Punjab needs a robust policy to tackle agrarian crisis
Punjab does not have an agriculture policy till date despite the fact that three policy drafts have been submitted over the past decade or so. The first draft (58 pages), prepared under the chairmanship of GS Kalkat, was presented to the state government in March 2013. It was neither made public by the government nor turned into a policy. The second one (21 pages), prepared under the chairmanship of Ajay Vir Jakhar, was presented to the government in 2018. This, too, met with the same fate.
In January 2023, the government constituted an 11-member committee of experts under the convenership of Sukhpal Singh to prepare the third draft. This committee prepared an exhaustive policy draft (211 pages) and presented it to the government on October 13, 2023.
The government, however, took more than 11 months to make it public, and that too under the pressure of farmers’ unions. Inexplicably, the government also simultaneously engaged the Boston Consulting Group as a consultant to seek advice on crop diversification. This only shows that successive governments have neither been serious about formulating an agriculture policy nor have had faith in their duly constituted committees. The second and third drafts were prepared under the convenership of the chairpersons of the Punjab State Farmers and Farm Workers’ Commission, a statutory body.
A significant underlying thread in all three drafts is the acknowledgement of the agrarian crisis as a consequence of declining farm income and other factors. The crisis has been amply reflected in the suicide surveys conducted by three state universities — Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Guru Nanak Dev University and Punjabi University. As per official data, more than 16,000 farmers and farm labourers have died by suicide between 2000 and 2016 in Punjab. The numbers would have only risen in subsequent years.
In view of the deepening agrarian crisis, all three drafts have laid emphasis on improving the productivity, profitability and sustainability of farming and income of the farmers and farm labourers. The 2030 UN Agenda on Sustainable Development Goals suggests that all sectors, including agriculture, be considered from three dimensions of sustainability: economic, social and environmental. The agenda says that if a farm is not economically sound or not resilient to external shocks or if the wellbeing of those working on the farm is not considered, a farm cannot be sustainable. Increased investments in R&D and infrastructure, strengthening extension services, high-value crops, improved livestock and dairying, value addition, assured marketing, establishment of the price stabilisation fund, crop diversification, curbing the depleting water table and deteriorating soil health have been the recommended solutions in almost all policy drafts.
The first and second drafts had 12 and 14 policy recommendations, respectively. The third has 28. Though the latest draft seems to have immensely benefited from the earlier ones, it has a number of novel and more elaborate recommendations compared to the earlier ones.
Based on agro-climatic zones, the third policy draft has recommended the cultivation of crops in their natural growing areas. The establishment of institutes of excellence with focus on agri-marketing research and intelligence, innovative agricultural marketing and multi-purpose cooperative societies, democratic and transparent functioning of the cooperative sector, etc., are main recommendations in this domain. The policy has laid down special emphasis on every crop and has recommended that Punjab be developed as a seed hub.
Unlike the earlier drafts, this one has come up with an elaborate plan to develop organic farming. A Punjab-specific crop insurance policy, enhanced compensation to the families of suicide victims to the tune of Rs 10 lakh each, provision of free healthcare to farmers and farm workers, pension to farm workers and small farmers after the age of 60, one-time debt settlement and registration of money-lenders are some of the other salient recommendations.
The draft also recommends legal guarantee of MSP for the crops being cultivated in Punjab, but does not say anything about the implementation of the Swaminathan formula, which is a major demand of farmers. The earlier two drafts, too, had highlighted the issue of non-procurement of crops at the MSP, except wheat and paddy. Again, the third draft shows a serious concern about the depleting water table and increasing use of electricity in the agriculture sector, but is silent on free power to run tubewells. Contrary to it, the first draft had recommended metering of power and charging beyond a certain level of free supply, while the second one had recommended restriction of free power to farmers having up to 10 acres of land.
However, the good part is that the latest draft has strongly recommended a ban on paddy cultivation in 15 highly over-drafted blocks. Notwithstanding this, there are a good number of best practices of water-saving cultivation being experimented by some farmer groups. The farmers’ commission may interact with them before finalising the policy.
In view of the shrinking job avenues in the agriculture sector, the issues of unemployment and disguised unemployment in farming deserve a serious consideration, but the draft has made only a passing reference to them. The large number of vacant posts in PAU, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, government departments and boards concerned have been aptly highlighted in the draft and merit immediate government attention.
The recommendations in the draft need an informed public discourse by all stakeholders, even as the finances are a major challenge. Still, there are many recommendations that require little or no finances. Let’s hope that the third draft culminates in an appropriate agriculture policy that will be effectively implemented.
