Re-orientation of farm policies needed despite subsidies: Preface

In the preface to the Economic Survey 2023-24, Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran has called for a pan-India dialogue on the agriculture sector, highlighting the need for policy re-orientation despite existing subsidies and support measures.

Nageswaran has noted that while the government provides substantial support to farmers through subsidies on water, electricity, and fertilizers, along with income tax exemptions and minimum support prices, there is room for improvement in policy implementation.

“A case can be made that they (farmers) can be served better with some re-orientation of existing and new policies,” the CEA stated.

The survey pointed out that current policies, implemented by both national and sub-national governments, often work at cross-purposes, leading to unintended consequences. These include soil fertility degradation, groundwater depletion, environmental pollution, and nutritional imbalances in crop production and dietary habits.

Nageswaran emphasised the potential for significant benefits if the complexities in farm sector policies are addressed. “The payoff will be immense if we untie the knots that bedevil farm sector policies,” he said.

The CEA suggested a paradigm shift in viewing agriculture's role in economic development. Contrary to conventional models of economic progression from agriculture to industry to services, Nageswaran proposed that the farm sector could potentially be an economic “saviour” for India.

“Can the farm sector be the saviour?” he questioned, adding that a return to sustainable farming practices and revised policymaking could boost agricultural value addition, and farmer incomes, and create opportunities in food processing and exports.

The survey underscored the potential for making the agricultural sector both “fashionable and productive” for India’s urban youth, potentially setting a global model for both developing and developed nations.