Agricultural Policies In Developing Countries

Indian agriculture has, since Independence, made rapid strides. In taking the annual food grains production from 51 million tonnes in early fifties to 206 million tonnes at the turn of the century, it has contributed significantly in achieving self sufficiency in food and in avoiding food shortages. Interventions in foreign trade markets that induce a transfer of resources from agriculture invariably lead to depressed conditions in the sector. Some governments react with policies that subsidize agricultural inputs and raise farm level commodity prices while, at the same time, maintaining low and stable food prices to urban consumers. The challenge of increasing agricultural productivity in a changing climate allows us to harness our multidisciplinary capacities to innovate and push agriculture from being a part of the problem to where it is part of the solution. Agricultural best practices, conservation agriculture, and sustainable intensification are parts of a holistic approach that we present as pragmatic solutions. The book is an outcome of a collaborative study addressing the highest priority issue which India faces today in agricultural sector policies.