January 2021, South Asia 

Even as the pandemic-led crisis shrank India’s overall economy, its agriculture sector, supported by a normal monsoon, robust kharif sowing and adequate water storage in reservoirs, remained a “bright spot”, as per the Reserve Bank of India.

India’s gross domestic product that had grown by 5.2% and 4.4% in the first two quarters of 2019-20, contracted by 23.9% and 7.5% in the first and second quarters, respectively, of 2020-21, per government data. However, agriculture appeared to have escaped the impact of the slump caused by the pandemic–it grew at 3.4% in both quarters, close to the 2019-20 rates.

“It is true that agricultural activities are less affected, in part because it is a fallback option for those who have lost jobs in cities or those who do wage work,” said Sudha Narayanan, agriculture economist and associate professor at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research. Also, when other earnings fall precipitously, the logical response from landowners is to raise their own food, she added.

However, as we explain later, the growth did not result in higher farm incomes due to the rise in input costs caused by the lockdown. The agriculture sector also saw some other upheavals this year. The passage of the three farm laws during the 2020 monsoon session of parliament has led to widespread unrest over the last three weeks. The farmers are adamant that the bills be rolled back because they fear that increased privatisation of the sector will leave them vulnerable to exploitation.

Further, as we step into 2021, the government will have just one year to meet its promise of doubling farmers’ incomes by 2022. Experts say this was an unrealistic target to begin with and is now looking increasingly so.

We spoke to experts on the new farm laws, the government’s bid to promote farmer producer organisations (FPOs), the plans to digitise the farm economy, and what issues will need to be addressed in the new year. Here is what they had to say.