Agriculture

Question 1

Important stats

Answer 1

It’s contribution to national income has gradually decreased from 18.2% in 2014-15 to 17.8% in 2019-20 (CSO)

Within agriculture, the share of crops has fallen from 11.2% in 2014-15 to 9.4% in 2018-19. This decline is made up by increase in livestock and fisheries

Workforce employed - 49% (ES 2020)

Net sown area - 140 million hectares, gross - 198, cropping intensity - 142%

Irrigated area - 48%

Average landholding - 1.08 hectares with 86% having less than 2 hectares

According to the agricultural census, 73.2% of rural women are engaged in farming activities but only 12.8% own landholdings

Despite COVID, agriculture sector showed a growth of 3.4% in 2020-21

Question 2

Land use patterns

Answer 2

Average landholding reduced from 2.28 hectares in 1970-71 to 1.08 hectares in 2015-16

Constrains

1. Restrictive leasing
2. Small sized holdings
3. Absence of conclusive land records

Strategies to maximize use

1. Agricultural (contract farming, cooperative farming, terrace farming, Land leasing)
2. Industrial (Land bank, land pooling, floor space index, rail-road bridges)

Question 3

Agriculture overview

Answer 3

Main problems

• Low share of farmer: The Dalwai Committee on Doubling Farmers’ Income has pointed out that the share of farmers in consumer’s price is very low; it generally varies from 15 to 40 per cent.
• Lack of warehousing and storage: Cold storage units exist in less than one- tenth of the markets. Post-harvest losses of various commodities ranged from 6 to 18 per cent.
• Lack of transportation facilities: Almost 40 per cent of all fruits and vegetables are lost annually in India between the grower and the consumer mainly due to lack of storage facilities, a weak transportation system and bad roads.
• Lack of Uniformity in grading and standardization: Open auction platforms exist only in two-thirds of the regulated markets. Grading facilities in less than one-third; electronic weigh-bridges are available only in a few markets.
• Lack of Market information.
• Inadequate research on marketing.

Question 4

Climate change and agriculture

Answer 4

Agriculture is responsible for almost 30% of GHG emissions and for a major chunk of deforestation

According to Economic Survey 2018, India incurs losses of about 9-10bn$ annually due to extreme weather events

India is ranked 14th on the Global Climate Risk Index 2019 and has 120 million hectares suffering from degradation

Climate Smart Agriculture(CSA) has 3 objectives - sustainably increasing agriculture productivity, adapting and building resilience to climate change and reducing GHGs wherever possible

Seawater farming as done in Kuttanad in Kerala

Question 5

Optimal agri policy

Answer 5

On production front
The best policy is to increase expenditure on R&D. ideal expenditure is 1% of agri GDP and India spends half that

Even though poultry and fisheries do not enjoy any MSP, their production is about 40% of the total agri GDP in 2019-20 and are growing at a much faster pace

On marketing front

On consumer end

Question 6

Farm incomes

Answer 6

Agriculture employs nearly 49% of the population, but contributes to just 16.5% of the GDP.

NABARD’ rural financial inclusion survey found that agriculture households’ average monthly income is 8900, of which only 3100 is from agriculture cultivation and the rest from livestock, wage labour, MGNREGA etc.

PM KISAN

Ashok Dalwai Committee on doubling farm incomes

Question 7

Farm loan waiver

Answer 7

Debt overhang is a situation where all income is used to pay accumulated debt.
- In such a situation, farmer loses all motivation

Enumerate issues and suggest alternatives

Question 8

Land reforms

Answer 8

Land reforms refers to policy changes relating to ownership, operation, leasing, sales and inheritance

Forms

1. Abolition of intermediaries
2. Ceiling on holdings
3. Tenancy reforms
4. Consolidation of holdings

Question 9

Crop diversification

Answer 9

According to FAO, 66% area is under just 9 crops, especially rice and wheat occupy majority of that

Decline in coarse cereals like jowar, bakes, ragi, millets. Total area in 1950- 48%, in 2016 -25%

Rice and sugarcane consume more than 60% of the irrigated water in the country while occupying just around 24% of the total gross cropped area

Staple crops vs HVCs - Area is 77% and 19%, output is 41% and 40% respectively

Water crisis - As per the Niti Aayog, around 600 million Indians are facing high-to- extreme water stress
- India’s agricultural sector accounts for 89 percent of groundwater extraction for irrigation purposes, but contributes only 15 percent to the country’s GDP.

