FARMLAND REFORM IS A MUST FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH

The former Federal Reserve Chairman Allan Greenspan of USA recently reiterated that India has potential for the robust economic growth and thereby change the face of the world provided it takes up the agriculture reform in proper perspective. It is the productivity of the Farmland sector that has to be enhanced first, he felt. In a state like Assam which is endowed with great water resources and fertile land the enhanced productivity would set in motion great growth rate. There would be surplus land if productivity is ensured. By utilizing 20% of this excess land the capital intensive manufacturing enterprises could be ushered in unleashing chain reaction that would create near full employment situation.. This is not a euphoric dream but a possible hard life reality. India’s potential for growth is awesome, according to Dr. Greenspan.

The foremost requirement would be to overhaul the entire structure of Indian agriculture. To achieve the enhanced productivity three elements would be required i.e. (a ) developed infrastructure, (b) consolidation of fragmented holdings and (c) better varieties of seeds suiting Indian condition .Primarily the agricultural land valuation need to be enhanced first. The archaic land valuation needs to be looked at. The rate of premium payment of 25% cost of agriculture to land less cultivator must be enhanced whenever the land is acquired by government or sold by the landowners for the purpose industrial development. The Government need to pass a law revaluing the cost of land of the state and the rate of payment to landless agricultural workers whenever land changes hand. The landless workers or his nominee must be made employees of the new enterprise whenever agriculture land is made to surrender for development, till he is sixty years old. In North India value of farm land have gone up by 5000% n ten years. Real Estate agents have made money while poor agriculturists have remained poor. This situation needs to be salvaged.

It is an accepted practice of industry for revaluation of asset from time to time. Why not this practice should be adhered to in case of agriculture now ? For the revaluation of agricultural land the authority could be handed over specialist bank like NABARD. The land could be revalued in terms of inflation rate, utilization purpose and potential to earn out of that property for next twenty years. It is a fact that land would be required for industrial development. None can stop that process if high economic growth needs to be achieved. Agriculture alone cannot give the required economic boost. In modern time secondary sector and service sector would play the greater role. But initially the primary sector have to provide push by enhancing the productivity of land. To enhance the productivity and reset agricultural infrastructure the private sector could be made the partner of progress.

.Now, government should encourage joint sector farming, providing power and irrigational facilities to the farmers. The easy financial access alone would not help unless backed by infrastructure. The developed nations are using laser technology instead of tractors to till the lands. This helps in optimizing the use of various inputs such as water, seeds, fertilizers, etc. The problem is that Indian farmers cannot afford this technology and unless government and corporate sectors comes in support for agricultural infrastructure. The development of agriculture would remain a dream only ,if involvement of corporate sector is denied as a joint sector partners of landless laborer and that of land lords.

.Now, government should encourage joint sector farming, providing power and irrigational facilities to the farmers. The easy financial access alone would not help unless backed by infrastructure. The involvement of would generate employment for educated class.
The developed nations are using laser technology instead of tractors to till the lands. This helps in optimizing the use of various inputs such as water, seeds, fertilizers, etc. The problem is that Indian farmers cannot afford this technology and unless government and corporate sectors comes in support for agricultural infrastructure. The development of agriculture would remain a dream only ,if involvement of corporate sector is denied as a joint sector partners of landless laborer and that of land lords.

. In India the subsidy amount is very high and investment is too low. The investment in Agriculture is only 20% of Agriculture GDP. The Government has always considered increasing the subsidy but did not care enough for the enhancement of investment. The procurement prices were revised from time to time. The cultivator should get fair price no doubt. But market should be allowed to settle the Fair prices when subsidy have been given .More importantly the role of middlemen could be controlled. The need of the Day now is to see that AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES FLOW DIRECTLY FROM Cultivator to market without much intervention of the middlemen. Perhaps elimination of middlemen would be impossible task for State Government due to political compulsion .This is the reason why in some of the states large scale grocery stores have become unsuccessful despite involvement of big industrial houses...
The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister advocates the role of corporate sector in agriculture and says that activities other than food grain production like commercial crops, horticulture etc. have contributed most to agricultural GDP. The council recommends removal of subsidies related to grain procurement and REVAMPING of Public Distribution System.
From Africa to Asia, countries are scrambling to buy or lease land overseas to grow crops and feed their people. China, which has to feed the world’s largest population, has taken the lead by contracting land in Tanzania, Laos, Kazakhstan, Brazil and others. India has set its eyes on Uruguay and Paraguay, while South Korea is looking for farming deals in Sudan and Siberia. Libya and Egypt for their part have been negotiating deals to lease land in Ukraine. Assam Government must enhance the value of Farm land. The large entrepreneurs must be encouraged to cultivate in collaboration with local land lords and cultivators. Agricultural sector of India is mainly covered by small and marginal farmers, so our government should promote small scale agriculture. Corporate sector could be ushered in as an experiment in joint sector basis where land lord and cultivators becoming partners with corporate HOUSES on a selective basis. Assam can experiment with this model and outshine Hariyana and Punjab.
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