Indian Economy, 5th edition (40 page)

BOOK: Indian Economy, 5th edition
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There has been substantial increase in the
MSPs
of various crops over the last few years. Though considered necessary for incentivizing farmers, the MSP signals the floor price for the produce. There is a huge cost involved in the process, in the form of food subsidy. Further, this policy of stocking foodgrains well above the buffer norms comes under criticism on the grounds of hoarding and creating artificial shortages in the market, thereby jacking up the prices of essential commodities. Urgent attention needs to be accorded to efficient food stocks management, timely offloading of stocks, and a stable and predictable trade policy.


Strengthening
agricultural statistics
with reliable and timely availability of
forecasts of agricultural crops is also an immediate need as the gaps in agricultural statistics will hamper agricultural development planning and policymaking.

1.
Economic Survey 2012-13
, MoF, GoI, N. Delhi, p. 173; CSO, in its Feb. 2013 release, GoI, N. Delhi.

2.
Economic Survey 2012-13
, op. cit., p. 173.

3.
Labour Bureau,
GoI, N. Delhi, March 2012.

4.
Economic Survey 2011-12
, op. cit., p. 186.

5.
This corelation has been pointed out by many great economists in India since 1960s for example by
Prof. Raj Krishna (1976), S. Chakravarty (1974–79)
and
C. Rangarajan, 1982
to quote some of the most important names.

6.
Approach Paper to the Tenth Five Year Plan
, Planning Commission, GoI, N. Delhi, 2002.

7.
This was the general opinion of the experts throughout 1990s but the official document which accepted this contention was the
Foreign Trade Policy 2002-07
, Ministry of Commerce, GoI, N. Delhi. The view has been continued with by the GoI in all of its forthcoming trade policies.

8.
Economic Survey 2012-13
, op. cit., p. 174.

9.
Press Release
, Ministry of Agriculture, GoI, N. Delhi, May 4, 2012.

10.
Economic Survey 2011-12
, op. cit., p. 191.

11.
Indian Council of Agricultural Research
(ICAR), N. Delhi, 1998.

12.
India 2000 and Economic Survey 2000–01
, GoI, N. Delhi.

13.
Brundtland Report
on Sustainable Development after the deliberations at the summit
“Our Common future”,
1987.

14.
Rudolph, L.I and S.H. Rudolph,
In Pursuit of Lakshmi: The Political Economy of the Indian State,
Orient Longman, Bombay, 1987, pp. 45

50.

15.
This was the view of the majority of the experts around the world by the late 1960s.

16.
P.S. Appu,
Land Reforms in India: A Survey of Policy, Legislation and Implementation,
Land Reforms Unit, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussouri, 1995, pp. 232

33.

17.
India 2007,
op. cit.

18.
Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research
(CGIAR), World Bank, Washington DC, 1971.

19.
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre
(CIMMYT), Mexico, 1971.

20.
This made it compulsory to use highly concentrate chemical fertilisers, pushing the traditional organic fertilisers (i.e., composte) out of fashion.

21.
This was the reason why the GR was implemented firstly in the rainfall deficient regions of India i.e., Haryana, Punjab and western Uttar Pradesh.

22.
India 2002,
Pub. Div., GoI, N. Delhi.

23.
Various
Economic Surveys,
specially 1985

86 to 1994

86 to 1994

95, GoI, N. Delhi.

24.
Based on various empirical studies in the 1990s conducted separately by
Vandana Shiva, C.H. Hanumantha Rao, ICAR, Planning Commission, etc.

25.
New Agricultural Strategy,
GoI, N. Delhi, 1966.

26.
India–2007.

27.
India–2007.

28.
Revised Buffer Stocking Policy,
GoI, 2006.

29.
Economic Survey 2011–12
, op. cit, p. 197.

30.
Economic Survey, 2011–12,
op. cit.

31.
Economic Survey
, 2011–12, op. cit, p. 198.

32.
Economic Survey
, 2011-12, op. cit, p. 195.

33.
India–2007
&
India-2010

34.
Rakesh Mohan, '
Agricultural Credit in India: Status, Issues and Future Agenda
', from his lecture delivered at the
17th National Conference of Agricultural Marketing
, Indian Society of Agricultural Marketing, Hyderabad, February 5, 2004 [Rakesh Mohan was the then Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India]

35.
Known as the Unregulated Credit Market.

36.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 199.

37.
Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET),
ICAR, Ministry of Agriculture, GoI, Ludhiana, Study released in September, 2011.

38.
Planning Commission,
GoI, N. Deli, 1961.

39.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 190.

40.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 190.

41.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 190.

42.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 190-191.

43.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 191-192.

44.
Economic Survey 2011-12,
op. cit., p. 192.

45.
Economic Survey 2000–01,
MoF, GoI, N. Delhi.

46.
New Agriculture Policy has been described as “Rainbow Revolution” which includes the following revolutions:

Green (Food Grain Production), White (Milk), Yellow (Oil seeds), Blue (Fisheries), Red (Meat/Tomato), Golden (Fruits-Apple), Grey (Fertiliser), Black/Brown (Non-conventional Energy Sources), Silver (Eggs) and Round (Potato).

The above Rainbow Revolution also includes “Food Chain Revolution” to put a check on destroying foodgrains, vegetables and fruits.

47.
Economic Survey 2011–12,
MoF, GoI, N. Delhi.

48.
Economic Survey 2011–12,
MoF, GoI, N. Delhi.

49.
Economic Survey 2006–07,
op. cit.

50.
India 2010 & 2011,
Pub. Division, N Delhi, P. 379.

51.
Economic Survey 2004–05,
MoF, GoI, N. Delhi.

52.
India 2005,
GoI, N. Delhi.

53.
Economic Survey 1999–2000,
op. cit.

54.
MANAGE
was established in 1987, as the
National Centre for Management of Agricultural Extension
at Hyderabad, by the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India as an autonomous Institute, from which its acronym
‘MANAGE’
is derived. In recognition of its importance and expansion of activities all over the country, its status was elevated to that of a National Institute in 1992 and re-christened to its present name i.e., National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management.

