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Paving a roadmap for agricultural reforms.

By one means or another agricultural reform has to be done. Whether in government’s own implementation skill or with the help of private sectors; Whether by removing poverty or making poverty removed by good agricultural revenue generating scheme; Something has to be done.

The budget 2005-06 has well done again with promises and re-promises to farmers. It is a mixed bag for them. The focus was on bringing more acreage under irrigation and crop insurance but critics point out that the allocations are not substantially done. As per the policy of decentralisation of procurement, only selected states like Punjab, western UP and Haryana has been confined. Bihar, obviously, since long time asking for the same. RJD head claims that farmers were suffering because wheat and rice were rotting in warehouses.

A good step has been taken to repair the national plan, to restore and renovate water bodies. This will obviously increase the irrgation option. 10 million hectres in four years will come into assure irrigation list. The budget covers 3 million hectres under micro-irrigation systems like drip and sprinkler irrigation by 2007. Rs 630 crore has been allocated in National Horticulture Mission. Diversification into horticulture and issues like rural credit and farm research has given life to the agro industry.

The parliamentary standing committee on agriculture in its recent report recommended a one-time catch-up grant of Rs 1,000 crore for existing farm research and education network. But this has been overlooked in the Budget.

The Budget talks about revamping the cooperative credit infrastructure but has not proposed any concrete measure to do so. Agricultural research and education has also not got much from the Budget, except for the announcement about setting up a national fund for strategic farm research with a lordly sum of Rs 50 crore.

Chidambaram has tried with honesty and sincerity to make poverty a history. Major hurdles in agricultural sector will find a solution with the agro package of Budget 2005-06, but in few areas he failed to please the farmers. Well, we cannot expect complete renovation in one try. Let us welcome the budget in a positive direction and play a role of helper and umpire in the process of implementation.

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