India is all set to harvest a bumper Kharif crop in 2020, but how much of that will translate into an actual rise in farmers income remains to be seen, experts said.
Participating at an online Business Standard Smart Business Event organised in association with IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry , experts said among cereals, oilseeds, pulses and sugarcane grown during the Kharif season, prices of oilseeds and pulses might be closer to the state-mandated Minimum Support Price (MSP) for the season, but rates of others might trade lower.
G Chandrasekhar, Economic Advisor, and Director IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Economic Research and Training Foundation (ERTF) said that good subsoil moisture due to early onset of southwest monsoon will push up maize production to around 20 million tonnes, pulses production to 8.5 million tonnes, oilseeds to 23.5 million tonnes, cotton to 37 million bales (1 bale=170 kgs) and sugarcane to around 390 million tonnes.
We should see a huge cotton crop this year which could necessitate big procurement by Cotton Corporation of India, Chandrasekhar said.
Rajini Panicker, VP, Phillip Capital (India) Pvt Ltd said that in southern India production of all the Kharif crops is expected to be good this year due to bumper monsoon and also the impact of state schemes in states like Telengana and Karnataka.
Madan Sabnavis, Chief Economist, Care Ratings Ltd said that farm sector GDP in 2020-21 is expected to be 3.5-4.0 per cent on the back of good Kharif and rabi harvest, but it will pull down food inflation which could have an impact on farmers income.
Rural wages won’t go up by much as Kharif crop is bumper while the per capita income of households might also not go up by much due to low remittances, Sabnavis said.
Rajiv Podar, President, IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry Industry gave welcome address while Ashish Barwale, Chairman, IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry - Agriculture and Food Processing Committee and Director of Mahyco Pvt Ltd proposed the vote of thanks.
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