India has been traditionally practising integrated farming system (IFS) in households. With the small piece of land of 0.4 ha or below that food commodities for the family used to be through cereal crops, tuber crops and vegetables along with backyard poultry and goats if not one or two bovine animals.
The idea of commercial agriculture led to mono-cropping and market driven agriculture. Emphasis on quantities paved the road for the use of agrochemicals such as fertilisers, pesticides and other agrochemicals. The package of practices towards maximisation of yield from high yielding crop varieties (hybrids??) left with farmers the paradigm of hopeful bounty although every five year average was ‘standstill progress’ of the farm economics. High investment for maximisation of farm productivity focussed to crops left the farmers with negative balance and huge risk in the wake of dwindling marketing opportunity.
UN-Sustainable development goal-2 aspires for zero hunger and sustainable agriculture. Sustainability cannot be dreamt of in agriculture with drive for targeted agricultural production and productivity through technologies that suck in farmers’ investment for farm inputs. It has ended up as market driven hawkish input service system and no market appreciation for farm commodities.
Today globally farmers have become disillusioned due to the unsustainable farm economics. Indian farmers’ plight is no different from this. The challenge on nutrition of farm families due to negative balance arising from farming lead to poor nutrition of these small-farmers (land holders & landless labourers) and farm-families.
Sustainable agriculture shall focus into nutritious farm commodities and is possible if the marginal farmers are given direct cash transfer for purchase of commodities from market wherever these are not cultivated or produced in their farms.
Lastly addiction to tobacco and alcohol has become rampant in rural life. Tobacco is used in families to suppress hunger of its members who ultimately become addicts. The government policies on these revenue earning commodities has become evil influence in rural life. The aspiration for sustainable agriculture and nutritional security backfires when the health of the rural farming communities is challenged under the influence of government patronage of such addictive substances.
The correction of such situation begins from a moral and pecuniary upgradation of rural folks.
Can non-government organisations arise and group together to fight this impasse?
Dr. Rajendran TP