Raising farmer income is a key priority for India

livemint.com:

Economic Survey 2024: Farmers should move to high-value agriculture to increase income “We need to reimagine the role of agriculture in the economy. In field crops, which are grown on 94% of our land, growth hasn’t even been 2%. So, the segment that is driving growth is not benefitting all farmers.

Our efficiency in most commodities is declining, and for most crops, the real cost of production is rising," said Chand. “The government is also pushing for natural farming and lesser use of chemicals, but it’s very labour-intensive. But if we combine natural farming with mechanized farming, the gap in production can get considerably bridged," he said, adding that the fiscal burden of agricuexlture is worrisome and that the role that policies are playing to support agriculture should be done by the markets.

Chand was supported by most experts about diversification being the biggest driver of growth in agriculture. However, concerns were also raised on the majority of agricultural land in India being occupied by field crops such as paddy and wheat, and their poor growth over the years. Diversification to other crops such as maize and oilseeds, and also horticulture was mooted.