Agri bodies urge FM Sitharaman to boost research, rationalise subsidies

Pre-budget meeting: Finance Minister meet agricultural bodies to discuss policy and budget recommendations

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met with key stakeholders from the agricultural sector on Friday to discuss proposals and recommendations in a pre-budget consultation.

The meeting included former Chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) and agricultural economist Ashok Gulati, senior agriculture journalist Harish Damodaran, representatives from the National Institute of Agricultural Economics and Policy Research, and the United Planters' Association of Southern India (UPASI).

Increased investment in agricultural research

In the meeting,  Indian Council of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) Chairman MJ Khan stressed the importance of significant investment in research and development to drive sector growth and enhance farmers' incomes. Khan advocated for a substantial increase in the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) budget to Rs 20,000 crore from Rs 9,500 crore.

Rationalisation of fertiliser subsidies

Experts also called for the rationalisation of fertiliser subsidies, suggesting that all agriculture-related subsidies be consolidated for transfer through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). They also recommended increasing the retail price of urea, which has remained unchanged since 2018, and advocated for subsidies to promote bio-fertilisers and foliar fertilisers.

Infrastructure development

Infrastructure development was another major focus of the discussions. Suggestions included increasing the budget allocation for the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) from Rs 80 crore to Rs 800 crore to boost farm exports and creating district export hubs to support agricultural exports. Stakeholders also proposed the launch of a National Goat and Sheep Mission to support goat and sheep farming.

Education and research segregation

Ajay Vir Jakhar of Bharat Krishak Samaj recommended segregating agriculture funds between education and research, highlighting the high economic returns from agricultural research.

Agricultural bodies at the meeting also called for the commissioning of a new agricultural policy for India. They also recommended changing the funding ratio for human resource development, in centrally sponsored schemes, from 60:40 to 90:10. This would mean that the central government bears 90 per cent of the cost for five years.

Policy recommendations

Experts also recommended a commissioning of a new agricultural policy for India. Moreover, they asked for a change in the funding ratio for human resource development in centrally sponsored schemes to 90:10 from 60:40, with the central government bearing 90 per cent of the cost for five years.

What did FM say about agriculture in the Interim Budget 2024?

In the interim Budget for 2024, the Agriculture Ministry received an allocation of Rs 1,17,528.79 crore, marking an increase of Rs 1,997 crore or 1.70 per cent from the previous Budget. The revised estimates stood at Rs 1,16,788.96 crore, with actual expenditure for 2022-23 being Rs 99,877.01 crore.

(With agency inputs)