“Advancement in science-led technology, an enhanced role for the private sector in both pre and post-harvest phases, liberalised output markets, an active land lease market, and emphasis on efficiency will equip agriculture to address the challenges of the twenty-first century and contribute towards the goal of Viksit Bharat,” NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand said in his working paper, co-authored with Jaspal Singh, a consultant at the Aayog.
Elaborating on the need to liberalise the sectors, the paper has proposed providing a facilitating regulatory environment and responsible public and private investments in and for agriculture.
“This will enable introduction and promotion of knowledge and skill intensive practices within agriculture, private and corporate sector investments in agriculture, new institutions of producers, integrated food system-based mechanisms, and new types of linkages between producers and end users, which in turn will lead to modernisation of the sector,” the paper said.
Identifying lack of efficiency as a bottleneck in the growth of the sector, the paper recommends a shift in emphasis from growth to efficient growth which means a cost effective increase in production.
“This requires deployment of state-of-the-art technology in agriculture, smart farming and maximising the value of main and by-products,” it said.Further, it proposes to introduce a system of competition among states to improve “ease of doing farming and farm business”.According to the paper, agriculture will play a key role in India in achieving the goal of Viksit Bharat, inclusive development, green growth and gainful employment during Amrit Kaal.
In addition, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Agenda 2030 cannot be achieved without paying attention to agriculture, as 11 out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are directly linked to agriculture, it said.
Cautioning that the instrument of minimum support price (MSP) should not cause distortions in market signals, the paper suggests that India should use a combination of two instruments, namely procurement and price deficiency payment, to pay MSP to farmers.
“Public procurement should be linked to the quantity needed for the public distribution system, price stability and strategic stocks. Other than this, MSP in mandated crops should be implemented through price deficiency payment,” it added.
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