Lok Sabha Question No. 319 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-19
Subject: Progress in Doubling Farmers Income
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Hanuman Beniwal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  319

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 19 th JULY, 2022

## PROGRESS IN DOUBLING FARMERS INCOME

319.   SHRI HANUMAN BENIWAL:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ षएवंकसानकयाणमंी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  it  is  a  fact  that  the  Government's  efforts  and  announcements  to double the income of farmers by the year 2022 did not yield positive results;
- (b) if so, the reasons therefor and the details of the analysis done by the Government in this regard; and
- (c) whether there is any plan to double the income of farmers by the end of the current financial year as announced by the Government and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ षएवंकसानकयाणमंी (SHRI NARENDRA SINGH TOMAR)

- (a) :No, Sir
- (b) & (c): Government had constituted an Inter-Ministerial Committee in April, 2016 to examine  issues  relating  to  'Doubling  of  Farmers  Income  (DFI)'  and  recommend strategies  to  achieve  the  same.    The  Committee  submitted  its  final  report  to  the Government  in  September,  2018  containing  the  strategy  for  doubling  of  farmers' income through various policies, reforms & programmes. The DFI strategy recommends recognition of agriculture as a value-led enterprise, identifying 7 major sources of income growth viz.,
- (i) improvement in crop productivity;
- (ii) improvement in livestock productivity;
- (iii) resource use efficiency or savings in the cost of production;
- (iv) increase in the cropping intensity;
- (v) diversification towards high value crops;
- (vi) improvement in real prices received by farmers; and
- (vii) shift of surplus manpower from farm to non-farm occupations.

In  the  above  connection,  it is  stated  that  the  Ministry of  Statistics  and  Programme Implementation [National Statistical Office (NSO)] conducted a Situation Assessment Survey  (SAS)  of  Agricultural  Households  during  NSS  70 th round  (January  2013December 2013) with reference to the agricultural year July 2012- June 2013 and during  NSS  77 th round  (January  2019-  December  2019)  with  reference  to  the agricultural year July 2018- June 2019 in the rural areas of the country.  From these surveys, estimated average monthly income per agricultural household as obtained from NSS 70th round (2012-13) and NSS 77th round (2018-19) were calculated as Rs.6426/- and Rs.10,218/- respectively.

Government  has  adopted  several  developmental  programmes,  schemes,  reforms and policies for achieving higher incomes for the farmers. There have been several reforms  to  tap  the  potential  for  income  enhancement  which  have  been  able  to augment of income of farmers directly or indirectly. These include:

- (i) Formation and promotion of 10,000 FPOs along with necessary financial support under AtmaNirbhar Package (Agriculture),
- (ii)  Special  attention  for  creation  of  infrastructure  through  Agri  Infrastructure  Fund (AIF) with a size of Rs. 100,000 crore,
- (iii) Supplementary income transfers under PM-KISAN,
- (iv) Crop insurance under Pradhan MantriFasalBimaYojna  (PMFBY),
- (v) Better access to irrigation under Pradhan MantriKrishiSinchaiYojana (PMKSY),
- (vi) Increase in Minimum Support Price (MSPs) for all Kharif& Rabi crops ensuring a minimum of 50 percent of profit margin on the cost of production,
- (vii) New procurement policy under PM-AASHA in addition to FCI operations,
- (viii)  Kisan  Credit  Cards  (KCC)  offering  production  loan  to  even  dairy  &  fishery farmers besides agricultural crops,
- (ix) National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA), which aims to evolve and implement  strategies  to  make  Indian  agriculture  more  resilient  to  the  changing climate.
- (x) Focus on application of digital technology at all stages of agricultural value chain.
- (xi) Adoption of drone technologies in agriculture which has a potential to revolutionize the Indian agriculture.
- (xii) Benefits accruing under Bee-Keeping, RashtriyaGokul Mission, Blue Revolution, Interest Subvention Scheme, agro-forestry, restructured bamboo mission, implementation of new generation watershed guidelines, etc
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