment opportunities in the state. It was an initiative by the Rajasthan government to strengthen the farming and agricultural sector by promoting innovative ideas and technologies in Horticulture, animal husbandries, Agro processing, Agri marketing, Agri Warehousing, Irrigation through exhibitions, talks, conferences and agriculture fair.

Beyond that, GRAM provided a platform which brings together all stakeholders – farmers, academicians, technologists, agribusiness companies and policy makers to accelerate the development of sustainable agricultural and allied activities through innovative methods and best practices.

It’s been quite fashionable these days to compose a dissproprotionate depressive narrative of agriculture distress, food security, unemployment and unrest together, criticizing policies and delivery failure. While most significant policy changes are being brought by the government at centre and states. We note that most advocacy (including academic seminars) research on the agrarian sector is ideologically induced research, which is erected majorly along the premises of reverse terms of trade for agricultural (read exploitation, farmers suicides).

I feel an alternative narrative is to be spelt out which talks objectively about agriculture which takes some recent bigscale reforms into consideration by both the Centre as well as State.   

Some of the significant steps taken by the Government in terms of schemes for the agricultural sector need inquiry, insight and research in terms of their impact. This will surely emerge with time lag. However, understanding the potential of the scheme with some early impact estimation for the farmer’s benefit is the very first step in the time curve.

Many innovations have been implemented in the field of agriculture in recent past. One of the major changes is Pradhanmantri fasal bima yojana. Under the scheme of Pradhanmantri fasal bima yojana 73 lacs hectare land of 53 lacs farmers and 29 lacs hectare land of 30 lacs farmers respectively in kharif 2016 and rabi 2016 were insured in Rajasthan only. 160.72 lacs farmers under Mausam Adharit Fasal Bima scheme and 46.43 farmers under Sansodhit Rashtriya Krishi Bima scheme got insured amount of Rs. 2244.26 crores and Rs. 1462.80 crores respectively.

Close to 309 lakh farmers in 23 states had been covered under Fasal Bima during previous Kharif Season 2015 in which 294 lakh farmers were lonee and 15 lakh farmers were non-lonee.  During Kharif 2016, however, 366.64 lakh farmers have been covered out of which 264.04 lakh farmers are lonee and 102.60 lakh farmers are non-lonee. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Beema Yojana has been implemented by 21 states during Kharif 2016. In spite of that, we don't see an impact evaluation study by any significant academic institutions or researchers. In absence of the impact assessment ideology driven seminars or even agilations generate misleading concerns.

Again, the Central Government has issued around 10.08 Crore Soil health Cards till November 2017, in which more than 52 lakh cards has been dispatched in Rajasthan only. During 2014-17, overall 460 Soil Testing Laboratories have been sanctioned while during 2013-14 only 15 Soil Testing Laboratories were sanctioned. In addition to 460 Soil Testing Labs, 4000 mini labs have also been sanctioned to the states. Out of which Rajasthan Government alone has established 55 new soil testing laboratories.

In my view, Soil Health Cards are an exceptional attempt to assist farmers and work on the environmental aspects simultaneously. Meanwhile some early results are already indicating this step as a silent big revolution in the farming sector, yet systematic studies are required.

Take the case of Neem Coated Urea, which is an extraordinary move to confront the crisis of farmers as well as of the environment, the Central Government has made the production of neem coated urea mandatory for the farmer. This eventually brings down the price of production of urea and has too increased the ease of availability for the farmer. This movement has also ended the crisis condition of urea for the farmer which they were facing due to stashing and black marketing of urea.

A quick survey on about 1000 farmer families has been conducted in Rajasthan who are using neem coated urea since its inception and these are the results:

-     80% of the farmers responded that their productivity has increased due to the use of neem coated urea than regular urea.

-     85% of the farmers felt that neem coated urea serves as natural insecticide.

-     85% claimed that their soil’s productivity and fertility has increased due to usage of NCU.

-     75% farmers have admitted that a less quantity of neem coated urea is required in fields in comparison to regular urea.

However, in certain regions it is found that there was a constraint too. There is a  non-availability of NCU on fair price shops. Despite this, we can conclude that this initiative has made a very significant positive impact in terms of reducing the input cost, ease of availability and productivity. The question is whether its being documented and if so why not being presented in conferences, seminars where only the farmers distress is being presented through emotive (partial) documentation and media reports? Why the actual changes on ground are not becoming part of the 'mainstream' discourse on agriculture, is a big question. For a country like India, innovations the agro-economy should be part of the popular discourse.

Take the case of Mukhya Mantri Jal Swalamban Abhiyan, which is a “Jal Kranti” in itself. As we know ‘Mukhyamantri Jal Swalamban Abhiyan’ campaign is devoted to formulating a permanent solution to water by conserving the water arriving from different resources. This effort, which was scheduled to be executed in 4 years among 21 thousand villages has already successfully finished its first and second phase. In its first two phases, 2,26,029 works has been done in 7726 villages. Apart from these, 28 lacs plants were planted around the various water structures resulting in welfare of 41 lacs people and 45 lacs animals. This initiative has insured  conservation of 11,170 million cubic feet water and has developed extra 52,391 hectares land for irrigation. As a result, 1,10,828 farmers are getting advantages.

State Finance Commission had done a time disposition study involving 67 villages through which it has been observed that in these villages, on an average 2 to 4% per family income has been increased as a result of successful initiation of Rajasthan government’s ‘MJSA’. Now this is a structural reform which needed enquiry, research at an international level. Wonder why there is vaccume?

In India, agriculture isn’t barely a subsistence sector with the emergence of global transformation, but at the same time to transform agriculture itself  as an industry is a  tall expectation. Certain bodies of literature which sometime emerge as the opinion of the international think tanks without a deeper comprehension of the psyche of Indian farmers paint Indian farm sector either primitive or as potential industry awaiting radical transformation. Both views are incorrect. A robust and enriched database to assess the impact of policies, global impact and delivery mechanism should be our first priority to evolve a meaningful narrative of Indian Agriculture. Again, any transformation will come from consistent IEC for consensus building and meaningful gradual reforms.

Some of the key areas where policy research is required  are agriculture finance, marketing and climate change, post production issues and India’s response to the changing global scenario along with the Impact assessment studies of the recent policy and structural reforms.

Agrarian reforms should not be conceived or implemented on the basis of ideologically, emotionally driven researches or advocacy. Policies based on robust and unbiased research will only bring the desired changes. For Bharat the desired picture is prosperous farmers with doubled incomes. India should provide necessary pixels for such picture.

* The above views are personal views of the writer. 
image source : www.krishi.rajasthan.gov.in