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32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists
Context:
The Prime Minister of India inaugurated the 32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE) at National Agricultural Science Centre (NASC) Complex, New Delhi.
More on News:
- The Prime Minister highlighted that agriculture in India is built on ancient wisdom, citing “Krishi Parashar,” a nearly 2000-year-old agricultural treatise.
- He reiterated India’s commitment to global welfare as a ‘Vishwa Bandhu’, citing mantras like ‘One Earth, One Family and One Future’, ‘Mission LiFE’, and ‘One Earth One Health’.
- He emphasised a holistic approach to sustainable agriculture and food systems, integrating the health of humans, plants, and animals.
Krishi Parashar: 
Significance of the Conference:
- The triennial ICAE is being held in India after 65 years, with around 1,000 delegates from 75 countries participating.
- This International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE) flagship conference offers a unique platform for agricultural academics & researchers to meet, share knowledge, and contribute to the global research community.
- The theme for this year’s conference is, “Transformation Towards Sustainable Agri-Food Systems.”
- It aims to tackle the pressing need for sustainable agriculture in the face of global challenges such as:
- Climate change, natural resource degradation, rising production costs, etc.
- Economic Survey 2023-24 states that climate change can significantly reduce yields for rainfed and irrigated rice and wheat by 2050 and 2080.
- National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) aims to enhance climate resilience through assured irrigation and initiatives like the Rainfed Area Development (RAD) program.
India: A global Agricultural Leader:
- India is one of the major players in agriculture sector worldwide as it is:
- Largest producer of milk, pulses, and spices, and, second-largest producer of food grain, fruits, vegetables, cotton, sugar, tea, and farmed fish.
- Inc42 forecasts that India’s agricultural sector will grow to $24 billion by 2025.
- Economic Survey 2023-24: The Indian agriculture sector supports about 42.3% of the population and contributes 18.2% to the GDP.
- In the past five years, India’s agriculture sector has grown at an average rate of 4.18% annually.
- The country maintains a substantial foodgrain stock, with about 40% distributed free to two-thirds of the population.
- India also exports over 7% of its foodgrains, contributing positively to the economy.
India’s Agricultural Tradition and Research: India’s agricultural tradition prioritises science and logic.
- It has a robust system of agriculture education & research based on its heritage.
- It has more than 100 Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) institutes, 500 agriculture colleges, and 700 Krishi Vigyan Kendras.
Strengthening Small Farmers:
- Small farmers owe little land but make up 90% of India’s farmers and are the biggest strength of India’s food security.
Leveraging Digital Technology:
- India is linking agriculture with modern technology through initiatives like:
- Soil Health Card, solar farming, e-Nam, Kisan Credit Card, PM Fasal Bima Yojana, National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGP-A)
- Digi-Claim-Payment Module: To integrate National Crop Insurance Programme (NCIP) with public financial management system (PFMS).
- Yield Estimation Based on Technology (YES-Tech), Weather Information Network & Data System (WINDS) and Collection of Real-time Observations and Photographs of Crops (CROPIC).
Other initiatives:
- Assured remunerative prices via Minimum Support Price (MSP)
- Digital India Land Records Modernization Program: Digitising land records in india.
- PM Kisan Samman Nidhi: Direct benefit transfers to 10cr farmers.
- Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) Scheme to educate farmers.
- PM Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme: Provides financial, technical, & business support.
Innovation and Global Sharing:
- Positive results from large-scale natural farming and a focus on sustainable, climate-resilient farming are evident in India.
- Over the past decade, 1,900 climate-resilient crop varieties were introduced, for instance, medicinal black rice from Manipur, Assam, and Meghalaya. India is eager to share these experiences globally.
- India is developing a complete ecosystem to support farmers and promote sustainable and climate-resilient farming.
- India is willing to share its millet basket with the world and celebrated the last year as the International Year of Millets.