Agriculture urgently needs higher resource allocation, policy support

Ignoring the medium and long-term needs of agriculture can prove to be very expensive in a land and water-deficit regime.

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By 1978/79, India was producing 127 million tonnes and was a net exporter of grains. (Express Archive)

The problem of periodic cyclones in the Arabian Sea, which cause havoc to agriculture in the western coastal states, has not received adequate attention because the formation of a government in Mumbai has become the overwhelming concern today. But misery in agriculture should not be ignored. Positive employment data from the organised sector should not be used to paper over the plight of small farmers and landless labourers. Ignoring the medium and long-term needs of agriculture can prove to be very expensive in a land and water-deficit regime. We anxiously await the Niti Aayog’s efforts on the promised seven-year plan (policy) for water. In this context, I am reminded of a period in the Seventies that resonates with the current times.