Low fertilizer response ratio

STEPS

1. RKVY-RAFTAAR - to make farming remunerative by mitigating risk and promoting agribusiness entrepreneurship in agri and allied sector
2. Mera Pani Meri Virasat scheme by Haryana provide incentives of Rs.7000 per acre for farmers to switch from paddy

Question 10

Horticulture

Answer 10

Horticulture is the cultivation, production and sale of vegetables, fruits, flowers, herbs, ornamental or exotic plants

Horticulture crop production (313 MT in 2018-19) has overtaken food grains production(285
MT). Horticulture accounts for 30% of agri GDP from 18.5% of cropped area

STEPS

1. Mission on integrated development of horticulture - funds for developmental programs in horticulture
2. TOP scheme (Operation Greens) - component for developing market intelligence and post harvest storage - extended to all fruits and vegetables

Question 11

Oil seeds

Answer 11

Edible oil imports account for 70% of total domestic requirement and is the highest component of
food imports (75000 crores annually)

Steps

1. National Mission on Oil seeds and oil palms
2. PM AASHA for procurement of oilseeds

Question 12

Agroforestry

Answer 12

It is defined as a land use system which integrates trees and shrubs on farmlands and rural landscapes to increase productivity, profitability, diversity and sustainability

Produces food, fodder, fuel and timber - tree based systems produce lac, gum, resins and products of medicinal value

Promotes productive and resilient cropping and farming environments

65% of country’s timber requirement is met from trees grown on farms

Steps

1. National Agroforestry policy
2. Har Medh par pedi campaign (trees on every field boundary)

Question 13

Precision agriculture

Answer 13

It is an approach to farm management that uses information technology (IT) to ensure that the crops and soil receive exactly what they need for optimum health and productivity.
–inputs are utilised in precise amounts to get increased average yields, compared to traditional cultivation techniques.

In India

1. ICAR project Sensagri - sensor based smart agri
2. • A pilot project KISAN+ - use of high resolution remote sensing data, sophisticated modelling activity and other geospatial technology for improving the accuracy of crop yield estimation

Question 14

Making Indian food systems sustainable

Answer 14

legacy incentives that reinforce unsustainable practices must be realigned (subsidies on power, water and fertilizer, MSP)

Policy focus on crop diversification also demands a robust value chain with components like processing facilities closer to the farm gate; and collectivizing small farms to offset scale disadvantages through cooperatives, FPOs etc.

Investment in R&D will play a key role by developing suitable crop varieties with desired traits like yield, climate resilience and nutritional qualities

Schemes like PDS, ICDS, MDMS can be leveraged as delivery channels for healthier and nutritious foods to reach a wide spectrum of population

Question 15

Cropping pattern and water

Answer 15

India’s cropping pattern is highly skewed towards water intensive crops such as sugarcane in Maharashtra, paddy in North West India, which are among the most water stressed regions

Reasons and impact

Economic Survey 2018-19 suggests a transition from land productivity to irrigation water productivity

Question 16

APMC

Answer 16

The marketing of agricultural commodities is governed by APMC Act

Issues

1. Limited access - High variation of density varying from 118 sq.km in Punjab and 11,214 sq.km in Meghalaya
2. • High incidence of market charges amounting up to 6-15% for some crops in Delhi
3. According to CIPHET Report, annual harvest and post harvest losses of major food grains is 4.5-6%
4. Lack of Uniformity in grading and standardization: Open auction platforms exist only in two-thirds of the regulated markets. Grading facilities in less than one-third; electronic weigh-bridges are available only in a few markets.

Question 17

e-NAM

Answer 17

Farmer producer organizations (FPOs) are a type of producer organizations where farmers are shareholders, and which deal with business activities related to the primary produce

There are around 7000 FPOs in the country. 50% are in mobilization stage only

Problems

1. FPOs have to raise working capital at very high rates as they are not seen as profitable ventures
2. Inadequate access to infrastructure required for aggregation like transport, storage, value addition(primary processing, grading, sorting etc.), brand building and marketing

Union Budget 2019-20 announced creation of 10,000 new FPOs in the next 5 years

Question 18

FPOs

Answer 18

Farmer producer organizations (FPOs) are a type of producer organizations where farmers are shareholders, and which deal with business activities related to the primary produce

There are around 7000 FPOs in the country. 50% are in mobilization stage only

Problems

1. FPOs have to raise working capital at very high rates as they are not seen as profitable ventures
2. Inadequate access to infrastructure required for aggregation like transport, storage, value addition(primary processing, grading, sorting etc.), brand building and marketing

Union Budget 2019-20 announced creation of 10,000 new FPOs in the next 5 years

Question 19

e-NAM

Answer 19

e-NAM aims to connect the mandis across the country, paving the way for a unified market

• Market integration over time and space is needed for market efficiency
• e-NAM removes information asymmetry between buyers and sellers and help in real time price discovery

Steps
1. Budget 2020 - Negotiable warehouse receipts will be integrated with e-NAM. It will help merchants buy NWR from e-NAM portal

