India's agricultural sector is grappling with the repercussions of erratic weather patterns, leading to uneven rainfall distribution across the country.&nbsp;This unpredictability has sent shockwaves through the agricultural landscape, raising concerns about crop production and its inevitable impact on food prices. The concentration of excessive rainfall in some regions and deficiencies in others creates a complex and challenging scenario for farmers and consumers alike.

The consequences of such erratic weather are far-reaching.&nbsp;

Excess rains in key agricultural areas like Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh are expected to benefit high-yielding crops, such as rice.&nbsp; However, the story takes a different turn in regions like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and West Bengal, where deficient rainfall threatens the production of rice, a staple in many Indian households. This disparity in rainfall distribution has far-reaching implications for crop yields and ultimately impacts the stability of food prices.&nbsp;

Beyond rice, other essential crops like sugarcane also bear the brunt of unpredictable weather. Vegetables and pulses, in particular, experience price volatility due to climate issues, floods, and droughts. Additionally, the production of pulses like tur faces challenges, potentially resulting in price spikes. Tomatoes, a kitchen staple, have witnessed soaring prices, driven by a combination of adverse weather conditions and supply chain disruptions.&nbsp;

In response to the rising prices of essential commodities, the government has taken measures to stabilize the markets. Efforts are underway to procure tomatoes from different states and redistribute them in areas where prices have surged the most.&nbsp;

Looking ahead, the arrival of new crop supplies from Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh is anticipated to provide relief in the coming weeks. These fresh inflows of agricultural produce should help stabilize prices and ease the pressure on consumers.&nbsp;However, the path to sustained stability remains uncertain, as the unpredictability of weather patterns continues to pose challenges for the agricultural sector.&nbsp;

India's agricultural sector is grappling with the repercussions of erratic weather patterns, leading to uneven rainfall distribution across the country. This unpredictability has sent shockwaves through the agricultural landscape, raising concerns about crop production and its inevitable impact on food prices.

India's agricultural sector is grappling with the repercussions of erratic weather patterns, leading to uneven rainfall distribution across the country. This unpredictability has sent shockwaves through the agricultural landscape, raising concerns about crop production and its inevitable impact on food prices. The concentration of excessive rainfall in some regions and deficiencies in others creates a complex and challenging scenario for farmers and consumers alike. The consequences of such erratic weather are far-reaching. Excess rains in key agricultural areas like Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh are expected to benefit high-yielding crops, such as rice. However, the story takes a different turn in regions like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and West Bengal, where deficient rainfall threatens the production of rice, a staple in many Indian households. This disparity in rainfall distribution has far-reaching implications for crop yields and ultimately impacts the stability of food prices. Beyond rice, other essential crops like sugarcane also bear the brunt of unpredictable weather. Vegetables and pulses, in particular, experience price volatility due to climate issues, floods, and droughts. Additionally, the production of pulses like tur faces challenges, potentially resulting in price spikes. Tomatoes, a kitchen staple, have witnessed soaring prices, driven by a combination of adverse weather conditions and supply chain disruptions. In response to the rising prices of essential commodities, the government has taken measures to stabilize the markets. Efforts are underway to procure tomatoes from different states and redistribute them in areas where prices have surged the most. Looking ahead, the arrival of new crop supplies from Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh is anticipated to provide relief in the coming weeks. These fresh inflows of agricultural produce should help stabilize prices and ease the pressure on consumers. However, the path to sustained stability remains uncertain, as the unpredictability of weather patterns continues to pose challenges for the agricultural sector.

Decoded: Erratic weather patterns across India is bad news for food prices

Prime Minister <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/prime-minister-narendra-modi-extends-new-year-greetings-to-bangladesh-pm-sheikh-hasina-271462">Narendra Modi</a> on Thursday said that agriculture has a key role to play in helping the country achieve its goal of becoming a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/sensex-gains-by-321-points-as-nifty-closes-on-high-record-tata-motors-on-top-winner-271672">five trillion dollar economy</a> and the government was focusing on formulating a cash crop and export-centric farming system. 
 
Addressing a gathering here after distributing Krishi Karman Awards, Modi said that the effort of the Central government has led to an increase in the production and export of spices in the country. 
 
"The agriculture sector has a very important role to play in making India a five trillion dollar economy. For this, our government is focusing on formulating a cash crop and export centric farming system," he said. 
 
Modi said that production of spices has crossed 25 lakh tonne and their export has risen from Rs 15,000 crore to Rs 19,000 crore. 
 
