THE GIST of Editorial for UPSC Exams : 28 FEBRUARY 2019 (Agriculture needs long-term action beyond financial support packages (Indian Express)

Agriculture needs long-term action beyond financial support packages (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 4: Economy
Prelims level: PM-KISAN
Mains level: Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices; Public Distribution System objectives,

Context

•  The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme Rs 6,000 annually, payable in three equal installments to every farmer owning up to two hectares of agricultural land
•  Telangana’s Rythu Bandhu scheme giving farmer-owners Rs 8,000 per acre per year.
•  Odisha’s Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation or KALIA scheme widened the package (Rs 10,000-12,500 annual support per family) to include even sharecroppers and landless agricultural households.
•  Strikingly, no ruling party, interested in addressing the root of the problems confronting the
  farming community.

Enhancing food-grain production

•  In order to enhance food grain production, investments in irrigation, subsidised farm inputs, and provided (MSP) support for procurement of marketable surpluses.
•  At the time of Independence, India produced a mere 50 million tonnes of food-grains for a population of about 350 million.
•  After seven decades, despite population growing by nearly four times, the country is food-grain-surplus, with production having increased by six times.
•  Farm sector is under greater stress today than in the past.
•  Critical issues get side-tracked packages whenever elections draw near.
•  Financial support packages may cause more harm than good in the longer run.

Addressing the loopholes

•  Laws has been made to share-cropping is illegal.
•  Involving Gram Panchayats in identifying eligible beneficiaries might lead to the scheme’s politicisation and decentralising corrupt practices.
•  Agricultural loans are paper transactions, with subsistence farmers even unaware of the outstanding dues against them.
•  Loan waiver affects undeserving individuals or entities faking transactions.
•  The lower incidence of suicides among stressed farmers in eastern states Money lenders.
•  Resource-poor farmers are generally voiceless and incapable of undertaking aggressive forms of protests.
•  Farmers producing seasonal fruits and vegetables suffer, whenever there is a bumper harvest and there is no MSP protection for them.

Long-term relief requires:

•  Structural reform of the farm sector and investments in infrastructure.
•  Proper Irrigation facilities.
•  Infrastructure for storage, processing, sorting, grading, packaging and marketing of varied agricultural produce, depending upon commercial demand trends.
•  Break the stranglehold of intermediaries.

Conclusion

•  Agriculture is a state subject under the Constitution; Paddy in Punjab is as much a cash crop as cotton is in Maharashtra.
•  Encouraging the private sector to develop cold storage and warehousing infrastructure, besides putting up processing units particularly for perishable commodities.
•  Also the contract farming and share-cropping needs to be formalised.
•  Heavily subsidised food-grains, and even cooked meals in some states, have already started showing adverse effects on the human psyche, instinct for survival and sense of pride.

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General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

Prelims Questions:

Q.1) With reference to Biopiracy, consider the following statements:
1. It is unauthorised use of biological reserve by entities outside a country which has pre-existing knowledge of rare biological reserves.
2. It is linked only to drug research and development.

Select the correct answer using code given below.
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: A

Mains Questions:
Q.1) Agriculture needs long-term action beyond financial support packages. Critically Examine.