India is a land of agriculture. Agriculture has well flourished in India. On the occasion of Independence day, we need to have a look back on our major achievement as well as failures. PM dream of “Viksit Bharat 2047” should be cherished and to achieve this ambitious goal we must have our milestones clearly defined. This will help us to measure our progress in the required time. Besides keeping these in mind, it should also be checked where other countries be going by 2047, especially those in our neighbourhood.
Fundamental duties for Viksit Bharat:
Source:The Indian Express
There are two fundamental duties that to be done for Viksit Bharat: First is having a safe environment at border and at home and second is promoting peace and prosperity all over nation. Domestic peace and prosperity comes from a well flourished nation, where they is freedom from hunger and poverty. According to data, 4 years before independence in 1943, India had an estimation of 1.5 to 3 billion people who died due to starvation. India after Independence, in 1947, faced extreme poverty and measure challenge to feed the people at that time.
Origin of Green Revolution:
Thanks to the latest technology in agriculture that is the introduction of Green Revolution in 1960s which paved a way for surplus production of food not only for native people but also for transporting it. Population growth has been increasing day-by-day and is the agricultural productivity. India’s agri-GDP has seen a hike of 3.6 % on an average.
Agri-Viksit Bharat Vision:
For this mission to be completed,surplus amount of food production need to be there. To achieve this, agriculture should be modernised through innovation and technology. Agriculture sector must transform to ensure food security is respective of Climate Change and growing population.
Source:The Economic Times
Key strategies for development :
Gulati provided some key strategies which include increasing investment in agricultural research and development, enhancing irrigation infrastructure, creating efficient value chains for perishable products. He highlighted the idea of expansion and optimising irrigation infrastructure for stabilizing agricultural output. He noted that India has gone far in irrigation coverage yet milestone needs to be covered. There are still some ideas which is dependent on rain making it vulnerable to droughts and floods. If better water management practices and micro-irrigation technologies be included it can surely improve crop yields.
Source:Mint
Furthermore, he addressed benefits of opening a land lease markets which would allow small and marginal farmers to lease their land to more efficient farmers thereby improving overall productivity.
In addition to all these measures, building robust value chains for perishables like fruit, vegetable and dairy would be fruitful. Through this, India can reduce post harvest losses and ensure fare prices for farmers. This will help to contribute economy of farmer.
Rather than this, agriculture policies should be aligned with market realities. The policies should be such designed to incentivize farmers to produce according to market demand. This market oriented approach will help in better resource utilisation and reduce the surplus production of certain crops which leads to distress sales by farmers.
Source: Research Gate
Lastly, the whole article outlines a comprehensive strategy for modernising agricultural sector and increasing the productivity despite severe challenges. By focusing on innovation, infrastructure and market alignment, India can ultimately fullfill its vision of becoming a developed nation.The only thing is the consistency to achieve this goal as soon as possible. Keeping an eye on neighbourhood , we got to know China has flourished their agricultural sector earlier than India. Researchers need to find a way to look upon. Proper management should be present to achieve it successfully. Awareness is also required so that the strategies can be reached upto farmers field.Setting up a milestone to achieving it will be a great honour for Indians.
