A study on agriculture problems faced by farmers
and its solutions
L Ramesh[1]
Dr. L Prakash[2]
Abstract
Agriculture, which is the
backbone of the Indian economy, contributes to the country's overall economic
development and determines the standard of living for more than half of the
population. Agriculture accounts for just about 14% of total GDP, but it has a
significant effect on the manufacturing and service sectors, as the rural
population has become a significant user of goods and services in recent
decades.
Key Words: Agriculture, Farmers
1.
INTRODUCTION
India's experience
confirms its agricultural productivity, favorable climatic conditions, and
abundant natural resources. India (which cultivates wheat, rice, and cotton on
large swaths of its land) is also a major exporter of spices, pulses, and milk
on the international market. Agriculture contributed 75% of India's GDP a few
decades ago, but it now only contributes 14%. According to the CIA's World
Factbook 2014, India was the second-largest producer ($ 367 billion) after
China ($ 1,005 billion) among four other countries that accounted for 42
percent of global agricultural production – $ 4,771 billion.
In a nutshell, India is a
global farming superpower, with farmers and other agricultural workers serving
as its backbone. The agricultural landscape, like many other markets, is
threatened by long-standing concerns and unexpected problems that must be
resolved. Let's speak about some of the most pressing problems that farmers in
India face, as well as the best possible solutions.
2.
PROBLEMS FACED BY THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR
2.1
Fragmented land holding:
Almost 80% of the 140
million farming families own less than two acres of land. Farmers with large
land holdings may use modern agricultural techniques to improve productivity.
Small land holdings limit the farmer's ability to use conventional farming
methods and reduce productivity. Since land holdings are small, more people are
forced to work on farms in rural areas, and farm incomes suffer as a result of
outdated technology.
2.2
Irrigation problems:
The majority of farming in India is monsoon-dependent;
when the monsoons are healthy, the entire economy (not just the agricultural
sector) thrives; when the monsoon fails, everyone suffers. The issue here is
either a lack of or improper control of water. If the country is to increase
agricultural production and boost the overall economy, irrigation, which
absorbs more than 80% of total water usage in the country, needs to be
overhauled.
2.3
Seed problems:
Most of the farmers – especially the poor and marginal
ones – are dependent on seeds sold in the market. Moreover, the HYV seeds as well
as the GM seeds which promise higher yields force the farmers to buy seeds for
every crop. With spurious seeds hitting the market, the farmers’ woes have
exceeded all limits. Sometimes seeds do not give the stated/claimed yields and
farmers run into economic troubles.
In many cases of GM and HYV seeds, farmers are forced to
use high amounts of fertilisers and pesticides, provide large amounts of water
(irrigation) and abide to all the other farming requirements that the companies
mandate to get the proper yields.
Companies use legal loopholes to transfer responsibility
for failed crops onto farmers. Proper regulation/legislation to keep seed
companies responsible for false claims is urgently needed.
2.4
Sustainability problems
Due to the use of
obsolete farming technology, India's agricultural productivity is very low as
compared to world standards. In addition, the poor farming community's lack of
awareness of the need for survival has exacerbated the situation.
Some arid areas abuse the irrigation facilities provided
by planting water-intensive crops, resulting in unplanned water use. Ground
water supplies are extensively used in areas where irrigation in the form of
rivers and canals is insufficient.
Agriculture's sustainability is critical because many of
the challenges that farmers face is linked to it. Excess fertilizer use not
only makes plants reliant on chemical fertilizers, but it also erodes soil
quality, pollutes ground water, and pollutes local water sources throughout the
case of surface runoff.
Planting crops that need more water, such as rice, on the
basis of irrigation facilities extended to water-scarce areas consumes more
water than is needed. Furthermore, excessive evaporation causes salts to
collect on the fields, reducing their fertility.
Farmers would be pushed into a vicious spiral of debts,
heavy fertilizer usage, water mismanagement, poor productivity, and therefore
more debts for the next cycle due to a lack of awareness of the need to grow
crops sustainably.
2.5
Over dependence on traditional crops like rice and wheat
To produce the
best yields, each crop needs specific climatic conditions. Despite the fact
that rice and wheat are grown in large areas of India, some regions can easily
turn to other crops to increase productivity. India imports cooking oil from
other countries, despite the fact that we have the requisite conditions to
develop more oilseeds locally.
The lack of a proper national agriculture plan is
evidenced by the heavy reliance on conventional rice and wheat. Excess stocks
in a few crops trigger issues with selling, storage, and a lack of other
critical farm production.
Furthermore, if farm production is skewed against crops
like rice, farmers may abuse irrigation and ground water facilities, resulting in
a slew of other issues.
2.6
Supply channel bottlenecks and lack of market understanding
Bottlenecks in the
supply chain and a lack of a proper marketing channel are serious issues for a
farmer who is already dealing with a slew of issues. These are problems that
must be addressed on a federal, state, and national scale.
Farmers are forced to distress sales due to a lack of a
proper marketing channel, making them victims of greedy middlemen and limiting
their profits.
In years when productivity is high, an inadequate
marketing and storage channel contributes to storage issues, low agricultural
exports due to quality issues, and, in many cases, gross wastage of valuable
food grains and other farm output.
Food wastage that amounts to thousands of crores of
rupees every year is nothing short of a crime in a country where more than 25%
of the population lives in poverty and millions go hungry every day.
