UPES’6th International MUN Conference 2019

30th -31st March

All India Political Parties Meet

Background Guide

Agenda- ―Discussion for strengthening the

Agriculture Sector and way forward‖

All India Political Parties Meet

 Letter from the Executive Board

Hon‟ble delegates,
It is with immense pleasure that I welcome you all to the All India Political Parties Meet at
UPES‟ 6th International MUN from 30th to 31st March 2019. All of you are politicians,
administrative officers or experienced professionals and I hope that it shall reflect in your
behaviour in the committee. It is expect that all of you shall maintain the dignity of the office
you are representing.
There are a few things I would like to make very clear with this letter.
Firstly, indiscipline and hooliganism shall not be tolerated in the committee. I will not hesitate in
penalizing you for misbehaviour in the committee. This should not however discourage from
having fun in the committee and all respectful manners of speech that might make the debate
more fun.
Secondly, please remember all the timelines and incidents of The Agenda. Not only for the
purpose of research and timeline issues but also for the fact that you shall be debating on each
and every issues pertaining to all the aspects of the agenda mentioned in this background guide.
Thirdly, the agenda mentioned here is very important issue and on whichever side of the aisle
you are, it affects each one of us directly. Please do not belittle the issue. The agenda in front of
us is an extremely interesting one as it has been a major divisive issue in this country for the
better part of a century. A written document is to be presented but the major task ahead is of
creating consensus and therefore the concentration should be on the debate as well as the written
work.
The committee would focus on research, planning, political intellect and analytical application
and strategic application of thoughts in resolving impending politically sensitive issues and
discussions on forming future policies for the country on the said agenda. Kindly note, I am not
looking for statements that would be a copy paste of what the leader/portfolio you are
representing have already stated; instead we seek an understanding of the issue from you, while
knowing and understanding your impending political and ideological limitations as well as an
understanding of the immediate and long term consequences of you statements, actions and
solutions. Your political identity is an integral part of the purpose of the committee and I am
looking forward to your portfolio representation.
This Introductory guide is as abstract as possible, and would just give you a basic perspective on
what you can expect from the committee and areas wherein which your research should be
focused at this given point in time. This Guide is by no means the end of research, however

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neither I am looking for discussions based entirely on extensive reading. I would really
appreciate if there‟s an argument in your presentation that you substantiate with facts and
circumstances.
I am looking for enriching and fruitful debate and every delegate is expected to come well
prepared and leave no stone unturned.

Warm Regards

Adv. Rishindra Vikram Singh

(Moderator)

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Radha Mohan Singh
Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare,
Government of India

Under the guidance of Hon‟ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, enthusiastic and positive
results of the sustained efforts made for the betterment of agriculture sector and farmers are
visible. The Modi government is committed for the welfare of farmers. As a result of which,
there has been a qualitative improvement in their lives. For the development of the country,
Modi government has set new standards for transparency. Under the guidance of Prime Minister,
the government has transformed the targets meant for the implementation of farmers‟ welfare
schemes in a mission mode and time bound manner. Our government has laid the foundation of a
modern and future oriented India with new dimensions, innovations and reformist approach to
good governance. Modi government has been successful in bringing about awareness amongst
farmers through new initiatives taken for the development of agriculture sector in the country. In
this tenure, there has been a concerted and strong effort to bring qualitative changes in the life of
farmers and rural areas.

The President of the National Commission on Farmers (NCF) Dr. Swaminathan had advised the
then Government through its recommendations in his report in 2006 that proper attention should
be given on the welfare of farmers along with agro-based thinking. Farmers provide an important
direction to the efforts made in economic reforms. Therefore, to make radical changes in the
system, proper emphasis should be given to post-harvest marketing and related arrangements.
Keeping in view the unabated erosion of natural resources and climate change, the Agriculture
Commission had also called for attention to the management of science-based natural resources
and sustainable production and development.
Recently on August 6, 2018, Dr. Swaminathan in his article published in the Times of India said:
“Although the NCF report was submitted in 2006 very little action was taken until the
present government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office. Fortunately
over the last four years, several significant decisions have been taken to improve the status
and income of farmers.”

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The government has taken a number of initiatives for the development of agriculture sector,
remunerative returns for farmers‟ produce and reducing the cost of production. These efforts
have resulted in significant transformation in their lives. Establishing the nationwide soil health
card scheme is an important aspect of this thought.