Issues

1. Many states haven’t connected their mandis to portal (only 18 did)
2. Unlike face to face transactions, remote trading happens on the basis of certified quality. Mandis lacking grading and assaying facilities is a huge bottleneck
3. Only 1% of money is routed through DBT till 2020, where 100% direct transfers is integral(because of states’ reluctance)

Question 20

Agri exports

Answer 20

India’s share in global agricultural export is 2.5%. Exports contribute to 13% of Agricultural GDP. Top agriculture and related exports are marine products, basmati rice, buffalo meat, spices, raw cotton, oil meals, sugar and tea

Challenges

1. Poor logistics connectivity: Congestion at the ports due to high waiting periods of shipment, lack of proper road connectivity to the hinterland, volatile freight rates etc. increases the cost and also becomes critical in case of perishable exports. (example of dense points)
2. Need for special freezer coaches by railways, cluster approach for value addition and increasing shelf life
3. Absence of market information and global market linkages: Poor market intelligence, in terms of consumer preference, dynamic monitoring of market share, qualitative feedback, etc. in the target export market are also a constraint.

Steps

1. Agricultural export policy
2. SAMPADA scheme
3. Transporting and Marketing Assistance (TMA) scheme under which govt reimburses some of freight charges to offset higher cost disadvantage

Question 21

Land leasing

Answer 21

Land leasing is a contract between landowner and cultivator, who uses the land for a specified period of time for agriculture and allied activities

At present, several states don’t allow it, due to which

1. Informal tenancy
2. Farmers keeping land fallow

NITI Aayog Model Agricultural land leasing Act

1. Protections for both
2. Unutilized capital investment is returned
3. No adverse possession of land
4. Dispute settlements through land tribunal

Question 22

Land acquisition

Answer 22

Land acquisition Act 2013

1. compensation is to be 4 times market value in rural areas and 2 times market value in urban areas
2. Mandatory consent of at least 70% for PPP projects, 80% for private projects
3. A social Impact Assessment needs to be conducted

Issues with it (enumerate)

Question 23

Optimal marketing policy

Answer 23

Agriculture marketing includes all the activities, agencies and policies involved in the procurement of farm inputs by the farmers and movement of agricultural products from farms to consumers. It plays the following important roles

1. Optimization of resource use and output management
2. Increase in farm incomes by cutting down the middlemen
3. Growth of agro-based industry
4. Adoption and spread of new technology

Desired outcomes

1. Market linked farming i.e. moving away from overseeing flow of produce(farm to consumer) towards enabling flow of market linked information(form to farm)
2. To direct and crystallize demand, for making agricultural trade more productive, effective and efficient

Types of markets

1. Direct markets - Rythu Bazaar of Telangana
2. Private wholesale market
3. Organized retailing e.g. SAFAL - direct transaction through farmer associations

Question 24

Contract farming

Answer 24

Contract farming is agricultural production based on agreement between a buyer and a farmer. The contract contains the price and quality at which the buyer will buy the product from farmer thus shielding them from market fluctuations

Successes so far

1. SHGs are being formed by corporate firms which provide loan to each farmer at a discounted rate. E.g. Tata power training SHGs in agricultural activities in Gujarat
2. linked Indian farmers to global supply chains, particularly high value horticulture produce
3. PepsiCo installed state of the art tomato processing plant in Punjab and helped farmers by providing expertise on tomato farming with focus on high yields and other desirable characteristics like colour, viscosity etc.
4. Ugar’s barley contract farming model in Karnataka where farmers are asked to grow barley instead of water intensive sugar crops

Question 25

Farm laws

Answer 25

3 laws
Need
1. India’s aggregate food demand has fallen below production necessitating exports to prevent prices from crashing. But, we are sitting on 60l tonnes of sugar, 70mn tonnes of wheat and rice above buffer stock norms
2. India’s agri exports are becoming difficult to push and imports are becoming attractive as domestic prices are higher than international prices

Question 26

Crop diversification

Answer 26

According to FAO, 66% area is under just 9 crops, especially rice and wheat occupy majority of that

Decline in coarse cereals like jowar, bakes, ragi, millets. Total area in 1950- 48%, in 2016 -25%

Rice and sugarcane consume more than 60% of the irrigated water in the country while occupying just around 24% of the total gross cropped area

Staple crops vs HVCs - Area is 77% and 19%, output is 41% and 40% respectively

Water crisis - As per the Niti Aayog, around 600 million Indians are facing high-to- extreme water stress
- India’s agricultural sector accounts for 89 percent of groundwater extraction for irrigation purposes, but contributes only 15 percent to the country’s GDP.

