A Four-Point Budget Wish List for Indian Agriculture

Income, climate, natural resources, and human resource crisis weigh on agriculture

- Pravesh Sharma

Four simultaneous crises have engulfed Indian agriculture. The first is an income crisis, with stagnant or falling incomes of farm households, which in turn has led to an investment crisis in agriculture. The second is a factor crisis, of rapidly degrading natural resources, especially soil and water. The third is the accelerating human resources crisis, as increasing numbers of rural youth lose faith in agriculture as a viable employment option and exit the village to seek alternative livelihoods in urban or even foreign locations. To add to this brew is the rapidly developing climate crisis, which threatens our hard-won food security, perhaps the most significant achievement since Independence.

Expecting solutions for legacy challenges through what is essentially an annual accounting statement of the Centre is unrealistic. However, given the unique nature of the Union budget it has become something of a national pastime to wade through the finance minister's speech for clues about the larger policy direction. Going beyond allocations to existing and a clutch of creatively named new schemes, here's a four-point wish list for a longer-term reset for agriculture.