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Budget 2020: Government Committed To Doubling Farm Income By 2022

Government wants to double farm income by 2022.

A farmer walks through a field of a farm at a village in Haryana, India. (Photographer: T. Narayan/Bloomberg)  
A farmer walks through a field of a farm at a village in Haryana, India. (Photographer: T. Narayan/Bloomberg)  

The government in its Union Budget 2020-21 announced that it’s committed to double farm income by 2022. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the agriculture and rural development outlay had been set at Rs 2.83 lakh crore.

To boost the agriculture sector, rural development, irrigation, water, wellness and sanitation, the government listed a 16-point agenda. These include:

  1. Encourage those states that undertake three model agri laws---land leasing, livestock and contract farming.
  2. Comprehensive measures for 100 water stressed districts.
  3. PM Kusum expanded to provide for 20 lakh farmers to set up solar power units on barren lands that can be connected to grids.
  4. Will encourage balanced used of all kinds of fertilisers (necessary to change incentive regime that encourages excessive use of chemical fertilisers).
  5. Nabard to map and geotag 152 million metric tonnes of agri storage and develop warehousing.
  6. To provide viability gap funding to set up local storage facilities.
  7. Women self help groups can avail of Mudra/Nabard support to regain position of Dhanya Lakshmi (seed storage).
  8. To build national cold supply chain, Indian Railways will set up Kisan Rail through public private partnership. Krishi Udaan will be launched by the civil aviation ministry on national/international routes.
  9. Horticulture sector – states to focus on one product, one district.
  10. Integrated farming systems to be expanded.
  11. Emphasis on zero budget farming.
  12. Negotiable warehousing receipts financing to be integrated with e-nam.
  13. Nabard refinance scheme to be further expanded. Agriculture credit target for FY21 set at Rs 15 lakh crore.
  14. To eliminate foot and mouth disease, among others.
  15. Doubling of milk processing capacity from 53.2 mmt to 108 mmt by 2025.
  16. To raise fish production to 200 lakh tonnes.

Watch | the government’s 16-point agenda for agricultural sector...