Page 10 - Putting Farmers First

Gujarat’s Agrarian Miracle Catapults
Modi to National Stage

The massive growth in agriculture and allied ecosystems that was seen
in Gujarat in Modi’s tenure has been called an agrarian miracle by
domain experts.
Agricultural economist Ashok Gulati summed up the Gujarat Model
when he wrote in April 2014 that:
“True pro-people policies augment income earning capacity of the
largest number of people. And Gujarat has done that through its
agrarian miracle. Several factors have contributed to its success:
from technological success of Bt cotton to check dams recharging
groundwater, to Narmada waters, to Jyotigram giving regular
and reliable power supply in rural areas, Krishi Mahotsav which
transformed the agri-extension landscape, ever-flourishing dairy
sector and well connected, good quality roads in rural areas.”
Even as Narendra Modi was unleashing a miracle in Gujarat, at the
Centre, there was a stark contrast.
They used to declare Minimum Support Price (MSP) but they never
bought large quantities of produce from farmers.
They declared loan waivers but those waivers never reached majority of
the small and marginal farmers.
They announced big schemes but these schemes almost always ended
up being damp squibs.
They promised subsidized fertilizers but it used to get routed to black
markets rather than reaching farmers.
Convinced that only Narendra Modi can ensure a turnaround in India’s
agriculture sector, farmers too voted overwhelmingly for him, making
him the Prime Minister in 2014.
New Era of Farmer Welfare in India

Bolstered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal record of working
with farmers, his government has taken various decisions for farmer
welfare from day one. For the first time, there was now a government
led by a leader who publicly set ambitious targets – doubling farmers’
income – and inspired the whole nation. As a way of recognizing role
models, some farmers were even honoured with Padma Awards.
In the past six years, the Modi government has gone about reforming
the agriculture domain step-by-step. At every step of the agricultural
cycle, the needs of the farmers have been kept in mind.
Not only were MSPs hiked multiple times but procurement at MSP also
increased many times more than earlier governments did. In 2013-14,
the MSP for Tur dal was Rs 4,300/quintal whereas in 2020-21, the MSP
for Tur dal has been substantially increased to Rs 6,000/quintal.