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Question
Agriculture sector appears to be adversely affected by the reform process. Why?
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Solution
The economic reforms of 1991 did not benefit the agricultural sector significantly. The following are the reasons that explain the adverse effects of the economic reforms on India’s agriculture sector:
1. Reduction of Public Investment: There has been a drastic decrease in the volume of public investment in the agricultural sector. There has been an acute cutback from the Indian government to provide sufficient irrigation facilities, electricity, information system, market linkages and roads. Moreover, investment in agricultural research and development was not as extensive as it was during green revolution phase
2. Removal of Subsidies: Removal of subsidies on fertilisers pushed up the cost of production of agriculture. This made farming more expensive, thereby, adversely affecting the poor and marginal farmers.
3. Liberalisation and Reduction in Import Duties on Agricultural Products: Due to adherence to the WTO commitments, Indian government reduced import duties on agricultural products that forced the poor and marginal farmers to compete with their foreign counterparts in the international markets. Stiff competition in the international market along with traditional techniques of farming badly affected the poor farmers.
4. Shift towards Cash Crops and Lack of Food Grains: The export oriented production strategies led to the shift of agricultural production from food grains to the production of cash crops like cotton, jute, etc. This led to reduced availability of food grains and, consequently, t lower nutritional values which further reduced their productivity.
5. Inflationary Pressures on Food Grains: The shift towards cash crops production along with the removal of subsidies exerted inflationary pressures on the prices of food grains. This in turn adversely affected the agricultural sector’s performance by making the cost of producing food grains more expensive.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
India’s post-1990 economic strategy entailed three important breaks with the past:
- To dismantle the vast network of controls and permits that dominated the economic system.
- To redefine the role of the state as a facilitator of economic transactions and as a neutral regulator rather than the primary provider of goods and services.
- To move away from a regime of import substitution and to integrate fully with the global trading system.
The 1991 reforms unleashed the energies of Indian entrepreneurs and gave untold choices to the consumers and changed the face of the Indian economy. The reform agenda constituted a paradigm shift and has defined the broad contours of economic policymaking for three decades.
Liberalization was adopted as the guiding principle of governance and all governments since 1991, have broadly stuck to that path.
Today we don’t need a paradigm shift. We need to look at individual sectors and see which one of these needs, reforms to create a competitive environment and improve efficiency. The power sector, the financial system, governance structures, and even agricultural marketing need reforms.
Today’s reforms also require much more discussion and consensus-building. The central government needs to work in tandem with state governments and consult different stakeholders impacted by reform decisions. Timing and sequencing are critically important in the new reforms’ agenda.
Read the following statements - Assertion (A) and Reason (R):
Assertion (A) - India’s pre-1990 economic strategy dismantles the vast network of controls and permits that dominated the economic system.
Reason (R) - The 1991 reforms unleashed the energies of Indian entrepreneurs, gave untold choices to consumers, and changed the face of the Indian economy.
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