Evergreen Revolution: Need, Problems and Prospects

The agrarian crisis sweeping the country underlines the need for attending to the problems of farmers and farming with the same seriousness as we did in the early sixties. According to most estimates, farming is no longer remunerative and over 40 per cent of farmers will like to quit farming if they have an alternative option. Farming is both a way of life and the principal means to livelihood to nearly two-thirds of our population. It is clear that we will not be able to make progress in improving our per capita income or human development indicators, if agriculture continues to stagnate. This is why our Prime Minister is calling for a second green revolution. Green revolution is another term for improving production through productivity enhancement. The first green revolution was based on the development and spread of new genetic strains of wheat, rice, maize and other crops characterised by their ability to utilise irrigation, water, sunlight and plant nutrients effectively and convert them into grains. This revolution was confined to areas with assured irrigation. However, even in these areas like Punjab, farming is becoming unremunerative due to adverse ecological and economic factors and farmers are getting heavily indebted. The challenge now is to fight and overcome the fatigue of the green revolution in its heartland…