Due to a lack of a national agricultural production
policy, some crops are produced in excess of requirements, while others are
produced well below minimum requirements. The problem is compounded in the case
of perishable agricultural products such as vegetables and fruits, where waste
is estimated to be around 40%.
India produces over 265 million tonnes of food grains
each year, more than enough to feed its entire population for many years.
Despite this, we see a lot of wasted food, rising food prices, and millions of
hungry people. This has to be stopped.
2.7
Government handling of the issue
India lacks the necessary storage facilities (granaries,
warehouses, cold storage, and so on), negating the benefit of a bumper crop
during good monsoon years.
Exports in the agricultural sector are also not
promising, accounting for just 10% of total exports in a country where
agriculture employs more than 50% of the population.
The government's Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) are a
two-edged sword: they shield farmers from middlemen, but they also expose the
government to an excessive fiscal deficit by purchasing excess produce during
periods of excess crop.
3.
SOLUTIONS
1.The burden of scattered
land holdings would be alleviated by village land consolidation and cooperative
farming. The aggregate land can be farmed using the latest technologies when
farmers join a consortium at the village level.
2. Banks will also be
willing to lend money to a village consortium that can be used to increase farm
production, implement sustainable farming practices, minimize fertilizer
overuse, and solve a variety of problems.
3.In this situation, the
overall probability of crop failure is smaller, and small farmers have a
greater chance of making a fair profit at the end of the harvest season. When a
village-level plan is adopted, agricultural intensity increases as well.
4. Agricultural credit
and farm mechanization for small and marginal farmers will continue to be
difficult unless pooling of farm resources and/or a joint usage of farm
technology are employed.
5. Government should help
with irrigation concerns, ideally at the state and national levels. Though the
government cannot compel farmers to grow only certain crops in specific areas,
it can certainly inform them about other options.
6. It will be a win-win
situation for both the farmers and the country if proper techniques (in water
management at the provincial, state, and national levels, as well as a crop
plan of what to produce and where to produce) are used.
7. Irrigation concerns,
as well as issues related to single/traditional crop dependency, can be
resolved by a national agricultural production plan. In areas where food crops
are not advantageous, the government should encourage farmers to switch to cash
crops (oil seeds, etc.) instead of food crops to minimize imports and raise
exports.
8. Seed problems can be
solved by establishing in-house seed banks for conventional crops at the
village level (reducing farmer reliance on foreign seed banks), selling
government-approved seeds through proper channels (to exclude bogus seeds), and
imposing stringent sanctions on seed marketing firms if the seeds do not meet
the companies' claims (germination and yield).
9. Scientific studies in
this area should be promoted in order to support seeds that are low in resource
requirements but also assisting farmers in increasing yields.
10.Proper crop management
focused on water supply, crop substitution, new agriculture methods to improve
production, converting to sustainable farming (village ponds would cut costs),
and an emphasis on allied activities are some of the biodiversity options.
11.Small innovations at
the grass-roots level can sometimes solve a slew of problems unique to a given
region. District agricultural officers should make it a habit to encourage such
ideas and to participate in knowledge sharing so that the ideas can be implemented
at the regional level.
12.First and foremost,
proper knowledge – among both farmers and consumers – is needed for organic farming.
Organic farming reduces the use of artificial fertilizers, water consumption,
strikes a good balance between the local environment and farm output, helps the
land retain its fertility for a long time, lowers long-term costs, and
establishes a virtuous cycle between consumers and farmers with the creation of
a proper market in towns and cities.
13. Small cold storage or
granaries at the village level, which can be built with Panchayat funds and
loans to the village society, can improve storage facilities (this eliminates
dumping of excess crops in the market yard).
14. A 700 tonne cold
storage cum warehouse would cost about Rs. 1.5 crores, which is a very
affordable price for a community of villagers or a big Panchayat, assuming the
State or Union Government covers the cost. E-Mandis can also assist farmers in
accurately forecasting markets and thereby profitably marketing their products.
15. An agricultural
strategy or policy at the state level to boost knowledge sharing, national
level cold storage chains, and logistic network (if Walmart can do it, so can
the Government of India!) is desperately needed.
16. PDS must be well
managed in order to reduce waste and make an accurate estimation of food grain
requirements. After holding reserves for a possible drought year, the surplus
can be exported as long as the quality is preserved by proper storage.
17.Food waste will
thereby be minimized, and the agricultural trade balance can be strengthened,
if a national strategy is in effect.
CONCLUSION
This
article explainsvarious methods that can be used to solve the challenges that
the agriculture industry is facing. The drought season is the most serious
issue that this industry faces. Drought-affected areas have been irrigated,
which has fixed the issue. Another issue affecting the agriculture sector is
labour intensiveness. Mechanization of the farms has solved this problem. This
has aided in the reduction of labour, which has been a major issue for farmers.
Another concern is the irrigation systems. Traditional agricultural practices
are also used by some people. This has been addressed by delivering extension
programmes, which have assisted in the preparation of those growers.
REFERENCES
[1]
SPICES BOARD INDIA, Ministry of Commerce, Govt. of India.
[2]Foodgrain
wastage needs to be plugged: Indian Merchants' Chamber panel discussion - The
Times of India
[3]
Utilization of fruit and vegetable wastes as livestock feed
[4]
India damned by food wastage report
[5]
At the crossroads
[6]
India Seen Defying Rupee Plunge to Import Record Cooking Oil
[7]
As crops rot, millions go hungry in India
[8]
India wastes 21 million tonnes of wheat every year: Report
[9]
Root causes of farm distress
*****