He said the government was not only solving problems of farmers but also working towards a better future for them. 
 
"We have made arrangements so that farmers can sell their produce at any e-mandi across the country through the e-NAM network. We've also made facilities for cold storage," he said. 
 
Modi also said the government has started an immunization program for cattle. 
 
"We have started an immunization program for the cattle to ensure they do not have to spend a lot of money. We have also started PM KUSUM (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evem Utthan) scheme so that the farmers can also become energy-producers and sell it to the grid," he said. 
 
The Prime Minister also talked about efforts being made by the Centre to solve specific <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/congress-jharkhand-in-charge-rpn-singh-calls-meeting-of-mlas-in-ranchi-269947">issues of farmers</a> producing crops such as coconut, cashew, rubber, and coffee. 
 
Modi said that the government is working at three levels to strengthen fisheries - promoting fisheries in villages with financial assistance, modernization of boats under blue revolution scheme and construction of modern fishing infrastructure. 
 
He said that the Central government has also put aside Rs 7,500 crore as a special fund for building modern fishing infrastructure. 
 
He said people in the fishing trade have been connected to Kisan Credit Cards. 
 
"Fishing boats are also being modernized for deep-sea fishing and navigation devices are being installed on them with the help of ISRO," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that agriculture has a key role to play in helping the country achieve its goal of becoming a five trillion dollar economy and the government was focusing on formulating a cash crop and export-centric farming system.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that agriculture has a key role to play in helping the country achieve its goal of becoming a five trillion dollar economy and the government was focusing on formulating a cash crop and export-centric farming system. Addressing a gathering here after distributing Krishi Karman Awards, Modi said that the effort of the Central government has led to an increase in the production and export of spices in the country. "The agriculture sector has a very important role to play in making India a five trillion dollar economy. For this, our government is focusing on formulating a cash crop and export centric farming system," he said. Modi said that production of spices has crossed 25 lakh tonne and their export has risen from Rs 15,000 crore to Rs 19,000 crore. He said the government was not only solving problems of farmers but also working towards a better future for them. "We have made arrangements so that farmers can sell their produce at any e-mandi across the country through the e-NAM network. We've also made facilities for cold storage," he said. Modi also said the government has started an immunization program for cattle. "We have started an immunization program for the cattle to ensure they do not have to spend a lot of money. We have also started PM KUSUM (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evem Utthan) scheme so that the farmers can also become energy-producers and sell it to the grid," he said. The Prime Minister also talked about efforts being made by the Centre to solve specific issues of farmers producing crops such as coconut, cashew, rubber, and coffee. Modi said that the government is working at three levels to strengthen fisheries - promoting fisheries in villages with financial assistance, modernization of boats under blue revolution scheme and construction of modern fishing infrastructure. He said that the Central government has also put aside Rs 7,500 crore as a special fund for building modern fishing infrastructure. He said people in the fishing trade have been connected to Kisan Credit Cards. "Fishing boats are also being modernized for deep-sea fishing and navigation devices are being installed on them with the help of ISRO," he said.

Agriculture has major role in making India $ 5 trillion economy: PM Narendra Modi

The Congress promised to waive off loans to farmers in the run-up to the recent Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, and won the right to rule those states. Now the party has decided to keep that promise.&nbsp;

The move will make the farmers happy, no doubt. But there is also no doubt that it will leave the economy of the respective states in a mess so profound that there will be difficulty in extrication. It will also impact the banking sector. Worse, the loan waiver will not resolve the fundamental factors which lead to farmer debts.&nbsp;

Had loan write-offs been a solution, then the problem ought to have gone away a long time ago. This is not there first time that governments have decided to waive loans, but every few years of this step the issue returns to loom large on the agricultural sector. This in itself is an indicator that loan waivers are a non-workable solution. But because they have the potential to fetch votes in the short term, political parties merrily indulge in them.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Let’s look at some figures cursorily. The Congress’s promise of loan write-off to farmers could cost the public exchequer around Rs 70,000 crore — close to 48 per cent of Rajasthan's annual Budget. The Ashok Gehlot regime has little leg space to go in for additional borrowings because out of the borrowing capacity of Rs 36,000 crore in the budget, it has already drawn Rs 25,000 crore. &nbsp;

