While the Indian
agriculture has made rapid strides in the last 50 years, what
about the Indian farmer? This question is being sought to be
answered from the "State of the Indian Farmer – A Millennium
Study" commissioned by the Ministry of Agriculture. As
reported by the Delhi based Institute of Economic Growth, the
Phase-I of the study, just completed, revealed that the institutional
and policy support received by the farmer during the last 50
years was week, undependable and indifferent towards the poorer
sections and backward areas. Though at the aggregate level the
economic condition of the agriculture sector as a whole has
not deteriorated in the post green revolution period, certain
classes and regions have, however, witnessed adverse changes
in the incomes. Summing up the studies, the Institute of Economic
Growth further stated that liberalization, focussing on prices
alone, ignoring public investments in rural infrastructure has
been unfavourable to growth of Indian agriculture. Pro-active
policy is required to involve small and marginal farmers and
landless labour in deriving benefits of liberalization. Declining
public investments in agriculture sector is a matter of concern.
The study seeks
to evaluate the impact of the transformation induced by public
policy, investments and technological change on the farmers’
access to resources and incomes after five decades of planned
economic development. 26 status papers on various aspects of
agriculture impacting the farmers have been brought out in the
Phase-I of the study and are being discussed at a two-day seminar
that began at the Institute of Economic Growth today. These
studies would provide a historical perspective of the last 50
years of agriculture development in the country.
Under Phase-II
of the study, a countrywide Situation Assessment Survey (SAS)
has been launched this month and will be completed by the year
end. 60,000 selected farmer households will be profiled. Keeping
in view the need to focus on the farmers rather than on agriculture
sector, the survey seeks to throw light on the hitherto unexplored
dimensions of behaviour of farmers and their socio-economic
and professional conditions. The survey being conducted by the
National Survey Sample Organization would fill gaps in the knowledge
regarding marketed surplus, sources of incomes and expenditure
of farmers, educational level etc. Information on both input
and output structure of farm business will also be collected
in a comprehensive manner.
Based on the results
of Phase-I and Phase-II of the Millennium Study, the conditions
of the farmers as a consequence of past macro policies and programmes
will be analysed in Phase-III.
