Dear Esteemed Members of the Media,
Would be most obliged if you could kindly and carry the press release (appended
below and also placed as attachment) in your esteemed newspapers.
Would be most obliged if you could kindly carry the same.The Marathi version
also is placed as an attachment.
With warm regards
John
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John S. Fernandes
Executive Officer - Goa State Office
Confederation of Indian Industry
502, Unitech City Center,
M. G. Road, Panaji, Goa 403 001
Tel: 0832 - 2422790 / 2422796 / 9822982979
e-mail: ciig...@dataone.in ; cii...@bsnl.in ;
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Before printing, think about ENVIRONMENTAL responsibility.
Agricultural Productivity: Transitioning from subsidy regime to technology and
open markets
By
Mr RakeshBharti Mittal, Chairman, CII National Council on Agriculture
And Vice Chairman & Managing Director, Bharti Enterprises Limited
Rejuvenating India's agriculture sector, which provides livelihood to nearly 60
percent of the workforce, needs to be made central to the inclusive growth
endeavour of the government. India's current policies for the agriculture
sector are geared towards short-term solutions and revenue expenditure rather
than long-term capital investment solutions. The dependence on subsidies
squeezes government spends on critical infrastructure, technology and credit,
in the absence of which farmers continue to use inefficient methods of
cultivation. Given the recent pressures of a fast growing population with
increasing food consumption levels, the need for increasing agricultural
productivity through technology infusion and market-led interventions is
gaining increasing urgency.
It is well-acknowledged that every rupee of contribution to GDP from farming is
twice as effective as other interventions in alleviating rural poverty.
Further, agriculture is an indirect growth driver, as a growth rate of 4percent
in agriculture translates into robust demand for other sectors. High
agriculture growth also helps mute food inflation, a key concern. For all these
reasons, agricultural productivity should be at the centre of the policy
matrix.
Yields per hectare of food grains, fruits and vegetables in India are far below
global averages. Our rice yields are at one-third of China, and at about half
the levels in Vietnam and Indonesia. Even India's most productive states lag
global averages. For example, Punjab's yield of rice in 2010 was 3.8 tonnes per
hectare as against the global average of 4.3 tonnes. The average yield for
apples grown in India (J&K) is about 11 MT/Acre compared to USA, New Zealand,
Israel or China, where yields range between 30-70 MT/Acre. This pattern is
typical of most of our agricultural commodities such as pulses and edible
oilseeds whose demand has been rising faster than supply, adding to food
inflation.
The substantial hikes in Minimum Support Price for rice and wheat in recent
years have distorted production patterns, resulting in loss of benefits of crop
diversification and inadequate focus on cash crops. Lack of crucial inputs such
as infrastructure, post-harvest linkages and technology further results in
losses across the supply chain. For example, gross capital formation in
agriculture and allied sectors has been below 3 percent for years.
The experience of other economies at similar stages of development is
instructive. Brazil, China, and several south-east Asian countries have
leveraged technology and instituted trade-friendly policies to bring in greater
private sector investments into agriculture. In India, where 80 percent of
landholdings are of less than 2 acres, it is essential to find economically
viable solutions to improve farmer incomes.
India has the capability to leverage existing crop technology or develop new
technologies for raising productivity and sustainable agricultural development.
Technologies for energy saving, environment protection, and satellite mapping
need to be also infused into the sector. All this would require high
investments.
Such investments can be attracted from the private sector, which has largely
remained outside the effort of agricultural capital expenditure. A number of
legal and policy interventions could help augment private investments. For
example, the Agriculture Produce Market Committees Act has yet to be revisited
in many states. Supply chain infrastructure creation such as warehousing, cold
storage, and rural roads, would also bring in private funds. India's storage
capacity falls short by some 15 million tonnes, leading to wastage of hundreds
of tonnes of food grain each year.
Private sector is capable of large-scale technology infusion. Precision
farming, which leverages information technology for matching inputs and
provides real-time information on soil, has been deployed to good use by the
Argentine group Los Grobos in an outsourcing structure. No-till farming is used
in place of ploughing in some countries, leaving residue of the last crop to
enrich the soil. Such new-age farming methods, if extensively propagated, can
transform production and yields.
It is, therefore, essential to raise public research in agriculture. Part of
Brazil's success in the sector owes to its high expenditure on agricultural
research at 1.7 percent of its GDP, higher than in China. Investment in R&D and
science-based technologies would greatly benefit India as well, which has 14
agri-climatic zones and potentially wide range of agri produce. Private
investment into agriculture R&D must be encouraged through incentives such as
tax breaks and availability of land and infrastructure.
Finally, trade-led agricultural development is something that must be
considered. While self-sufficiency has been the primary objective for
agriculture policy, export of agri-produce to other markets must be explored.
For example, countries such as Mexico and the Philippines have taken lead
positions in export of mangoes, one of India's trademark fruits. Agricultural
tariffs need rethinking in this context.
As the Indian economy expands, better productivity through technology infusion
and introduction of global best practices will ensure better quality and prices
for consumers. Also, Indian agriculture will be able to meet to the changing
needs of today's consumer and this will give major fillip to farmers to
diversify to high value cash crops. But most importantly, the true winner will
be the farmer, in particular the small and marginal farmer, who will be able to
improve his income through better productivity and be an equal partner in
India's growth.
Mr RakeshBharti Mittal
Chairman, CII National Council on Agriculture
And Vice Chairman & Managing Director, Bharti Enterprises Limited
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Protect Goa's natural beauty
Support Goa's first Tiger Reserve
Sign the petition at: http://www.goanet.org/petition/petition.php
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