Transformation of the Agricultural System Part 1

 

Shramik Kranti – Garibon Ka Aawaz

Transformation of the Agricultural System

Part 1

Agriculture Is an Occupation, but Where Is the System?

Is the farmer poor because agriculture is unprofitable, or is it because the agricultural system itself is inadequate?

For many years, we have been discussing the problems faced by farmers.

• Farmers do not receive fair prices for their produce.
• Production costs continue to rise.
• Weather forecasts are not always accurate.
• Rainfall is sometimes insufficient and sometimes excessive.
• Farmers face droughts, hailstorms, and crop diseases.
• When the produce is finally ready for sale, market prices often collapse.

Separate solutions are proposed for each of these problems.

But there is one fundamental question we must ask:

Is our agricultural system fundamentally well-organised?

Why Not Organise Agriculture Like a Factory?

Consider a factory.

A factory has a production department.

It has a quality control department.

It has a maintenance department.

It has a purchasing department.

It has sales and marketing departments.

It has transportation and storage facilities.

It has an accounts department.

It also has risk management and emergency management systems.

Every person has a clearly defined role.

Then why should we not look at agriculture, which produces our food, in a similar way?

Today, farmers are often required to perform several different roles simultaneously.

• The farmer is the producer.
• The farmer is the manager.
• The farmer must study weather conditions.
• The farmer must understand market trends.
• The farmer must purchase seeds, fertilisers, and other inputs.
• The farmer must manage agricultural labour.
• The farmer must arrange transportation of the produce.
• Finally, the farmer must accept whatever market price is available.

Farmers do not always receive adequate training in all these areas.

Would it be fair to consider this merely a shortcoming on the farmer's part?

Or have we failed to create a system in which farmers can concentrate more on their primary responsibility: producing crops scientifically and efficiently?

Why Should Agriculture Not Have Specialised Departments?

There is a need to view agriculture as a large, organised production system.

First, agricultural regions across the country can be classified according to rainfall, climate, soil conditions, water availability, and geographical characteristics.

Suitable groups of crops can then be identified for each region.

A dedicated technical support system can be established for the production of those crops.

Such a system could include the following departments:

• Production Department
• Quality Control Department
• Irrigation and Water Management Department
• Agricultural Machinery Department
• Storage Department
• Processing Department
• Transportation Department
• Marketing Department
• Market Research Department
• Disaster Management Department

This does not mean handing over farmers' land or agricultural activities to government officials.

On the contrary, farmers must remain at the centre of the entire system.

The system must exist to support farmers, not to control them.

Why Not Establish Dedicated Producer Organisations for Each Crop?

If a particular crop is to be cultivated on a large scale in a specific region, why not establish a dedicated producer company or producer organisation for that crop?

The organisation's role should not be limited to selling agricultural produce.

The entire value chain could be connected through such an organisation, from seeds and cultivation to quality control, processing, and marketing.

This would ensure that farmers do not have to face the market alone.

Instead, they would become part of an organised production system.

What About Agricultural Labourers?

Agricultural labourers are another extremely important component of the agricultural system.

Instead of viewing agricultural labourers merely as people who work for daily wages, their skills should be given proper economic value.

A system can be developed that provides crop-specific skill training, clearly defined responsibilities, productivity standards, workplace safety, and transparent remuneration.

This would bring the following stakeholders together as components of a single agricultural value chain:

Farmers + Agricultural Labourers + Technicians + Transporters + Processing Industries + Market Systems

Connecting Agriculture with Education

Education is another essential foundation of this entire system.

Farmers should receive scientific knowledge about the crops suitable for their respective regions.

Agricultural labourers should receive appropriate training for their work.

Technicians should be trained in modern agricultural technologies.

Those responsible for management should understand agricultural economics and market dynamics.

In this way, agriculture can evolve from a system based primarily on traditional practices into a knowledge-based production system.

The Question of Poverty Eradication

If we continue to discuss only loan waivers, subsidies, and financial assistance because farmers are poor, we will be addressing only one part of the problem.

The time has come to ask a much broader question:

How can we increase the fair share of farmers and agricultural labourers in the total value generated by agriculture?

The answer does not lie solely in increasing agricultural production.

The answer lies in:

Production + Quality + Processing + Value Addition + Storage + Transportation + Markets + Fair Distribution of Value

Therefore, the issue of farmers' poverty must not be restricted to the simple demand that farmers should be paid more.

We must ask a much bigger question:

What kind of agricultural system can we create in which farmers and agricultural labourers have a fair and stable share in the wealth generated by agriculture?

This is the beginning of our series on transforming the agricultural system.

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Coming Up in Part 2

Why Should Agricultural Regions Not Be Classified According to Climate and Water Availability?

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Author: Arun Ramchandra Pangarkar

Shramik Kranti – Garibon Ka Aawaz

“Eradicating Poverty Through Systemic Transformation”