The situation in Madhya Pradesh is no less worrisome. Farm loan waiver here comes with a cost of roughly Rs 50,000 crore. The Congress had proclaimed that it had inherited empty coffers from the previous Bharatiya Janata Party regime. A former BJP Minister is reported to have said every citizen of the state had an average debt burden of Rs 13,853 as of March 31, 2016.&nbsp;

But, having promised the write-off, the Congress regimes in the two states now have to deliver. One possibility to soften the blow is for the mandarins to work out a formula based on cut-off dates and kinds of loans taken — which will enhance the prospect of selective waiver of the loans. That will, of course, lead to resentment among those that are left out, with such annoyance being exploited by political rivals of the Congress. &nbsp;

And yet, the issue really should not be about politics, because no political party has been averse to adopting this quick-fix solution to an issue that demands structural changes. Why are huge loans taken by farmers even as they know it will be difficult for them to repay? And why then are they unable to face the problems they anticipated well in time in most cases? &nbsp;A simple answer would be that at the end of the day, their earnings fall far short of the investments they have made. Depending upon this gap, the farmer either falls into a vicious debt — taking one loan (often at higher rates from a money-lender) to repay another — or in desperation ends his life. On most occasions, the second follows the first.&nbsp;

Most experts agree that the essence of the solution to the problem lies in the following: Reduction in input costs; diversification of crops; increase in non-farm activities and incomes for farmers; effective crop insurances schemes.&nbsp;

In the first case, the cost of fertilisers, seeds, labour, machinery etc is factored. Small land-holders are not in a position to avail of high-end technology, and so they have to essentially depend on economical availability of seeds and fertilisers. The second, crop diversification, is not just essential to spread the risk but also necessary to promote cultivation of cash crops. Non-farm activities would include income generating sources that are available to the farmer near to his place. Informed commentators accept that for the small and marginal farmers, farming alone is not going to take care of his and his family’s costs and rising aspirations. MNREGA has been one supplementer, now that the scheme has been further enhanced. But that too is not enough. More avenues such as poultry, pisciculture, floriculture etc are to be adopted.&nbsp;

And finally, a good crop insurance scheme that does not milk the beneficiary needs to be put in place. Although the Modi government had recently announced an ambitious crop insurance scheme, experts pointed to certain drawbacks in it, and there are reports that the government is considering a tweak to weed out the defects. &nbsp;

But it has to work harder on the other aspects, such as providing the input subsidies directly into the account of the farmers through Direct Benefit Transfer, instead of through the firms. There is also the issue of the e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM), established to empower farmers into getting better prices for their produce. The e-NAM is working well in certain regulated markets, but just limping along in many others. &nbsp;

The political cost of ignoring farmer distress is obvious enough; the economic costs are huge too. Let’s not forget that the agricultural sector employs 53 per cent of the country’s workforce but contributes to only under 18 per cent of its GDP (2015-16). 
 
While we are among the world’s top producers of various agricultural commodities, over the years the share of agriculture imports has risen ( from 2.8 per cent in 1990-91 to 4.2 per cent in 2014-15) while that of exports has come down (18.5 per cent in 1990-91 to 12.5 in 2014-15). The need of the hour, therefore, is a holistic and not a populist approach. &nbsp; 
 
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

The Congress promised to waive off loans to farmers in the run-up to the recent Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, and won the right to rule those states.