Low fertilizer response ratio

STEPS

1. RKVY-RAFTAAR - to make farming remunerative by mitigating risk and promoting agribusiness entrepreneurship in agri and allied sector
2. Mera Pani Meri Virasat scheme by Haryana provide incentives of Rs.7000 per acre for farmers to switch from paddy

Question 27

Horticulture

Answer 27

Horticulture is the cultivation, production and sale of vegetables, fruits, flowers, herbs, ornamental or exotic plants

Horticulture crop production (313 MT in 2018-19) has overtaken food grains production(285
MT). Horticulture accounts for 30% of agri GDP from 18.5% of cropped area

STEPS

1. Mission on integrated development of horticulture - funds for developmental programs in horticulture
2. TOP scheme (Operation Greens) - component for developing market intelligence and post harvest storage - extended to all fruits and vegetables

Question 28

Oil seeds

Answer 28

Edible oil imports account for 70% of total domestic requirement and is the highest component of
food imports (75000 crores annually)

Steps

1. National Mission on Oil seeds and oil palms
2. PM AASHA for procurement of oilseeds

Question 29

PDS

Answer 29

NFSA - 2013 - 75% of rural ppl, 50% of urban are entitled to benefits - 5kg grains per person at subsidized rates

It is a social net and is supplemental and not intended to make available entire requirement of any of the commodities distributed

Issues

1. Storage losses and transportation losses - increase storage capacity, rat control measures, periodic inspections. 50,000 crore loss a year according to ICAR
2. Identification of beneficiaries - Use of outdated 2011 census data is resulting in exclusion of nearly 10 crore beneficiaries (Jean Dreze) - The no. of beneficiaries was frozen in 2013
3. Good quality grains are replaced with poor quality ones - Shanta Kumar committee put leakages at 40-50%
4. Huge food subsidy bill - subsidy amount + loans taken by FCI for food subsidy is nearly 2 lakh crore in 2019-20. For 2020-21, this amount is 4.23 lakh crore owing to covid

Recent reforms

1. Digitization of almost all 23 crore ration cards
2. Seeding of ration cards with Aadhar, installation of POS machines at fair price shops
3. One Nation One ration card scheme

Recommendations

1. NITI Aayog recommended reducing it to 60-40 from 75-50, owing to increased per capita income from 2011, saving 47,000 crores annually
2. ES 2020 recommended conditional cash transfer (food stamps) - poor families are given money to buy food grains from market
3. Revision of CIP as it is frozen at Rs. 2 and 3 for wheat and rice from 2013

Way forward

1. Reforms like end to end computerization, digitization of data of ration cardholders, seeding of Aadhar and automation of FPS must be done
2. Reducing the government bill by reducing the number of beneficiaries, putting a slab system, using nudge (give it up, similar to LPG) etc.

Question 30

FCI

Answer 30

It’s primary duty is to undertake purchase, storage, movement, transport, distribution and sale of food grains

1. The grain stocks are often far more than double the buffer stock norms - 97mt in June 2020 against buffer requirement of 41mt
   
   • The economic cost of that excess grain is more than 1.8lakh crore - dead capital locked in without much purpose
2. The real bill of food subsidy is not reflected in the central government budget as FCI is asked to borrow from the market, which is touching Rs. 3 lakh crore
3. High storage losses - 57,000 tonnes of food grains stored in FCI godowns got damaged in the last 5 years (MoCA)

Shanta Kumar Committee

1. FCI should outsource it’s stocking operations to private sector
2. Shanta Kumar committee put leakages at 40-50% and suggested end to end computerization and DBT to check this

Question 31

Food security

Answer 31

FAO defines food security as the situation where all people at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life

DPSP - Art 47. Raising level of nutrition and standard of living and improvement of public health

2 dimensions - Quantitative and qualitative

Question 32

One Nation One ration card scheme

Answer 32

the benefits under PDS will be made portable. i.e. one can buy food grains at fair price shops anywhere in India and not just their residence

• It will identify beneficiaries through biometric authentication using POS machines
• A migrant will be allowed to buy up to 50% of family allowance

Concerns

1. Aadhar authentication - At present, only around 85% of ration cards are seeded with Aadhar, leaving a significant population behind
2. E-PoS Machines - Only about 50% of FPS have e-PoS machines

Question 33

Essential Commodities Act

Answer 33

It provides for the control of production, supply, distribution, trade and commerce in any farm
good deemed essential in the interest of the general public
- The Act empowers the Centre to order states to impose stock limits and bring hoardersto task, in order to increase supplies and cool prices.