The government has made the use of neem coated urea mandatory in order to reduce the cost of
agriculture and enhance the nitrogen utility competence. Since it has led to enhancement in the
productivity thereby reducing the cost of agriculture, it has also extended a helping hand in
preventing its misuse in the non-agriculture sector. Organic farming has been linked with
Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PMKY) for sustained agricultural development and soil
health, including the in-situ management of rice straw. The Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee
Yojana (PMKSY) is a very important scheme to ensure proper water management in agriculture
practices. After making an extensive study of the previous schemes and reforming them, it has
initiated the world‟s largest farmer friendly Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojna and Weather
Based Crop Insurance Scheme in 2016. These schemes provide extensive coverage for every sort
of risks involved in the agriculture sector.

The National Commission on Farmers had made a number of recommendations for enhancing
the income of farmers. Keeping these recommendations in mind, the government has
implemented a lot of reformatory schemes. The government has released the Model Agricultural
Land Leasing Act, 2016 to all states which is a very important step in agricultural reforms. The
interests of both, the land holders and the recipient of the lease are protected. The
implementation of market reforms has led to the enhancement of transparency in the market. The
e-NAM scheme links agriculture markets across the country. Apart from 585 mandis of the
country, the government has also set up the National Agricultural Market by focusing on open
trade between the mandis. The budget 2018 has highlighted the much needed new marketing
structure. The government has also made arrangement for small and marginal farmers to sell
their produce in the nearby markets. There are 22000 rural markets across the country thereby
reducing the gap amongst them. Small and marginal farmers while linking themselves with
APMC and e-Nam will be able to sell their produce in an effective way. With the establishment
of rural agriculture markets, farmers will be able to sell their produce directly to consumers or
retailers and will get remunerative prices. To achieve a strong and competent agricultural market
with proper judicial framework, the Modi government has formulated and released a model
“Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing Act 2016” to states. Also, Agriculture Produce
and Livestock Contract Farming and Services (Promotion & Facilitation) Act, 2018 has been
sent to states for adoption.

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The decision to give MSP at 50% and more of production cost is a significant step for the
farmers. The government is also committed to implementing MSP. Since the start of Green
Revolution, procurement was confined only to paddy and wheat. Sometimes procurement of
other commodities was also being made. After the Modi government assumed charge, there has
been tremendous enhancement of procurement of pulses and oilseeds. We are determined to
extend profits to the farmers of pulses, oilseeds, coarse cereals etc through the State
Governments. With procurement of these crops at MSP, it will extend benefits to the farmers
who have been deprived since long. These crops are climate-oriented and are tolerant to climate
change in the future. The Hon‟ble Prime Minister has set the target of doubling the income of
farmers on the 75th year of independence in 2022. For determining the minimum support price
and by providing assured returns, including equality and farmers‟ welfare, the government is
providing a new direction. Recently on August 6, 2018, Dr. Swaminathan in his article published
in the Times of India said: “The recent announcement of a remunerative price based
essentially on the recommendation of NCF is a very important step to ensure the economic
viability of farming. To underline, government has ensured in its notification that from
kharif 2018 onwards MSP of the notified crops would be minimum of 150% of the cost of
production; it ranges from 150-200% for coarse cereals.”

In addition to farming, the government is also emphasizing on livestock, fisheries and

development of water bodies. The Rashtriya Gokul Mission, based on the conservation and
development of indigenous bovine species, is an integral part of the overall development of
agriculture sector. This will benefit a lot of small and marginal farmers including landless
agriculture labourers who possess these indigenous species of bovines. It is a matter of great
pride that 161 indigenous species across the country have been registered and for this purpose
ICAR is actively working. The development of fish production development, including marine
and freshwater fishes, is improving the lives of the fishermen community. Fish production has
achieved more growth rate than all other areas of agriculture.

For small farmers who cannot earn enough income for their family, allied farming is being
promoted. Agriculture based collaborative schemes of the government includes beekeeping,
mushroom production, agro forestry and bamboo production etc. The production of natural
resources from the farm will help in creating additional employment and income in agriculture.
Keeping in view the recommendations of the National Commission on Farmers to increase the
productivity and eliminate malnutrition, a total of 795 improved varieties of crops have been
developed in the last four years by the ICAR out of which 495 varieties are tolerant to climate
change. These have been handed over to farmers so that they can take advantage of these
advanced varieties. For the first time, a historic initiative has been taken by the government in
order to overcome the problem of malnutrition which has long been a part of Indian society.