The Congress promised to waive off loans to farmers in the run-up to the recent Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, and won the right to rule those states. Now the party has decided to keep that promise. The move will make the farmers happy, no doubt. But there is also no doubt that it will leave the economy of the respective states in a mess so profound that there will be difficulty in extrication. It will also impact the banking sector. Worse, the loan waiver will not resolve the fundamental factors which lead to farmer debts. Had loan write-offs been a solution, then the problem ought to have gone away a long time ago. This is not there first time that governments have decided to waive loans, but every few years of this step the issue returns to loom large on the agricultural sector. This in itself is an indicator that loan waivers are a non-workable solution. But because they have the potential to fetch votes in the short term, political parties merrily indulge in them. Let’s look at some figures cursorily. The Congress’s promise of loan write-off to farmers could cost the public exchequer around Rs 70,000 crore — close to 48 per cent of Rajasthan's annual Budget. The Ashok Gehlot regime has little leg space to go in for additional borrowings because out of the borrowing capacity of Rs 36,000 crore in the budget, it has already drawn Rs 25,000 crore. The situation in Madhya Pradesh is no less worrisome. Farm loan waiver here comes with a cost of roughly Rs 50,000 crore. The Congress had proclaimed that it had inherited empty coffers from the previous Bharatiya Janata Party regime. A former BJP Minister is reported to have said every citizen of the state had an average debt burden of Rs 13,853 as of March 31, 2016. But, having promised the write-off, the Congress regimes in the two states now have to deliver. One possibility to soften the blow is for the mandarins to work out a formula based on cut-off dates and kinds of loans taken — which will enhance the prospect of selective waiver of the loans. That will, of course, lead to resentment among those that are left out, with such annoyance being exploited by political rivals of the Congress. And yet, the issue really should not be about politics, because no political party has been averse to adopting this quick-fix solution to an issue that demands structural changes. Why are huge loans taken by farmers even as they know it will be difficult for them to repay? And why then are they unable to face the problems they anticipated well in time in most cases? A simple answer would be that at the end of the day, their earnings fall far short of the investments they have made. Depending upon this gap, the farmer either falls into a vicious debt — taking one loan (often at higher rates from a money-lender) to repay another — or in desperation ends his life. On most occasions, the second follows the first. Most experts agree that the essence of the solution to the problem lies in the following: Reduction in input costs; diversification of crops; increase in non-farm activities and incomes for farmers; effective crop insurances schemes. In the first case, the cost of fertilisers, seeds, labour, machinery etc is factored. Small land-holders are not in a position to avail of high-end technology, and so they have to essentially depend on economical availability of seeds and fertilisers. The second, crop diversification, is not just essential to spread the risk but also necessary to promote cultivation of cash crops. Non-farm activities would include income generating sources that are available to the farmer near to his place. Informed commentators accept that for the small and marginal farmers, farming alone is not going to take care of his and his family’s costs and rising aspirations. MNREGA has been one supplementer, now that the scheme has been further enhanced. But that too is not enough. More avenues such as poultry, pisciculture, floriculture etc are to be adopted. And finally, a good crop insurance scheme that does not milk the beneficiary needs to be put in place. Although the Modi government had recently announced an ambitious crop insurance scheme, experts pointed to certain drawbacks in it, and there are reports that the government is considering a tweak to weed out the defects. But it has to work harder on the other aspects, such as providing the input subsidies directly into the account of the farmers through Direct Benefit Transfer, instead of through the firms. There is also the issue of the e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM), established to empower farmers into getting better prices for their produce. The e-NAM is working well in certain regulated markets, but just limping along in many others. The political cost of ignoring farmer distress is obvious enough; the economic costs are huge too. Let’s not forget that the agricultural sector employs 53 per cent of the country’s workforce but contributes to only under 18 per cent of its GDP (2015-16). While we are among the world’s top producers of various agricultural commodities, over the years the share of agriculture imports has risen ( from 2.8 per cent in 1990-91 to 4.2 per cent in 2014-15) while that of exports has come down (18.5 per cent in 1990-91 to 12.5 in 2014-15). The need of the hour, therefore, is a holistic and not a populist approach. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

The economics and politics of loan waivers

We are in the fourth year of the current government and it seems that the farm sector problems have not been sorted out during these four years. We are exactly stranded at the same place where we began a decade back or maybe earlier. Despite strong pressures from the farm lobby, the stagnation in productivity and consequent low net income in the farm sector did not improve.&nbsp;

Though in the current Indian Parliament, we have a large share of Members of Parliament (MP) declaring themselves as agriculturists or farmers, so far the fact has been of little use to the farm sector. The 16th Parliament has 53.8% of the total lawmakers as agriculturists and that is the largest share ever since independence. Despite this fact, and after four years of huge promises made to the agricultural sector, it continues to reel under economic pressure.&nbsp;

The farm sector of this country is trying to wriggle out of the low-income trap. Every day cultivators are leaving agriculture to become construction workers in urban localities. It needs to be seen if the Finance Minister takes a few tricks out of his &lsquo;Brown budget Bag&rsquo; to get the farm sector on a higher growth track.

Slow down in agriculture

Under the pressure of many pulsating current issues, which include Padmaavat, Supreme Court judges, Tripple Talaq, the usual crisis in&nbsp; Kashmir, not much has been said about the significant drop in the growth rates of the farm sector. Parliamentarians are quite happy investing their time without looking into the ulcerating problem of the farm sector. Not a word is spoken about the farm sector nor a scheme introduced in order to enhance the farmers&rsquo; income. The farmers have been reduced only to a &lsquo;coin&rsquo; to be used only during elections and then stacking into deep corners.&nbsp;

The World Economic Forum welcomed India broadly keeping in mind the kind of investment and the potential growth rates of the national economy. But below this shining surface, lies the crumpled face of the agricultural sector which cries for a boost. Productivity has stagnated, investment in the farm sector has not been increasing at the desired pace, real net income stagnated and marginalisation continues unabated. All these are increasing the miseries of the farmers.

