India needs to identify methods by which farmers have a choice of crops. These choices could allow the farmers greater value in terms of what they produce. This would stall the wastage of agricultural produce. There is also a need to deploy a methodology by which supply and demand of the agri produce are in balance.
This was stated by S Ganesh Kumar, chief operating officer, staples, snacks and meals, ITC Limited, in his keynote address at WhatsHapp Version 4.0, organised by the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce. He added that India also needed to enhance strategies to device earnings from the farm sector, which typically yielded premium and productivity.
“There is need to devise a methodology by which there is value creation for farmers. Indian agriculture is growing at 2.1 percent, as against industry and services generating growth of 8.3 percent. The per capita income from the agriculture sector is perhaps one of the lowest. India is an agricultural economy driven by 45 percent of its population,” said Kumar.
“Now this 45 percent of the farming population needs to finds alternate employment avenues and enable pathways for them to move into the service sector. This will see the economy to be further stimulated by growth,” he added.
There are a large number of schemes and subsidies for fertilisers, power, crop insurance, seeds and irrigation. There is also a massive support programme of product purchase that the farmers produce through an MSP (minimum support price) system. Therefore, India has a positive framework, climate and eco-system.
It is vital for Indian agriculture to adopt best practices, promote premium-end products, focus on produce which is organic and pesticide-free, and look at the adoption of new-age technologies.
“For instance, China came up with a programme to create agri-clusters. There are regions which produce a type of fruit, grain and cereal. But this concept for India is in many ways fragmented,” said Kumar.
“Moreover, there is a need to see that farmers have a good mix in their basket of products, as opposed to the traditional produce of wheat, rice, etc., where production is in excess and resulting in considerable waste,” he added.
“Now exports is a big area, as there are a range of products and we need to enhance quality and the ensure nutrition is delivered to the consumer,” Kumar said.
“This will be only way to address the new-age requirements. Only such product portfolios could slowly drive convenience where nuclear and dual income homes can access right-priced, clean and cut vegetables,” he added.
“Moreover, farmers will need the digital connectivity. They need to be guided on pricing and ways to tackle cost of cultivation, which could lead to profitability for the agriculturists,” Kumar said.