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Under this, 20 bio fortified varieties were developed and released for cultivation. In order to
increase the income of families of marginal and small farmers, 45 Integrated Farming System
(IFS) models have been developed. This will help increase soil health, water usage effectiveness
and conserve agricultural biodiversity. On economic evaluation, these models have been found to
be beneficial in different states. This model is being set up and displayed in every KVK in order
to help farmers so that they can be motivated to adopt it by looking at its success thereby helping
them earn more income.

In order to implement policy reforms and new schemes in agriculture, adequate budget is
provided. In the past few years, Modi government has taken measures to implement and
strengthen these schemes and a budgetary provision of Rs 2,11,694 crore has been made. Apart
from this, the government has created corpus funds for improving the infrastructure for dairy,
cooperative, fisheries and aquaculture, animal husbandry, agriculture market and micro
irrigation. The government has adopted an income-oriented approach towards sustainable
production keeping in mind the welfare of agriculture, farmers and the consumers.

To improve the economic condition of the farmers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a
target of doubling the income of farmers by 2022. For the first time in the country, a prime
minister has put forward a target for the overall wellbeing of the farmers.

In pursuance of this vision, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers‟ Welfare will adopt a
concrete strategy, based on the recommendations of the constituted committee to achieve the
goal of doubling the income of farmers till August 2022 when our country will be celebrating
75th Independence Day. The outcomes are also being visible.

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INTRODUCTION

Agriculture sector is the mainstay of the Indian economy, contributing about 15 per cent of
national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and more importantly, about half of India‟s population
is wholly or significantly dependent on agriculture and allied activities for their livelihood (GOI,
2011). The contribution of agricultural sector to GDP has continued to decline over the years,
while that of other sectors, particularly services, and has increased. In 1970-71 agriculture
contributed about 44 percent of GDP, which declined to 31.4 percent and 14.6 percent in 1990-
91 and 2009-10 (at 2004-05 prices), respectively (CSO, 2011).
Nevertheless, agriculture remains a major source of employment, absorbing about 52 percent of
the total national work-force in 2004-05, down from about 70 percent in 1971. The share of
agricultural exports in total export value declined from about 18.5 percent in 1990-91 to about
10.6 percent in 2009-10, while share of agricultural imports to total national imports increased
from 2.8 percent in 1990-91 and reached a high of 8.2 percent in 1998-99 and declined to about
4.4 percent in 2009-10. Importance of agriculture in a country like India is not likely to decline
due to concerns for food security, employment, rural poverty and availability of wage goods.
Successive Five Year Plans have stressed on self-sufficiency and self-reliance in food grains
production and concerted efforts in this direction have resulted in substantial increase in
agricultural production and productivity. This is clear from the fact that from a level of about 52
million tonnes in 1951-52, food grains production rose to above 241.5 million tonnes (4th
advance estimates) in 2010-11. The Eleventh Plan, which had attempted to reverse deceleration
of agricultural growth during the Ninth and Tenth Plan, had some success in as food grains
production has touched a new peak of 241.56 million tonnes in 2010-11 and growth in
agriculture in the Eleventh Plan is likely to be about 3.3 percent per year.
However, to achieve between 4 and 4.5 percent average growth in agricultural sector in the
Twelfth Plan period adequate efforts on the part of the government are required. In view of
importance of these issues, critical examination of recent trends in agriculture and the factors
underlying the slow growth in agriculture is important to reorient programmes and policies in the
12th Plan.