Is it one of the usual downs in the growth cycles?

The history of Indian agriculture is replete with cycles of growth and stagnation. The long-term growth of the agricultural sector has never crossed the threshold of 3.5 to 4 percent. The current situation cannot be ascribed to monsoon and, therefore, the policymakers cannot get away by blaming the rain god as usual.&nbsp;

An irritating question can be posed to the policymakers, are they were really unaware of the monsoon dependence of Indian agriculture of the last 7 decades? Right from independence, we have been blaming the rain god for the overall failure of the agriculture sector rather than admitting that monsoon failures create only temporary troughs. With all information technology and supercomputers at our disposal, Indian agricultural scientists and policymakers are helpless before this situation. This powerlessness is shameful when we boast about the scientific advances and an army of agriculture scientists around.&nbsp;

A Large part of the country is still hanging precariously on the performance of monsoon. It is necessary, that the Finance Minister takes up the cudgel to deal with the situations constructively. It is well-known that the Rainfed Authority of India did not deliver its promises and, in fact, it is hardly heard if the authority is functioning at all.&nbsp;

Regional Differentiation

Regional differentiation in the performance of agriculture is well-known in India. There are regions that compare with international standards of agriculture and the other vast steppe is proliferated by poor farmers. This differentiation occurs because of dissimilar factor endowments, including natural and man-made capital formation. There are regions which were termed backward during the initial phase of planning in India and continued to linger around the same position without any visible efforts by successive governments. It is these regions that need to pick up the tempo of growth and aggressively push themselves into the mainstream growth process.&nbsp;

Theodore Schultz argued during mid-sixties, these regions required and external investment push. It is only with that, we may be able to bring in a new growth perspective to the country. Historically, we have bypassed regions and bypassed farmer groups. A number of schemes were undertaken in order to bring these two segments into mainstream growth. However, the story is very clear and the failure is boldly written on the walls of our experience. Clearly, we have not been able to rope in the small and marginal farmers, belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes, into the mainstream growth pattern. The Finance Minister needs to look carefully into this process of regional disparity and put larger attention to the bypassed groups and the regions.

Policy Vacuum&nbsp;

A few years back we have been talking about a policy paralysis in the agriculture sector. Following that a commission under the chairmanship of Prof. Swaminathan prepared a large report, covering almost every corner of the agricultural sector. Either the report was too complex for the policymakers or it was totally non-implementable and, hence, respectfully trashed by the government.&nbsp;

It is strange that the Niti Ayog could visit only a few aspects of the agriculture sector in pursuit of &lsquo;Doubling the Farmers&rsquo; Income&rsquo; during the coming years. This has become a fashionable phrase now and everyone small and big among the agricultural pundits is talking about &lsquo;Doubling of the Farmers Income&rsquo;.&nbsp;

It is known to all of us that the structure of Indian agriculture is quite complex, diversified and ground preparations for such a policy step are quite difficult. In the coming budget, it is necessary that the Finance Minister puts his attention to a strong policy-making group and look at the agricultural policy in a &lsquo;Bottom-Up Fashion&rsquo; than the usual &lsquo;Top-Down Fashion&rsquo; as has been the case always. It is quite unfortunate that in India the Agricultural Ministry does not have any policy specialists nor are policy document revisited routinely.

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;&nbsp;

In the coming budget, it is necessary that the Finance Minister puts his attention to a strong policy-making group and look at the agricultural policy in a ‘Bottom-Up Fashion’ than the usual ‘Top-Down Fashion’ as has been the case always.

