Even when our farmers produce bumper crops, there are not enough silos for storing wheat or paddy. Large stocks lie open in the fields or in mandis to rot in the rain. We have also to come to terms with the fact that our best yielding lands have reached a plateau stage of production and cannot yield more no matter how much our agricultural scientists evolve new varieties of seeds or how much fertiliser or pesticides are used without causing irreversible damage to the soil. Meanwhile, our population goes on increasing by Mandelian leaps and bounds. With every new generation land holdings get divided and become smaller unable to sustain large families.
Younger siblings have to find employment in industry.
Or they take to crime. You can see their process of social deterioration vividly in Punjab. They have gone to other countries leaving India out of their itinerary. This tourist season will record an all-time low in the number of foreign visitors to India. And India has a lot more to offer in the way of ancient historical monuments, exotic festivals, beautiful scenery and a colourful, outgoing, hospitable people than any other country.