{"id":325594,"date":"2025-02-03T17:15:05","date_gmt":"2025-02-03T11:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=325594"},"modified":"2025-02-04T09:52:48","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T04:22:48","slug":"budget-boosts-agriculture-but-structural-issues-persist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/budget-boosts-agriculture-but-structural-issues-persist\/","title":{"rendered":"Budget Boosts Agriculture but Structural Issues Persist"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source<\/strong>: The post Budget Boosts Agriculture but Structural Issues Persist<\/strong> has been created, based on the article \u201cAshok Gulati, Raya Das on Budget 2025: Stopping short of the farm<\/strong>\u201d published in \u201cIndian Express<\/strong>\u201d on 3rd February 2025<\/p>\n

\"Budget<\/p>\n

UPSC Syllabus Topic:<\/strong> GS Paper3-Government Budgeting and Agriculture<\/p>\n

Context<\/strong>: The article discusses the Union Budget 2025-26’s impact on agriculture. It highlights key initiatives like credit expansion, crop diversification, and climate-resilient seeds. However, it notes funding gaps, structural issues, and the need for market reforms to improve productivity and farmer incomes.<\/p>\n

For detailed information on Union Budget 2025-2026 Highlights<\/strong> read this article here<\/a><\/p>\n

What are the Key Agricultural Initiatives in the Union Budget 2025-26?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Focus on 100 districts<\/strong> to boost agricultural productivity, promote sustainable farming, and support crop diversification.<\/li>\n
  2. Kisan Credit Card limit increased<\/strong> from \u20b93 lakh to \u20b95 lakh, improving access to credit for farmers.<\/li>\n
  3. Pulses Mission launched<\/strong> to achieve self-sufficiency in tur, moong, and urad<\/strong>, reducing import dependence.<\/li>\n
  4. Makhana Board set up in Bihar<\/strong> to support farmers engaged in makhana cultivation.<\/li>\n
  5. Agriculture budget increased<\/strong> by 4% to <\/strong>\u20b9<\/strong>1.49 trillion<\/strong>, but inflation may reduce its real impact.<\/li>\n
  6. PM-Kisan allocation remains <\/strong>\u20b9<\/strong>60,000 crore<\/strong>, unchanged since 2019, reducing its real value.<\/li>\n
  7. 109 climate-resilient seed varieties released<\/strong> for 32 crops, but agri-R&D spending remains below 0.5% of agri-GDP<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
  8. \u20b9<\/strong>500 crore allocated for Fruits and Vegetables Mission<\/strong>, but higher investment is needed.<\/li>\n
  9. Agriculture Infrastructure Fund increased<\/strong> from \u20b9600 crore to \u20b9900 crore to improve storage and logistics.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    What Structural Issues Remain Unaddressed?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    1. Low Agricultural Budget Growth<\/strong>: The agriculture budget increased only by 4%<\/strong>, which may be ineffective if inflation remains 4-5%<\/strong>. PM-Kisan’s \u20b9<\/strong>60,000 crore allocation<\/strong> has not increased since 2019, reducing its real value.<\/li>\n
    2. Declining Farm Incomes<\/strong>: Agriculture\u2019s share in GDP is 17.7%<\/strong>, but 46.1% of the workforce<\/strong> depends on it. Farm wages remain low<\/strong> as the workforce in agriculture has increased from 42.5% (2018-19) to 46.1% (FY24)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
    3. Weak R&D Investment<\/strong>: India spends less than 0.5% of agri-GDP on R&D<\/strong>, far below the 1% needed<\/strong>. Without proper research and extension, new climate-resilient seeds may not boost farm incomes.<\/li>\n
    4. Limited Crop Diversification<\/strong>: MSP-based policies still favor rice and wheat<\/strong>, limiting pulses, oilseeds, and horticulture growth.<\/li>\n
    5. High Post-Harvest Losses<\/strong>: India loses 8.1% of fruits and 7.3% of vegetables<\/strong>, costing \u20b9<\/strong>1.53 trillion annually<\/strong>. The \u20b9<\/strong>900 crore Agriculture Infrastructure Fund<\/strong> may help, but large gaps remain.<\/li>\n
    6. Import Dependence<\/strong>: India imports pulses, oilseeds, cotton, and maize<\/strong>, increasing vulnerability. Expanding pulses in rice-fallow areas<\/strong> and incentivizing private investment could help.<\/li>\n
    7. Market Inefficiencies<\/strong>: Farmers receive only 30% of consumer spending<\/strong> on fruits and vegetables due to weak supply chains. e-NAM integration with ONDC<\/strong> could help, but logistics remain a challenge.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Conclusion <\/strong><\/p>\n

      The budget makes incremental changes but lacks a bold strategy<\/strong>. It still relies on subsidies instead of investment-driven growth. Private-sector participation, better market access, and technology adoption<\/strong> are necessary to make Indian agriculture more resilient and globally competitive.<\/p>\n

      Question for practice: <\/strong><\/p>\n

      Discuss the key agricultural initiatives in the Union Budget 2025-26 and the structural issues that remain unaddressed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Source: The post Budget Boosts Agriculture but Structural Issues Persist has been created, based on the article \u201cAshok Gulati, Raya Das on Budget 2025: Stopping short of the farm\u201d published in \u201cIndian Express\u201d on 3rd February 2025 UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper3-Government Budgeting and Agriculture Context: The article discusses the Union Budget 2025-26’s impact on… Continue reading Budget Boosts Agriculture but Structural Issues Persist<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":325680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230],"tags":[216,8184,10500],"class_list":["post-325594","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","tag-gs-paper-3","tag-indian-economy","tag-indian-express","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Budget-Boosts-Agriculture-but-Structural-Issues-Persist.png?fit=1280%2C850&ssl=1","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325594","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325594"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325594\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/325680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325594"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325594"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325594"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}