We are in the fourth year of the current government and it seems that the farm sector problems have not been sorted out during these four years. We are exactly stranded at the same place where we began a decade back or maybe earlier. Despite strong pressures from the farm lobby, the stagnation in productivity and consequent low net income in the farm sector did not improve. Though in the current Indian Parliament, we have a large share of Members of Parliament (MP) declaring themselves as agriculturists or farmers, so far the fact has been of little use to the farm sector. The 16th Parliament has 53.8% of the total lawmakers as agriculturists and that is the largest share ever since independence. Despite this fact, and after four years of huge promises made to the agricultural sector, it continues to reel under economic pressure. The farm sector of this country is trying to wriggle out of the low-income trap. Every day cultivators are leaving agriculture to become construction workers in urban localities. It needs to be seen if the Finance Minister takes a few tricks out of his ‘Brown budget Bag’ to get the farm sector on a higher growth track. Slow down in agriculture Under the pressure of many pulsating current issues, which include Padmaavat, Supreme Court judges, Tripple Talaq, the usual crisis in Kashmir, not much has been said about the significant drop in the growth rates of the farm sector. Parliamentarians are quite happy investing their time without looking into the ulcerating problem of the farm sector. Not a word is spoken about the farm sector nor a scheme introduced in order to enhance the farmers’ income. The farmers have been reduced only to a ‘coin’ to be used only during elections and then stacking into deep corners. The World Economic Forum welcomed India broadly keeping in mind the kind of investment and the potential growth rates of the national economy. But below this shining surface, lies the crumpled face of the agricultural sector which cries for a boost. Productivity has stagnated, investment in the farm sector has not been increasing at the desired pace, real net income stagnated and marginalisation continues unabated. All these are increasing the miseries of the farmers. Is it one of the usual downs in the growth cycles? The history of Indian agriculture is replete with cycles of growth and stagnation. The long-term growth of the agricultural sector has never crossed the threshold of 3.5 to 4 percent. The current situation cannot be ascribed to monsoon and, therefore, the policymakers cannot get away by blaming the rain god as usual. An irritating question can be posed to the policymakers, are they were really unaware of the monsoon dependence of Indian agriculture of the last 7 decades? Right from independence, we have been blaming the rain god for the overall failure of the agriculture sector rather than admitting that monsoon failures create only temporary troughs. With all information technology and supercomputers at our disposal, Indian agricultural scientists and policymakers are helpless before this situation. This powerlessness is shameful when we boast about the scientific advances and an army of agriculture scientists around. A Large part of the country is still hanging precariously on the performance of monsoon. It is necessary, that the Finance Minister takes up the cudgel to deal with the situations constructively. It is well-known that the Rainfed Authority of India did not deliver its promises and, in fact, it is hardly heard if the authority is functioning at all. Regional Differentiation Regional differentiation in the performance of agriculture is well-known in India. There are regions that compare with international standards of agriculture and the other vast steppe is proliferated by poor farmers. This differentiation occurs because of dissimilar factor endowments, including natural and man-made capital formation. There are regions which were termed backward during the initial phase of planning in India and continued to linger around the same position without any visible efforts by successive governments. It is these regions that need to pick up the tempo of growth and aggressively push themselves into the mainstream growth process. Theodore Schultz argued during mid-sixties, these regions required and external investment push. It is only with that, we may be able to bring in a new growth perspective to the country. Historically, we have bypassed regions and bypassed farmer groups. A number of schemes were undertaken in order to bring these two segments into mainstream growth. However, the story is very clear and the failure is boldly written on the walls of our experience. Clearly, we have not been able to rope in the small and marginal farmers, belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes, into the mainstream growth pattern. The Finance Minister needs to look carefully into this process of regional disparity and put larger attention to the bypassed groups and the regions. Policy Vacuum A few years back we have been talking about a policy paralysis in the agriculture sector. Following that a commission under the chairmanship of Prof. Swaminathan prepared a large report, covering almost every corner of the agricultural sector. Either the report was too complex for the policymakers or it was totally non-implementable and, hence, respectfully trashed by the government. It is strange that the Niti Ayog could visit only a few aspects of the agriculture sector in pursuit of ‘Doubling the Farmers’ Income’ during the coming years. This has become a fashionable phrase now and everyone small and big among the agricultural pundits is talking about ‘Doubling of the Farmers Income’. It is known to all of us that the structure of Indian agriculture is quite complex, diversified and ground preparations for such a policy step are quite difficult. In the coming budget, it is necessary that the Finance Minister puts his attention to a strong policy-making group and look at the agricultural policy in a ‘Bottom-Up Fashion’ than the usual ‘Top-Down Fashion’ as has been the case always. It is quite unfortunate that in India the Agricultural Ministry does not have any policy specialists nor are policy document revisited routinely. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Union Budget 2018 needs to end the sorry saga of Indian agriculture