The Union Budget is a resource allocation exercise. The priorities in the allocation were indicated in the address of the President to Parliament on June 9. While the President’s address provides a framework for political and legislative action, the Budget is the instrument for converting commitments into concrete achievements. The Budget presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday captures many of the above commitments made both in the address of the President and in the diagnosis presented in the Economic Survey. Mr. Jaitley rightly cautioned against expecting too much in one Budget, but he indicated that this Budget throws light on the roadmap for economic recovery and accelerated growth in agriculture and industry, which the present government intends to follow.
Among the highlights in the farm sector, some of the important provisions are the following:
Agriculture credit availability will be Rs. 8 lakh crore. Farmers who make prompt repayment will be given loan at 4 per cent interest. A rural infrastructure development fund of Rs. 5,000 crore will be available. Provision has been made for developing agricultural warehouses at a cost of Rs. 5,000 crore. Funds have also been provided for encouraging producer companies.In addition, a provision of Rs. 500 crore has been made for an agri-infrastructure fund.
The National Rural Livelihood Mission will be extended to 100 more districts. Soil health cards will be provided to farmers and a new urea policy will be developed. I hope the policy will give attention to improving the efficiency of the use of urea through modern techniques such as prilled urea.
Reform of the PDS will be undertaken to make it more efficient and user-friendly.
Taking into consideration the potential impact of climate change on agriculture, a national adaptation fund will be established at Rs. 100 crore.
Food Security Mission will cover 100 more districts.
Agriculture education and research will be strengthened through new agricultural universities or institutes in Assam, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, and horticulture universities in Telangana and Haryana. The agri-biotech clusters in Mohali will be expanded.
FDI will be encouraged particularly to fill gaps in critical infrastructure. Thus nearly all important areas of farming have been covered with renewed emphasis and additional investment. Certain initiatives like Kisan Television have been a long felt need. Rural digital connectivity has been given importance.
Special zonesThe Finance Minister also mentioned about reviving the special economic zones. In this connection, I would like to suggest that special agriculture zones, which can help conserve prime farm land for agriculture, as for example the Rajasthan Canal Area or the Kuttanad region of Kerala, should also be taken up. We need to preserve prime farm land for agricultural purposes. As pointed out in the Economic Survey, an Indian single market, which was recommended by the National Commission on Farmers, should be established soon in order to ensure that price volatility caused by market distortions is avoided. Overall, the Budget places considerable emphasis on agricultural renewal and agrarian prosperity. Obviously, the allocations are small but a beginning has been made to look at the problems in farming in a more holistic manner. I hope this process will be continued and by the time, the 2015-16 Budget is presented, we will see that many of the root causes of the prevailing agrarian distress are eliminated.
(The author is a former Member of the Rajya Sabha and founder chairman of the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation)