MANAGE is the Indian response to challenges of agricultural extension in a rapidly growing and diverse agriculture sector. The policies of liberalization and globalization of the economy and the level of agricultural technology becoming more sophisticated and complex, called for major initiatives towards reorientation and modernization of the agricultural extension system. Effective ways of managing the extension system needed to be evolved and extension organizations enabled to transform the existing set up through professional guidance and training of critical manpower. MANAGE is the response to this imperative need.

55.
Prime Minister’s Council on Climate Change (PMCCC)
approved the Mission in September 2010 and the Ministry of Agriculture initiated activities under the Mission in 2011-12.

56.
As per M.S. Swaminathan, Dr. A.P.S. Abdul Klam, P.S. Paroda, ICAR, etc.

57.
This kind of farming had already commenced in the Euro-American economies by the 1980s. However, the concept gained popularity by the early 1970s in the wake of environmental pollution due to rapid industrialisation.
The Brundtland Report on Sustainable Development
(1987) gave the ultimate boost.

58.
Some of the known potential which the agro-scientists are in the process of speedier implementation are—7 to 8 times potential of increasing productivity of the foodgrains; drought and flood resistant seed development; pest-resistant seeds; hybrid seeds like
‘pomato’
; new bio-fertilisers and bio-pesticides; etc., All these new technologies initiated into the agricultural practices will not only boost the production but cut the costs enabling India to have
economic reach
to food being with the eco-friendly methods of farming.

As the question of
food security
is a matter of immediate concern for countries like India and China, the onus of popularising the genetically modified foods (GMFs) remains on them. That is why we see these two countries allowing the use of the GMFs in recent years.

59.
Economic Survey 2006–07,
op. cit. 

60.
India 2007,
(op. cit.) might be seen for details.

61.
Ministry of Agriculture, Government of Punjab, June 2004, Chandigadh.

62.
General Agreement on Trade and Tariff (GATT) was a multi-lateral arrangement (not an
organisation
like WTO whose deliberations are binding on the member countries) promoting multi-lateral world trade. Now the GATT has been replaced by the WTO (
since Jan. 1995
).

63.
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) was set up as a world body of the developed economies from the Euro-American region which today includes countries from Asia, too (such as Japan, S. Korea). The first idea of ‘globalisation’ was proposed by the OECD in the early 1980s at one of its Annual Meet (
at Brussels
).

64.
Merchandise trade does not include services.

65.
Economic Survey 1994–95, MoF, GoI, N. Delhi.

66.
NCAER Survey
headed by its chairman Rakesh Mohan, GoI, 1994.

67.
The challenges and their possible remedies discussed in this sub-topic are based on some of the finest and timely debates and articles which appeared in many renowned journals and newspapers between the period 1994–2007. For better understanding of the readers only the consensual as well as the less-complex parts have been provided here.

68.
Almost 50 per cent of the Indian population spends 75 per cent of its total income on the purchase of foodgrains—this is why their standard of life and nutrition depends on the indigenously grown food in a great way. Once the self-sufficiency is lost their lives will depend upon the
diplomatic uncertainties
of its regular supply. It will have serious political outcomes for the political scenario of India. Similarly, irregular supply of the foodgrains will create a high ethical dilemma, too.

69.
Farmers might go for highly repetitive kind of cropping pattern creating problems for soil fertility, water crisis, etc. This will have highly adverse effects on the agriculture insurance companies, too.

70.
The primary examples of corporate and contract farming have given enough hints that economically weaker sections of society have meagre chances of benefitting from the globalisation of agriculture—with major profits going to the corporate houses. Naturally, the governments (centre and states) will need to come up with highly effective policies which could take care of the economic interests of the masses.

The policies may focus on areas such as
healthcare, education, insurance, housing, social security,
etc. Already the governments have started emphasising the delivery and performance of the
social sector
but in the future, more focused and accountable programmes in the sector will be required.

71.
Some of the developed economies are still forwarding subsidies to the agricultural areas to the tune of 180–220 per cent! Again, the justification for such high subsidies have been provided by defining agriculture subsidies according to their ease—highly blurring and confusing.

72.
Because even the agriculture related provisions are modified the global market will always run after the agri-products which are the best—pricewise, qualitywise, etc.

73.
A simplified and ‘easy-to-understand’ analysis done on the basis of the documents of the
Information and Media Relations Division
of the World Trade Organisation Secretariat, Geneva, Switzerland, October, 2007.

74.
Defined in
Article 1
and
Annexures 3 & 4,
Agreement on Agriculture (AoA), WTO, 1994.

75.
Article 6.2, AoA
, WTO, 1994.

76.
Article 6, AoA
, WTO, 1994.

77.
Article 6
,
Para 5
AoA, WTO, 1994.

78.
Annexure 2, AoA
, and
Para 1
AoA, WTO, 1994.

79.
Annexure 2, AoA
, AoA, WTO, 1994.

80.
Basically, a large part of this box is used by the farmers in the USA and the European Union as basic investments in agriculture. India as well as other like-minded countries have this view and want this box to be brought under the AMS i.e. under the reduction commitments. The USA at the Hongkong Ministerial meet (December 2005) announced to abolish such subsidies in the next 12 year commencing 2008. The EU also proposed to reduce its ‘trade distorting subsidies’ by 70 per cent. None of them used the name green box which shows some internal vagueness.

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