STATUS OF AGRICULTURE IN INDIA

Agriculture is a prominent sector of Indian economy. The agriculture sector of India has
occupied almost 47% of geographical area. Over 100% of rural household depends on
agriculture. The area of production of cereal is 15%, pulses 12% and fruits or vegetables are

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below 10%. The agriculture sector provided 76% employment in 1950-51 and provides 52%
employment in 2012-13 because of lower GDP. In 1960, the growth rate of food grains
production was declined 1.40% in 1949-50 or 1964-65 and 2.3% in 1970-71 or 1980-81. The
growth rate of food grains production was regained 2.8% in 1991-92. The gross crop area of food
grains was 75.54% in 1970-91 and 63.52% in 2007-08. The growth rate of food grains
production was declined 1.78% between 2000-01 and 2007-08. The 2000-01 and 2007-08 were
the critical period to abatement of food grain production. The growth rate of cereals production
was 1.7% in 1990-99. The growth rate of cereals has been declined -0.2% in 2000-10 and the
growth rate of cereals production has been declined 0.6% in 1999-2009. The growth rate of pulse
production was 1% in 1990-99. The growth rate of area has been accounted 3.2% in 2000-10.
The growth rate of pulse has been abated 2.3% in 2000-10. The growth rate of vegetable
production was 4% in 1990-99. The growth rate of area has been accounted 2.9% in 2000-10.
The growth rate of vegetable production has been increased 3.3% in 2000-10. The growth rate of
fruit production was 5.8% in 1990-99. The growth rate of area was having been reported 5.3% in
2000-10. The growth rate of fruit production has been increased 5.7% in 2000-10. The good
production of cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables is obtained with application of fertilizers. The
average consumption of fertilizers in India is 128.08 kg/ha (State Indian Agriculture, 2015-16).
This fertilizer is utilized into arable land. It improves the soil texture and soil structure. The total
arable land under fertilizer application is 171kg/ha [4]. Earlier land preparation is completed with
indigenous country plough but this tool is not prepared light soils. The sophisticated machine and
tools are provided aerated and well quality soils. The total utilization of farm machine and tools
in harvesting or threshing activity is 60%-70% and in irrigation is 37% (Figure 5) [5]. The
ground water efficiency was 70-80% in 1950-51 and the canal efficiency was 25-45% in 1950-
51. The net cultivable land of is 143.6mha in which 42mha is irrigated by ground water and
22mha is irrigated by canals. The ground water application has been increased for irrigation in
present period.
As in most developing countries, agriculture is an important pillar of the Indian economy. It
contributes 22 percent to the country‟s gross domestic product (GDP). Out of a total 329 million
ha, the net cropped area is 142.5 million ha. More than 70 percent of Indians live in rural areas,
and agriculture is the major livelihood for the majority of the rural population. Agriculture not
only provides food security but also employment opportunities to the vast majority of the rural
population.
Agriculture supports 115.5 million farm families. It also accounts for 13 percent of the country‟s
exports (Ministry of agriculture, 2004). More than 250 different crops are cultivated in India‟s
varied agro-climatic regions and under different cropping systems. India ranks seventh in total
area among the countries of the world, but ranks first in irrigated area (Economic survey, 2007).

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Nevertheless, Indian agriculture alone is unable to support the livelihood of all agriculturalists
because the distribution of farm holdings is largely dominated by small and marginal farmers.
Small landholdings of less than 1 ha coupled with low prices of farm produce means that farmers
are unable to support themselves through agriculture alone. Since 1951, the proportion of the
rural population in the total population has declined sharply, and so has the percentage of the
population pursuing cultivation or farming as a profession.
Agriculture is dependent on two major resources, land and water. Unfortunately, Indian farmers
often lack both these resources. According to a1991–92 survey, 11.25 percent of rural families
are landless. Among landholders, 69.35 percent own less than 1 ha (marginal farmers) and 21.25
percent own between 1 and 2 ha (small farmers). Growing population pressure means that land
fragmentation is also increasing.
Farmers find it difficult to earn a livelihood under conditions of such severe land scarcity. It is
almost impossible under current circumstances to bring more land under cultivation. Water is
another critical resource for agriculture. Out of the total arable area of 169 million ha in India,
only 28 percent is under irrigation. About 40 percent of the cropping area is located in low-
rainfall regions where employment opportunities are available for only 40 to 50 days in a year.
Rain-fed agriculture is found in about 60 percent of the net sown area. Most farmers can manage
to raise only a single crop a year. It is possible to increase the area under irrigation, but with
declining investment in the agricultural sector in subsequent budgets, this course of action is also
difficult to pursue.
Crops generally fail twice in any given five year period, thus increasing the vulnerability of
farmers (Hegde, 2000). Increasing input prices and almost constant output prices worsen the
situation of cultivators. Agricultural produce usually arrives in the market when prices are
already too low, which means that farmers do not make sufficient profit, which jeopardizes their
very survival. Under the present circumstances, it is difficult to increase the area of agricultural
land and the amount of irrigation water. The only way of increasing the profitability of
agricultural produce is to get higher prices in the marketplace.
The agricultural sector in India grew more slowly than the other sectors of the economy in the
decades both before and after the 1991 reforms. A moderate annual average growth of 3.0
percent in the first six years of the new millennium starting in 2001–02 (notwithstanding growth
rates of 10 percent in 2003–04 and of 6 percent in 2005–06) has meant that agriculture and allied
sectors have continued to be a cause of concern.

