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in 271 agricultural mandis. Further, Swachhta Action Plan has been prepared in which it was decided to make provision of Rs 10 lakh for each mandi for setting up waste management plants under e-Nam scheme. Agriculture ministry has decided to set up 150 seed hubs in country to increase production of pulses. Each hub produces 1000 quintal of quality seeds which will be provide to farmers.
Erasing the disconnect between farmers and market
The credit flow to the agriculture sector has been increased to 9.0 lakh crore and to reduce the pressure of loan on farmers, Rs 15,000 crore has been allocated for interest subvention. The centre is already providing 5 percent interest subsidy to the banks out of 9 percent being charged by them for agriculture loan. Ministry appealed to the state governments to provide remaining 4 % from their exchequer so that farmers can get agriculture loan at zero percent.
At the same time, Indian government has expressed commitment for the prosperity and welfare of farmers, and for this purpose, it says number of initiatives have been taken during last two and half year. Addressing the Regional Editors Conference in Chandigarh on October 18, 2016, the union agriculture and farmers welfare minister, Mr Radha Mohan Singh stated that to ensure better prices for the produce of farmers, government is working in connecting all agriculture mandis with a national platform and by next year all the 585 mandis will be connected to a common single market where farmers would be
able to sell their produce for better price. He said that direct benefits transfer to farmers under various scheme will also be made possible in near future.
Under Soil Health Card scheme, Rs 368.30 crore has been allocated this year compared to Rs 142 crore last year. Besides that an allocation of Rs 5500 crore in the year 2016-17 budget has been made under Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana which was are Rs 3,185 crore in the previous budget.
The Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure( AMI) scheme, capital investment subsidy at 25 percent of the capital cost for general category beneficiary and at 33.33 percent for special category beneficiary is provided for construction / creation of scientific godowns and other marketing infrastructure in the country. Under AMI scheme( storage component)( erstwhile GBY), up to June 30, 2016, a total of 37371 godown projects have been sanctioned for renovation / construction throughout the country. Further, under Private Entrepreneur Guarantee( PEG) Scheme, storage capacity of 134.83 lakh MT has been constructed.
The farmers through cooperatives and youth employment at the local level are being added, as well as through self-help groups of village women work towards selfsufficiency. The central and state governments are working together in this direction rapidly.
Way forward
Experts say that the inclusion of horticulture, pulses and other food crops in the overall focus is happening currently, which is a good step. Oilseeds production has increased even in dry belts of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat which too is being appreciated. But at the same time, getting vegetables from small holder farmers to market is missing, cold storages and transportation is not at par with the objectives. Therefore, the role of private players which can even include new startups as well, becomes highly relevant. Both the private and public investments will be required to see the change on ground.
While there can be debate on failures and successes of Indian agriculture system, the fact is that it is important to break shackles from past and move ahead to reclaim the lost glory. The modernization of machinery and right mix of agriculture policy with direct inputs from farmers is mandatory for the success of any scheme. Sustained efforts and participation of all the stakeholders can bring the change we look for.
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BioVoiceNews | November 2016