New Delhi, Nov 13 (IANS) Not all farmers’ suicides are related to their farming difficulties, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said here Tuesday. He also said that the government would invest Rs.250 billion (over $6 billion) to improve the agriculture sector during the 11th five-year plan (2007-11).
Pawar was replying to questions from participants at the Economic Editors’ Conference currently underway.
He said a study group had recently done some ’in-depth research on the question of farmers’ suicides’.
Pawar said he would make the report public soon.
Thousands of farmers have committed suicide in India in the last decade. Most of the suicides have occurred in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Punjab.
In Maharashtra alone, as many as 1,662 farmers committed suicide last year in the crisis-ridden west Vidarbha region, according to records maintained by the state government.
The minister admitted: ’Further improvement in the economic conditions of the majority of our farmers is not fully reflected despite our development efforts.
’A four percent annual growth targeted for the agricultural sector during the 11th five-year plan (2007-11) will contribute to a more inclusive growth,’ said Pawar.
Enumerating the measures to sustain agriculture development and growth, Pawar announced: ’I am happy to state that my ministry and the Planning Commission proactively engaged in the follow-up of the National Development Council’s (NDC) recommendations. Two major initiatives of the NDC have already been launched.’
He identified these as Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and the National Food Security Mission and said during the 11th plan, the central government proposed to allocate Rs.250 billion ’to incentivise states to invest more in the agriculture sector’.
Another Rs.50 billion has also been set aside for the government’s National Food Security Mission (NFSM) scheme, the minister announced.
But Pawar regretted that, ’In spite of increased minimum support price (MSP), it was not possible to procure adequate quantities of wheat in 2006-07 and 2007-08 for the public distribution system (PDS).’
’The government have provided the biggest increase in minimum support price to ensure that farmers get better prices for their produce,’ he pointed out.
The agriculture minister said, ’Despite several odds, a revival in the (agriculture) sector in the past two years is quite evident.’
’The record production of 216 million tonnes of food grains, 22.7 million bales of cotton and 345 million tones of sugarcane restores our confidence that we have the potential to meet the challenges,’ he added.
’The average growth rate of the sector has been more than four percent. Investment in agriculture has also shown a rising trend in these two years,’ said the minister.
’These achievements leave no room for complacency, in view of the serious constraints still faced by the sector. Agriculture production remains susceptible to spatial and temporal climatic aberration. The pattern of production in the recent past, particularly that of oilseeds and pulses, has not maintained pace with demand causing substantial import dependence. The country has to import wheat also to bridge the demand-supply gap.’