Issues

1. The policy is skewed in favor of consumers and against farmers. The food inflation stayed below non food inflation for 30 months now and there is a huge agrarian distress
2. • ECA limits once put in place take time to readjust and farmers lose out
   • Pulse exports ban order from 2015 was still in place even when there is record production in 2016-17
3. ES 2020 - 76000+ raids are conducted, but only 3000 traders penalized. It hints that raids are misused for bribery and harassment

Amended under Farm laws

1. The limits under ECA will only be imposed in extraordinary circumstances
2. Even when limits are imposed, they are not applicable if it’s under processing capacity or export capacity

Question 34

Making MSP a legal right

Answer 34

There are two ways of doing it - Forcing the private purchasers to pay MSP(similar to sugar purchasers) and government procuring all the crop at MSP

1. private players may refuse to buy if the demand is not there, ultimately hurting the farmers
2. Government procuring will jack up costs to astronomical levels - marketable surplus of 20 main crops at MSP was 7.52 lakh crore in 2019-20
   - Coverage of MSP doesn’t extend to fruits, vegetables and livestock which have 45% of share in output
   - Inadequate physical storage capacity (only about 30% of marketable surplus)
   - - It will overcomplicate and ruin the market(make it uncompetitive) similar to the case with sugar

Question 35

DBT

Answer 35

J-PAL study on DBT in some cities has shown better implementation rates and beneficiary satisfaction

Question 36

MSP

Answer 36

It is the minimum price at which government buys the notified produce from farmers so they are
assured a remunerative price if market rates crash

open ended procurement policy

Problems

1. Two unintended negative impacts; one is growth in agriculture is not dictated by demand of economy, other is persistent inflation
2. Built up inefficiencies and distorted cropping patterns
3. • Bias in favor of surplus states - 95% of wheat procurement from Punjab and Haryana
   • Share of Punjab in paddy production is 11%, but it’s share in procurement is 25% in 2018-19 whereas WB had 13% share in production and only 4.5% in procurement

Deciding MSP - on 23 crops by CACP - 50% over A2+FL

Question 37

Subsidies

Answer 37

Providing subsidies and incentivizing agriculture is essential as the farm sector engages over 50% of the country’s population

• In 2019-20, Govt. spent 2.77 lakh crore on farm subsidies
• Public expenditure on agriculture has declined from 3.9% of agri GDP in 1980-81 to 2.2% in 2014-15

-Economic rationale and social justice rationale

Negative consequences

• as inputs costs doesn’t represent adequate market costs, farmers are unable to respond to market signals
• Dalwai Committee on doubling farmers’ income has noted that subsidy driven agriculture systems are not sustainable

Subsidies vs capital investment

• According to ICRIER, every rupee spent on agricultural research and development yields better returns (11.2), compared to returns on every rupee spent on fertiliser subsidy (0.88), power subsidy (0.79)
• As against subsidies, public money spent on capital investment is expected to be almost 5 to 10 times more successful in terms of the number of people brought out of income poverty.

Question 38

Credit

Answer 38

Given the large proportion of resource constrained small and marginal farmers in India, timely availability of adequate credit is fundamental for the success of farming activities

In 2011-12, the agri credit target was 4.75l crore; In 2020-21, it’s 15l crore with a subsidy of 21,000 crore

Mechanisms

1. Priority sector lending (18% - 8% for small and marginal farmers)
2. Kisan Credit card
3. Interest subvention scheme
4. SHG - bank linkage

Issues

1. Share of informal credit still stands at 28%
2. Small and marginal farmers (86%) are receiving only 15% of subsidized credit while large farmers and agri business companies are getting 79%
3. Poor deployment of credit to allied activities : only 6-7% of credit is disbursed for allied activities while it’s share in Agri GDP is ~40%.
4. ISS providing short term credit - no capital investment
5. In some states like Kerala, TN, AP, Punjab etc. agri. Credit is higher than agri. GDP, indicating diversion of loans
6. ES 2020 found share of NE states is <2% in total agro loans while southern region gets 40%

Question 39

Insurance

Answer 39

PMFBY

1. Uniform premium of 2% for Kharif crops, 1.5 for Rabi and 5% for horticultural crops. The balance will be paid by center and state governments
2. During 2018-19, about 5.64 crore farmers were enrolled with PMFBY
3. It was compulsory for loanee farmers but now voluntary

Issues

1. Declining farmer enrollments - about 15% fall from 2016 to 2017
2. Crop rejection claims rose by a whopping 900% from 2017-18 to 2019-20
3. Many states are defaulting on premium payments and farmers are not getting their claims as a result (For some states, expenditure on premium of PMFBY is more than 50% of their budget for agriculture)
4. Central govt reduced it’s premium subsidy to 25% for irrigated areas and 30% for non irrigated areas (That means if premium subsidy is more than 30%, Centre won’t support it at all)

Steps

• Appointment of district level grievance redressal officer for fast redressal of grievances
• States have been allowed to set up their own insurance companies for implementing the scheme

Question 40

Extension services

Answer 40

Agriculture extension is the application of scientific research and new knowledge to agricultural practices through farmer education
- Just 0.7% of agricultural GDP is spent on agricultural research and education (12th Planning Commission)

Objectives of extension

Need
- 2 levels of yield gaps - b/w best scientific practices and best field practices, b/w best field practices and average farmer (NITI Aayog)

Steps

1. National Mission on Agricultural Extension & Technology (NMAET). - media support, melas, Kisan Call centers
2. Krishi Vigyan Kendras - to facilitate farmer’s access to agricultural technology at district level
3. Kisan TV, Kisan Suvidha app etc.