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SOME SALIENT FACTS ABOUT AGRICULTURAL SCENARIO

1. Agriculture is the largest provider of livelihood in rural India

2. It contributes 25 percent to India‟s GDP
3. It is still dependent primarily on the monsoons
4. The growth in agricultural production has been stagnant for the past several years.
5. The drought in north and western parts in FY09 created shortages in supply of food
grains.

ROLE OF AGRICULTURE IN INDIAN ECONOMY

1. Share in National Income:

2. Largest Employment Providing Sector:
3. Contribution to Capital formation:
4. Providing Raw Material to industries
5. Market for Industrial Products:

IMPORTANCE IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE

1. Share in national income

2. Source of employment
3. Provision of food grains.
4. Supply of raw materials to industrial sector.
5. Market for industrial product.
6. Earner of foreign exchange.
7. Significance for trade and transport.
8. Source of revenue for the government

FUTURE OF INDIAN AGRICULTURE

Did you know that India ranks second in farm output in the world? An output of Green
Revolution! Green Revolution has considerably added to the production of crop production. But
has Green Revolution really benefitted the farming and farmers of the India? This is a long
debated issue which fails to find its answer. The increase in production has been welcomed with
open arms but on the other hand the fertility and environment impact is still a big question!

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More than 65% of the rural population is engaged in agriculture which leads to an average
income of approximately Rs.6500 a month. This is a clear indication of under-employment, and
low per capita. These numbers clearly point out that an unsustainably excessive part of the
population is dependent on agriculture and that we need to wean away labour out of agriculture
to other sectors. The prevailing situation also calls for a need for major policy measures to boost
the rural economy and create new infrastructure for the agricultural sector. It is unfortunate that
the farmers are unaware of the new farming equipment and agricultural techniques. It has
become very important to make farmers realise the importance and need for new technologies.
There are a lot of new developments in the farming sector with modern mechanised tools that
can help in crop production. India, in 21st century, is getting Improved agricultural implements
and new mechanized farming tools. We can review the importance of farming techniques, which
can lead to high crop yield and maintenance of fertility of the soil while saving the time and
utilising it in other fields. Equally, we should not forget that taking care of the fields and crops is
important along with a revolution in farming equipment in India.
Small changes that do not require any technical knowledge should be encouraged and farmers
should be educated by conducting. E.g.
 Farmers should use tractors instead of relying on animals.
 Use seed drill to increase the agricultural efficiency.
 Pressure sprayer should be used throughout the farm to protect the crops from being
infected.
 Sprinklers should be used to evenly irrigate plants for healthy and consistent growth.
This simple implementation of existing machines and improved agricultural implements can help
farmers with the crop yield as well as better health as the load of heavy supplies is reduced.
But now, more and more innovations have taken place in agricultural field and these new
technologies need to be promoted for the agricultural processes. The next big step needs to be
taken to lead onto the path of fruitful farming!

NEED OF NEW TECHNIQUES

It is important for the farmers to understand the need of new techniques. New techniques can
help farmers save time which can be productively used in other activities and professions. For
how long can they be dependent on – Monsoon, Limited Irrigation and Old Methods of farming?
It is a shame that agricultural country like India has to go through evil practise of Crop Residue
Burning to prepare farms for the next season. If only modern techniques and farming equipment

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were used, then India would not have seen the burning of 19-20 million tonnes of paddy straw,
which could have been widely used for other uses. The agricultural efficiency can be improved
by introducing latest agricultural implements on the field for the smooth cultivation of land. It is
the farmers who need to understand the importance of modern farming equipment in India.
Limited use of mechanized farming techniques has prevented the development of a more
organized and productive agricultural sector. India is aware of the technologies but the farmers
fail to adopt due to cost of the new agro machines and knowledge. Financial viability has to be
leveraged by the government and introduce renting machines or schemes like Rashtriya Krishi
Vikas Yojana so that new technologies can be brought in to practice.

