Agriculture

No other sector of the Indian economy engages, employs and nurtures as many people as agriculture does. The farm sector by its sheer size is also huge and its yield has consistently been growing ever since India became independent. Yet, the sector is thought to be crisis-ridden with the result that the farm sector is no longer thought to be remunerative enough for many farmers and labourers engaged in cultivating myriad crops. There have been cases of farmers suicides due to piling up of debts and these are either rising or carry a threat to go up further. Yet, the lots of farmers greatly vary from region to region and State to State. Only in rare cases there are crops like that of certain spices in the South and farmers cultivating them who can be said to be making a profit.

Moreover, there are issues like sustainability of farming as factors like soil erosion, or loss of the topsoil and sinking underground water-table are cropping up due to the overuse or rather abuse of these natural resources to increase the farm productivity. Due to this there can be little hope not only for farmers but also consumers in the times to come if correctional steps are not undertaken before it is too late.

ICPRD is a forum that keeps a tab on issues related to the farm sector to which the fate of not only farmers but all Indians is inextricably linked to. And our team also hopes to show a way out of the current stagnation and threats that the sector is caught up with. Workable steps, ideas and innovations that are called for to revive and save agriculture are being looked into by our experts.