Challenges
According to NSSO survey, 60% of Indian farmers do not get much agricultural technical assistance from govt institutes. So, they rely on progressive farmers, media and private sellers of seeds, fertilizers etc. who may not give them unbiased advice

Way forward
NITI Aayog recommended Market led extension : give priority to extension services that give information about crop selection, demand for and supply of produce, expected price and availability of infra like storage, transportation and marketing
1. focus on on-ground absorption of technology, market intelligence and skills
2. - District level skill mapping and coordination with skill development missions to impart required skills to farmers and agri laborers

Scientists mainly focus on increasing yields. They must also focus on improving aroma, taste, appearance, nutrients etc. to appeal to wealthy consumers/foreign consumers

Question 41

Seeds

Answer 41

As per Input Survey, only 9.4 percent used certified seeds
- Focus on R&D, product development, supply chain management and quality assurance.

Challenges - dependence on traditional varieties and low seed replacement rate

Steps

1. Seeds bill to regulate quality, mandatory certification etc.
2. Seed village concept
3. seed bank

Way forward

1. NITI Aayog recommends states to aim for seed replacement ratio of 33%.
2. Mandatory certification through proper lab procedure for all seeds

Question 42

Fertilizers

Answer 42

Govt spends almost 80,000crore on fertilizer subsidy, if which 53,600 crores is for urea alone (urea gets almost 75% subsidy)

Issues

1. Diversion, hoarding, black marketing and excessive use of urea
2. Urea imports are canalized
3. Urea is heavily subsidized and is hence overused. In 2010, the ratio of N:P:K used in farms was 8:3:1 where the ideal ratio is 4:2:1, giving a low fertilizer response ratio, degrading the soil, and underground water
4. Only 25% discount for P,K which incentivizes farmers to use them less and more urea
5. No new investment in production as prices are capped - Even Tatas exited the space

Steps

1. Neem coated urea -to slow down release of nutrients and check diversion
2. Transfer of subsidies conditional upon sale to farmers registered on POS machines
3. DBT
4. Soil Health card scheme

Way forward

1. Gas price pooling
2. Bringing urea under NBS
3. Moving towards cash transfers on per hectare basis

Question 43

Mechanization

Answer 43

It means higher usage of combine harvesters, land levelers, tractors, reapers, threshers, trolleys etc. India has a low mechanization of 40% compared to 60% in China and 95% in USA (ES 2020)

Challenges - most farmers are small and can’t afford, customized machinery for Indian soil needing R&D

Steps
1. Krishnnonati Yojana has a sub mission on Agricultural mechanization to increase availability of farm machines to small and marginal farmers

Way forward

1. Consolidation of land holdings
2. need to innovate custom service or a rental model by institutionalization for high cost farm machinery such as combine harvester

Question 44

Irrigation

Answer 44

Only 68 mha out of 141 mha crop area is irrigated (about 48%). Irrigation potential is around 107 mha (ICAR)

• Water use efficiency is just 38%
• Groundwater contributes about 64%, canals 23% and tanks 2% to irrigation. This is primarily due to skewed incentive policy of free power

Importance

1. High risk in dependence on monsoon
2. Assured irrigation encourages farmers to invest more in farming technology and inputs leading to productivity enhancement and increased farm income

Canal irrigation

1. Least efficient system - silting, seepage losses, evaporative losses, submergence of lands etc.
2. Command area development program to encourage farmers to use canal waters - development of on field activities(field channels, level long and grading)
3. Under use - total installed potential is 90-100 mha but actual usage 70-80mha

Traditional systems - Tanka in Rajasthan, Kuls in HP, Tanks in Karnataka

Modern systems - Rainwater harvesting, watershed development, drip irrigation

Govt steps

1. PMKSY - Har Khet ko pani, Accelerated Irrigation Benefit program, watershed development, per drop more crop
2. DDUGGY - feeder separation

Question 45

Water use efficiency

Answer 45

India has 17% of world’s population, but only 4% of freshwater reserves, out of which 80% is used in agriculture alone
- 90% of extracted ground water is used for agriculture

ES 2019 suggests a move from land productivity to irrigation water productivity, emphasizing on more crop per drop, more nutrition per drop etc.

• Israel has world’s best water management system which uses drip irrigation, desalination and recycling - 87% of it’s urban waste water is being recycled and used for agriculture

Question 46

Micro irrigation

Answer 46

India accommodates more than 17% of the world population and only 4% of fresh water resources, out of which around 80% is used in agriculture alone. This calls for efficient irrigation technologies to increase water productivity.

