India lives in its villages. There are 6,40,867 villages according to the 2011 Census. 2,36,004 villages have a population of fewer than 500 while 3976 villages have a population of 10000+. Mahatma Gandhi was a strong advocate of Grama Swaraj or village self-rule. Gandhiji always remarked as a nation is formed of the villages as units. Villages should be self-sufficient economically and financially. Some kind of autonomy should be given to villages for their sustainable growth and development.
Innumerable policies and schemes have been launched and implemented with lofty ideas since independence. In spite of thousands of crores have been spent on the development still it is a distant dream of achieving Integrated and holistic development in our country. Fortunately and unfortunately LPG(Liberalisation, Privatisation, and Globalization) bubbles are being burst teaching a lesson that Centralisation is always harmful for any kind of development to the countries and humankind as well.
The Coronavirus shocked the entire world breaking the wheels of the world economy leaving a heap of countless dead bodies. But the whole world is plunged into a whirlpool and unable to break the chain. The recovery from the dreadful disease is uncertain and unpredictable. The Coronavirus is very intensive in urban areas of our country giving us an opportunity to re-prioritize and our rural economy and development for speedy recovery and strengthen our economy.
In 1950-51 the contribution of the Primary i.e. Agriculture and Allied sector to our GDP was 55.9 percent and the Secondary sector (Industry) was 14.9 percent and the Services sector was 29.2 percent. Whereas in 2018-19 the contribution to GDP from the primary sector is 14.39 percent. The secondary sector is 31.46 percent and the Services sector is 54.15. The statistics available should be an eye-opener to revive our rural economy which is agriculture-based. In spite of the growth in the secondary and services sector still, the primary sector is providing 42 percent of employment.
Allocation in the Union Budget of 2020-2021 for various flagship schemes under the Rural development is 1.20 lakh crores. In the prevailing scenario, 2 percent of GDP Should be earmarked for rural development under stimulus package to provide employment in the unorganized sector in villages covering small and marginal farmers, unskilled and semi-skilled workers, weavers, artisans, electricians, plumbers, construction workers, carpenters, painters, sanitation workers, and others. The stimulus package funds should be allocated to all the flagship schemes like MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act). Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, National Rurban Mission, Rural self-employment Training Institutions and other schemes.
There is a saying ‘Think Globally and Act Locally'. A paradigm shift can be made to face the challenges and demands in the agriculture sector. Traditional ownership of lands and methods of Farming should be modified and prevent suicides among the farmers for the losses and innumerable problems from seeding, harvesting and marketing. The Pioneer of Green Revolution Prof.M.S.Swaminathan and Dr. Verghese Kurien the Pioneer of White (Milk) Revolution proved tremendous growth was possible with meticulous planning and dedication and determination.
The Central and State Governments should come forward to promote 3C's of Farming i.e. Co-operative Farming, Contract and Corporate Farming to meet the challenges in Modern Farming methods. This would facilitate to use the the latest science and technology for agricultural operations from seeding to harvesting and marketing bridging the gap between the farmer and the customer. A farmer of having less than 5 acres of land cannot afford to adopt technology for farming activities. Self-Help groups should be formed among the farmers and they can be motivated for co-operative farming. This would reduce their investment burden for agricultural operations and access the latest technology without losing the ownership.
Contract Farming (Leasing) and Agro entrepreneurs and Start-Ups should be encouraged among the youth providing Institutional finance. Tie-ups among the farmers and the industries can be made ITC and Mahindra and very few companies are involved in Contract Farming. The participation of Agri Entrepreneurs and Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies should increase.
Corporate Farming Under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can be made mandatory enabling the industrialists to buy the wasteland at a reasonable price or take a lease from the government ranging from a minimum of 100 acres of land and a maximum of 1000 acres of land depending upon the local situation which varies from place to place. The industrialist and the company is expected to have capacity of investing and managerial abilities to explore the possibilities of converting the wastelands to fertile land and always try to reap the benefits.
Time tested, demand-oriented and innovative ideas of Farming would encourage investments in Agriculture to accelerate growth and boost up the Integrated and Holistic Development in Rural areas. Every citizen in this country particularly in villages should have access to Food, Cloth, Shelter and Health, and Education. Empathy from the officials and the government is required but not Sympathy in the form of freebies which would make them idle, inactive and lazy. Most of the Indians would like to lead a decent and dignified life with his/her family members. All the citizens of our country are always ready to send away the Coronavirus and show the world how strong we are and our resurgent economy.
M. Harinath
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