NEW AGRO MACHINES AND TECHNIQUES FOR INDIA

Indian farmers are using some technologies but they need to take the next step and be well
versed with other factors that improve the yield other than just the High Yielding Varity (HYV)
seeds. They have to discover the soil requirement for their particular crop; know the land and
atmospheric conditions for their crop as they are different for different crops; have the
knowledge of when and how to use pesticides; have the knowledge of the right tools to be used
with precision for farming.
With technology enabled solutions, on soil data, crop variety, productivity and nutrients loss in
soil; farms and farmers can prosper. Now, tractors come with agricultural implements like
cultivators or broadcast seeders which greatly help in plantation of crops. Disc rotators attached
with the tractor disperses seedlings evenly. Seeds can be easily drilled without much effort and
labour of the farmer. Water sprinkler helps to irrigate large parts evenly.
Other new agricultural technologies that are of great importance are sensors and automated
agricultural machines. Sensors track real-time information on farms and ancillary infrastructure
along with the habitat of animals which can help in improving farming practices. Some of the
areas where they are applied are - soil sensors, crop sensors, and livestock biometrics.
With the recently launched Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, the government is keen to
support and reach irrigation to every farm. Agro machine manufacturers have to support the
agricultural growth in the country.
Automation is another area that is gaining popularity has a good potential to improve farming
methods for the future. The chores of planting, harvesting and irrigating can be automated with
absolute accuracy.
You never know that in the future, you may see a swarm of agricultural bots working on the farm
in a network to sustain the farming industry. The benefits of Automation could be less human
intervention, more productivity of crops, less environmental waste and fewer farm injuries.

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Intervention of Private Sector

Modern agro technologies are prevalent in developed countries but they need to be adopted in
developing countries like India. Private sector has played an important role in advancement of
the agro technologies, and now same needs to be arranged in India. Even government needs to
actively participate and encourage farmers to use modern techniques with incentives. With the
vision of „Make In India‟, government involvement and government adhered innovation and
investment is increasing. Now, it is the modern agricultural implements and machine
manufacturers that needs to bring innovation and new agro-techniques to Modernised Farmlands
of India.
In seed sector, the growing need of R&D along with developments in agrochemicals such as
increasing use of bio-fertilizers and bio-release smart fertilizers has been developed.
The farm implements sector, however, is yet to become a major market segment and tractors
remain a major sector of investment. The irrigation sub sector also needs to evolve for Indian
farming with large investments.

Future with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

With recent advancements in technology coupled with favourable government policies, we have
seen many agro-tech start-ups. AI comes as a great boon to the agricultural sector which is
heavily dependent on climatic conditions which are often unpredictable.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)

A small airplane called as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can be used to monitor and
observe important data like multispectral imagery, visual and thermal imagery, humidity, the
weather condition at a resolution of up to 1 cm/pixel and air pressure. This data can help the
farmer make an informed decision.

Artificial intelligence (AI)—

 Crop and Soil Monitoring– crop and soil health can be monitored with sensors.
 Predictive Agricultural Analytics–Farming practices due to lack of access to scientific
understanding of crop lifecycle, pests, quality metrics and the latest micro-fertilizers.
Supply Chain Efficiencies– Real-time data analytics can be used for efficient and smart
supply chain.

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  Agricultural Product Grading— Crop diseases or pest infestation in the crops can be
accessed by an image on a farmer‟s phone and determine the product quality in real time,
without any manual intervention. Farmers just need to know the operation of app in their
phone.

These modern techniques are the future of the Indian Agriculture. They capture complete
information about the commodities (growing information, pre- and post-harvest, transportation,
warehousing etc.) and proactively advice farmers on sowing, pest control, harvesting etc.