Micro irrigation refers to drip irrigation and sprinkler irrigation. In micro irrigation, water is released at fixed intervals in enough quantities by using a pipe network, nozzles etc.

Advantages

• The on farm irrigation efficiency of this method can be as high as 90% as opposed to 35-40% through surface method of irrigation
• Energy efficiency and fertilizer use efficiency

Challenges

• Policy concerns - delay in subsidy disbursement, GST rate is 12% etc.
• No incentive for famers to switch from tube wells as electricity is free
• Energy crisis - Power outages, voltage fluctuations and unscheduled interruptions exist across rural and urban India

Steps

1. PMKSY focuses on adoption of sprinkler and drip irrigation
2. Micro irrigation fund with NABARD with outlay of 5000 cr.

Question 47

Rainfed area development

Answer 47

Rainfed area accounts for 57% of agricultural land in India. They have potential to drive growth in agriculture

IFS
- Under this system, cropping system is integrated with activities like horticulture, livestock, fishery, agro forestry, apiculture etc. to enable farmers to maximise returns for sustainable livelihoods and mitigate the impact of floods, drought and extreme weather events with income opportunity from allied activities during crop damage

Strategy

1. Focus on Multi cropping, rotational cropping, inter cropping, mixed cropping along with allied activities including horticulture and animal husbandry
2. Practices like minimum tillage, construction of ponds, wells etc.
3. Focus on watershed development

Question 48

Dryland agriculture

Answer 48

It refers to cultivation of crops entirely under natural rainfall without irrigation. Dryland areas are characterized by low and erratic rainfall (500-1200mm)and no assured irrigation facilities
- Only 48% land is irrigated and dryland agriculture has a huge potential to drive growth in agri sector

Distribution - 128 districts are recognised as dryland areas. Of these, 91 are in MP, Chattisgarh, UP, TN

Prospects

1. • More than 75% peasants involved in dry farming are small and marginal. Hence, improvement in this area will help their sustenance and in poverty alleviation
2. • Crucial in increasing production of oilseeds
3. • Increase nutrition by increasing production of millets

Constraints

• Low and variable rainfall, leading to uncertain crop yields
• Variable rainfall, especially during flowering season reduces yield significantly
• Soils of these areas are not only dry but also deficient in macronutrients, soil erosion
• Low public investment - Even though it contributes 50% of the value of agri GDP, it receives little attention in public policy
• Misalignment of cultivation practices - cultivation of water intensive crops in rainfed areas further worsens the situation. E.g. Sugarcane cultivation in Marathwada

Technologies needed

1. The use of improved crop varieties which can withstand stress - ICRISAT, ICAR+SAUs
2. Deep tillage, surface cultivation and stubble mulching for moisture conservation
3. Micro irrigation, lining of canals to reduce seepage
4. Practices like mixed cropping and crop rotation, Multi cropping etc.
5. Supplemental activities like animal husbandry, fisheries, poultry, social forestry and cottage
6. Soil conservation through terracing, land sloping and land level of and also by practising conservation all tillage

Question 49

Decentralized water storage

Answer 49

According to the Composite Water Management Index (CWMI) report released by the Niti
Aayog in 2018, 21 major cities (Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and others) are racing to reach zero groundwater levels by 2030, affecting access for 100 million people.

• Decentralized storage systems offer the possibility to provide safe drinking water where centralized supply systems are not feasible due to technical, economical or institutional reasons. Ex: In rural communities or informal settlements.

Question 50

Rainwater harvesting

Answer 50

It is the process of conserving rainwater by collecting, storing and purifying rainwater that runs off from rooftops, parks, roads etc. for later use.

Importance
1. Reduce runoff loss : More than 3/4th of precipitation in India comes during 4 months of monsoon and a lot of it is lost to runoff

Constraints

1. Regular maintenance, need for technical skill
2. • If not done properly, it can attract mosquitoes and other waterborne diseases

Govt steps

1. Jal Sanchay project in Bihar adopted in Nalanda district using MGNREGA to build check dams and campaigns about usefulness of rainwater harvesting
2. Components of “Jal Sanchay” and “Jal Sinchan” under PMKSY
3. Jal Shakti Abhiyan to conserve water from monsoon rainfall - Dobha construction in Jharkhand(traditional knowledge)

Question 51

Watershed development

Answer 51

Watershed is a unit of land that collects water and drains it through a common point. Watershed management involves storage and recharge of groundwater through various methods like percolation tanks, recharge wells and artificial ponds
- In 2015, Ministry of Rural development and WB launched Neeranchal National Watershed project

Need
1. Watershed management will help reduce surface runoff of rainwater, increase recharge of groundwater etc.

