Rural society and agriculture will continue to play an important role in sustaining the recent economic growth in India. However, agricultural productivity has been low for several decades and investment in the agricultural sector is stagnant. Agriculture subsidies are growing while rural investments are declining. There is an increased recognition that agricultural investments have to be boosted, but it is not clear to what level and where the new resources should be invested. Issues related to governance, institutional capacity and policies will have to go hand in hand with such investments if the current economic growth trends in India are to fully benefit the rural majority who continue to be poor and marginalized.

In a fast growing India, it is a shame that the growth of agriculture is nowhere near matching up to that speed. Farming is not remunerative anymore. Income disparity between farmers and the urban consumers is widening. In a recent national sample survey, about 40% of the farmers reported that they would quit agriculture given better opportunities. Also, farmer suicides have become rampant in some parts of the country. All these indicate that Indian agriculture needs a revival.

It has been often remarked that India needs a second green revolution. The story of the Indian first green revolution in the 1960s and 1970s is well-known. Increasing crop productivity in order to attain national food self-sufficiency was the major goal. Modern varieties of seeds were imported and adapted to various agro-ecological regions. Farmers were encouraged to use chemical fertilizers and plant protection chemicals through subsidies. Irrigation systems were revamped and rehabilitated and a well-functioning public extension system was put in place. Farmers were assured the right price and market for their produce. The combined effect of these factors, with a committed capacity of scientists in the national agricultural research systems, transformed India from a country that depended on food imports to feed its population into a country of self-sufficiency within a matter of 15 years. The current challenges of Indian agriculture, however, are too complex to tie down with a single focus.

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