Indian Express Editorial Summary

Editorial Topic : Reclaim the Farm: How Agriculture Can Be an Engine for Growth

 GS-3 Mains Exam : Economy

Revision Notes

Status of Agriculture

• Growth Rate & GDP Contribution: Indian agriculture has a 5-year average growth rate of 4%, contributing 18% to the GDP.
• Employment: Employs 46% of all workers and 60% of rural workers, but income levels remain low.
• Youth Disinterest: Educated youth are not attracted to farming due to low profitability.
• Technological Lag: Farming in many countries is high-tech, and India can reach that level with reforms.

What Needs to Be Done?

• Overcome Challenges: Address ecological, technological, and institutional challenges.
• Reconnect Allied Sectors: Link agriculture with allied sectors like poultry, fisheries, and dairy.
• Synergy with Non-Farm Sector: Create linkages between agriculture and the rural non-farm sector for economic growth.

Irrigation & Water Use

• Importance of Irrigation: Key to higher productivity and drought resilience, but only 50% of India’s gross cropped area is irrigated, mostly through over-extracted groundwater.
• Groundwater Depletion: Excessive groundwater extraction due to free electricity has led to falling water tables.
• Solution: Combine groundwater regulation, rainwater harvesting, and micro-irrigation.
  • Example: Gujarat’s agriculture grew at 9.6% annually (1999-2009) due to rainwater harvesting through check dams, bunds, and ponds.
• Water Efficiency: Adopt measures like drip irrigation and shift to less water-guzzling crops.

Soil Degradation

• Degraded Soils: 37% of India’s geo-area is degraded due to waterlogging, soil salinity, chemical contamination, and nutrient depletion.
• Soil Fixing: Focus on agro-ecological practices to restore soil health.

Change in Cropping Patterns

• From Monocultures to Diversity: Shift from cereal monocultures to diverse crops like poultry, fruits, and vegetables.
• Benefits: Improves soil health, raises yields, creates jobs, and increases profitability.
• Catering to Dietary Shifts: Diverse produce also meets changing dietary preferences.

Technology in Agriculture

• Climate-Resilient Crops: Use technology for heat-resistant crops and efficient farming techniques.
• Mobile Phones: A critical tool for agricultural information.
• Drones: Useful for pest control and crop monitoring.

Production Constraints

• Small Farms: 86% of Indian farmers cultivate on less than 2 hectares, limiting scale economies and mechanization.
• Lack of Formal Credit: 75-80% of small farmers rely on informal credit.
• Farm Income: Incomes remain low and erratic.
• Market Reforms: Higher crop prices and market reforms can benefit smallholders, but only after addressing production constraints.

Institutional Innovations

• Group Farming: Encourage smallholders to farm in groups to increase farm size and efficiencies.
• Voluntary Cooperation: Group farming should be voluntary, small, and based on trust with equitable sharing of costs and profits.
  • Example: Kudumbashree (Kerala): A successful model of group farming that yields higher productivity than individual farming.
• Livestock, Fisheries & Forests: Offer significant potential for growth and jobs.
  • Fisheries Growth: In 2022-23, fisheries grew by 10%, creating 28 million jobs (44% women).

Synergy with Non-Farm Sector

• Rural Incomes: 61% of rural incomes come from the non-farm sector.
• Linkages with Agro-Processing: Expanding farm-nonfarm linkages in sectors like agro-processing, eco-tourism, and machine tools can raise rural incomes and employment opportunities.

Conclusion

• Opportunity for Growth: Agriculture in India has the potential to become technologically advanced, environmentally sustainable, and institutionally innovative if old economic models are rethought and farming practices are modernized.