Steps

1. PMKSY - Watershed development component
   
   • Setting up dedicated institutions at state level
   • Scientific planning of projects using IT, remote sensing and GIS

Question 52

Livestock

Answer 52

According to NSSO, 16.5 million people are engaged in animal farming, mixed farming, fishing and aquaculture

Importance
- Contributes 4.2% of GDP and 28.6% of total agri GDP
- Income: Livestock contributed 16% to the income of small farm households
- Food and nutritional security: In areas characterized by low cultivation of food crops such as hills and deserts, animal products such as milk, eggs, meat etc. provide essential protein and nutrients.
- Gender equity: More than three-fourths of the labor demand in livestock production is met by
women, and the share of women is around 90% in Punjab and Haryana
- Storage: Livestock is considered ‘moving banks’ because of its potential to dispose of during emergencies.

Issues

• Degradation and encroachment of grazing land is taking place due to fast paced industrialization, urbanization, agricultural expansion etc.
• Lack of sufficient veterinary care and apathy towards assisted reproductive technologies
• Nearly absent Livestock extension services - only about 5% of farm households were able to access any information on animal husbandry
• Testing of milk for safety and quality parameters at collection centres is almost absent : Due to lack of uniform quality control, value addition and export potential are not fully explored
• Lack of access to organised markets and exploitation by intermediaries in the unorganised market leaves farmers with little to invest in technologies and quality inputs

Steps

1. National Animal Disease Control programme - to eliminate FMD(not fatal but severely weakens animal, reducing yield drastically, very contagious) and brucellosis(causes early abortion) by 2025
2. 13,000 crores for 100% vaccination of cattle, 15000 crore for infrastructure (Animal Husbandry Infrastructure development fund) under Atmanirbhar Abhiyan
3. Introduction of dairy processing and Infrastructure development fund
4. Facility of Kisan Credit Card scheme extended to fisheries, aquaculture and animal husbandry

• ES 2020 suggested increased reliance on small ruminants as they are more drought resistant and low maintenance

Question 53

Dairy sector

Answer 53

Importance

• Provides livelihood to 15 crore farmers
• India is world’s largest milk producer, accounting for 20% of global production
• It’s contribution to agri and allied sectors has increased from 17% in 2013-14 to 21% in 2018-19 and is higher than the combined value of rice, wheat and sugarcane
• Dairy sector has been the tool of inclusive socio-economic development as milch animal holding is far more equitable than landholding

Issues

• Infrastructure issues - cold food supply chain, milk processing facilities, insufficient veterinary services etc.
• Only 7 states have more than national per capita availability - The other states need to increase cooperative network to facilitate growth in production

Steps taken

1. National Dairy Plan and Rashtriya Gokul Mission have helped increase productivity through scientific breeding
2. Dairy processing and Infrastructure development fund : Interest subvention for investments

Way forward

1. Hub and spoke model : Hub is a large farm which provides technical services ( veterinary care, feed management, training) to satellite farms in close proximity
2. Focusing on strengthening the indigenous breed to enhance productivity

Question 54

Fisheries

Answer 54

Importance

• Provides livelihood opportunities to 16 million people, especially the marginalized and vulnerable communities
• Contributes 1.2% to GDP and 7.2% of agri GDP, 20% of agri exports, 5% of total exports
• India is 2nd largest producer in fishery sector with annual fish production of 12.5 mt during 2017-18

Challenges

1. Marine Fishing
   - Inadequate cold chain storage and marketing, leading to up to 20% post harvest losses
   - Unsustainable practices like bottom trawling
   - Lack of funds, modern trawlers and weather information support to fishermen
2. Inland fishing
   - Inland fisheries contributes to 71% of production and the rest is from marine fisheries
   - Inadequate supply of seed, feed and genetic resources - 90% of prawn production from one variety (less resilience)
   - Water pollution, unscientific management of aquaculture

Steps

• Development of Inland fisheries and aquaculture scheme - to enhance production, develop hatcheries across all agro climatic regions and increase fish seeds and quality
• Matsya Sampada Yojana - 20000 crore outlay for infrastructure, post harvest management, quality control etc. to double fish exports in 3-4 years
• Sagar mitras - extension workers to advice fishermen with processing and marketing

Question 55

National Mission on Sustainable agriculture

Answer 55

It aims at making agriculture more productive, sustainable, remunerative and climate resilient by

• Promoting location specific integrated farming system
• Soil and moisture conservation measures
• Efficient water management practices
• Mainstreaming rainfed technologies

For sustainability

• Increasing irrigation water productivity by adopting methods of micro irrigation and precision irrigation
• Rationalised use of fertilisers - strictly following soil health card guidelines, promotion of neem coated urea etc.
• Under Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, promotion of various modes like Natural farming, ZBNF, Organic farming etc.