The Economic Survey 2017-18, which was released in Parliament ahead of the Union Budget 2018, which is to be presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on February 1, had key implications for agriculture sector, a space which employs more than 50 per cent of the total workforce in India and contributes around 17-18 percent to the country’s GDP.
"At present, Indian farmers are adapting farm mechanization at a faster rate in comparison to recent past. Although, the sale of tractors in India cannot be taken as the only measure of farm mechanization but to a great extent it reflects the level of mechanization,” said Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian, while taking note of the condition of farmers in India.
The Economic Survey says that the sale of tractors to a great extent reflects the level of mechanization and Indian tractor industries have emerged as the largest in the world and account for about one-third of total global tractor production. While the trend is encouraging, the Economic Survey notes that more needs to be done. It is estimated that percentage of agricultural workers of total work force would drop to 25.7 per cent by 2050 from 58.2 per cent in 2001.
Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian said, “Thus, there is a need to enhance the level of farm mechanization in the country. Due to intensive involvement of labour in different farm operations, the cost of production of many crops is quite high.”
The economic survey also noted that Agricultural R&D is the main source of innovation, which is needed to sustain agricultural productivity growth in the long-term. The Survey says that the actual expenditure of Department of Agricultural Research and Education/Indian Council of Agricultural Research has increased from Rs 5,393 crore in 2010-11 to Rs.6800 (BE) crore during 2017-18. The compound annual growth rate of expenditure has been 4.2% over the years and in recent years‘ expenditure has been on higher side.
Further, the economic survey says that with growing rural to urban migration by men, there is ‘feminisation of agriculture sector’, with increasing number of women in multiple roles as cultivators, entrepreneurs, and labourers. Globally, there is empirical evidence that women have a decisive role in ensuring food security and preserving local agro-biodiversity.
Source: http://www.financialexpress.com/
