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Why India's plan to sell rice for ethanol undermines food and water security
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Agriculture
Webinar video: Navigating Covid-19 impact on agriculture supply chains
In October 2020, the India Programme of the International Growth Centre (IGC) and Asian Development Research Institute (ADRI) organised a webinar on ‘Navigating the Impact of Covid-19 on the Agriculture Supply Chain in India’. The panel comprised N. Saravana Kumar (Secretary, Agriculture Department, Government of Bihar), Siraj Hussain (Senior Visiting Fellow, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) and former Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India), Shekhar Tomar (Assistant Professor, Indian School of Business). The discussion was moderated by Mekhala Krishnamurthy (Associate Professor, Ashoka University).
Agricultural worker exits and crop fires
While the process of moving workers from low- to high-productivity sectors is considered critical for economic development, its environmental impact remains largely unexplored. This article shows that the exit of workers from agriculture, enabled by access to rural roads, induces farmers to use fire – a labour-saving but polluting method – to clear agriculture residue.
Farm laws: Reform needed but not at expense of small farmers
Commenting on the controversial farm laws, Kaushik Basu and Nirvikar Singh contend that the government should withdraw these laws, return to the drafting table, engage with farmers and states, and incorporate safeguards for the well-being of small farmers.
Farm laws: Resolving the deadlock
In a recent Indian Express article, Bharat Ramaswami has proposed some rather provocative suggestions on how the present crisis triggered by the farmers’ protests can be resolved. In this post, Ramaswami elaborates on those views in an interview with Ashok Kotwal (Editor-in-Chief, Ideas for India)
Information technology adoption and productivity: Role of mobile phones in Indian agriculture
During mid to late 2000s, India expanded mobile phone coverage across rural areas and introduced free-of-charge call centre services for farmers seeking agricultural advice. This article shows that these programmes helped increase the take-up of more advanced technologies and raised productivity of the agricultural sector. However, language barriers in the access of agricultural advice appear to increase disparities among farmers in different areas.
Need for 10-year, state-wise procurement plan for rice and wheat
Against the backdrop of the ongoing debate around India’s new farm legislations, Hussain and Mohapatra make a case for having a 10-year plan indicating the targetted procurement of rice and wheat from each state, in order to reduce uncertainty caused by excessive production and procurement. Further, they argue that while there is a pressing need to incentivise greater production of protein-rich pulses and oilseeds, these laws are unlikely to achieve this objective.
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