8 IMPORTANT POLICY MEASURES INTRODUCED IN THE AGRICULTURAL

SECTOR IN INDIA

Important policy measures introduced in the agricultural sector in India during the period of
planning are as follows:
1. Technological Measures:
Initiation of measures to increase agricultural production substantially to meet the growing needs
of the population and also to provide a base for industrial development included steps to increase
both extensive cultivation and intensive cultivation.
For the former, irrigation facilities were provided to a large area on an increasing basis and area
hitherto unfit for cultivation was made fit for cultivation. For the latter, new agricultural strategy
was introduced in the form of a package programme in selected regions of the country in 1966.
To sustain and extend this programme to larger and larger areas of the country, steps were
initiated to increase the production of high-yielding varieties of seeds, fertilisers and pesticides
within the economy and supplement domestic production by imports whenever necessary. This
has made the country self-reliant, we have turned from large importer of food grains to net
exporter of food grains.
2. Land Reforms:
Land reform measures to abolish intermediary interests in land and transfer of land to actual tiller
of the soil were expected to be taken up on a priority basis. Measures taken under this head
included:
(i) Abolition of intermediaries.
(ii) Tenancy reforms to –
(a) Regulate rents paid by tenants to landlords;

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(b) Provide security of tenure to tenants; and
(c) Confer ownership rights on tenants.
(iii) Imposition of ceilings on holdings in a bid to procure land for distribution among landless
labourers and marginal farmers.
3. Institutional Credit:
After nationalisation of banks in 1969, nationalised banks have paid increasing attention to the
needs of agriculture. Regional Rural Banks were also set up to deal specially with the needs of
agricultural credit. A National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NAB ARD) was
also set up.
As a result of the expansion of institutional credit facilities to farmers, the importance of
moneylenders has declined steeply and so has the exploitation of farmers at the hands of
moneylenders.
4. Procurement and Support Prices:
Another policy measure of significant importance is the announcement of procurement and
support prices to ensure fair returns to the farmers so that even in years of surplus, the prices do
not tumble down and farmers do not suffer losses This is necessary to ensure that farmers are not
„penalized‟ for producing more.
In fact, the policy of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices has been adopted to
announce fairly high prices in a bid to provide incentive to the farmers to expand production.
5. Input Subsidies to Agriculture:
The objective of input subsidisation is to increase agricultural production and productivity by
encouraging the use of modern inputs in agriculture. Under the government policy, various
inputs to the farmers are supplied at prices which are below the level that would have prevailed
in the open market.
6. Food Security System:
In a bid to provide food grains and other essential goods to consumers at cheap and subsidised
rates, the Government of India has built up an elaborate food security system in the form of
Public Distribution System (PDS) during the planning period.
PDS not only ensures availability of food grains at cheap prices to the consumers but also
operates as a „safety net‟ by maintaining larger stocks of food grains in order to combat any
shortages and shortfalls that might occur in some years and/or in certain areas of the country.

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7. Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS):
The Government has streamlined the PDS by issuing special cards to people below poverty line
(BPL) and selling essential articles under PDS to them at specially subsidised prices with better
monitoring of the delivery system.
Under the new system the states are required to formulate and implement foolproof arrangements
for identification of the poor, for delivery of food grains to fair-price shops and for its
distribution in a transparent and accountable manner at the FPS level.
Under TPDS each poor family is entitled to 10 kg of food grains per month at specially
subsidised prices. With effect from April 2002, the BPL allocation of food grains was increased
from 20 kg (in April 2000) to 35 kg per family per month. According to Economic Survey 2007-
08, 73% of the poor and very poor families were benefited from TPDS.
8. Rural Employment Programmes:
PDS alone cannot serve as an effective safety net. This is due to the reason that unless the poor
have adequate purchasing power they cannot buy their requirements from the PDS. Therefore,
large-scale poverty alleviation programmes in the form of rural employment programmes are
required to provide purchasing power to the poor.
On account of this reason the government introduced various poverty alleviation programmes
particularly from Fourth Plan onwards like Small Farmers Development Agency (SFDA),
Marginal Farmers and Agricultural Labour Development Agency (MFAL), National Rural
Employment Programme (NREP), Rural Landless Employment Guarantee Programme
(RLEGP), Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), Jawahar Rozgar Yojana (JRY),
Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS), etc.

Following are the suggestive areas, the committee needs to deliberate:

 How to improve Agricultural Efficiency?
 Shaping the farming of the future
 Availability of farming equipment
 Modernization of Agriculture
 Awareness of Farmer
 Farm loan waiver scheme: Policy or Political Agenda

Thank You!! Happy Researching

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