Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: examples of nutri-cereals

Mains level: climate resilient agriculture

Government push to coarse cereals as climate change affects wheat, paddy cultivation

Millets are a group of highly variable small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for human food and as fodder.

Big three: The three major millet crops currently growing in India are jowar (sorghum), bajra (pearl millet) and ragi (finger millet).
Examples: India also grows a rich array of bio-genetically diverse and indigenous varieties of “small millets” like kodo, kutki, chenna and sanwa.
Area of production: Major producers include Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Haryana.

Low input cost: cereals are good for the soil, have shorter cultivation cycles and require less cost-intensive cultivation.
Climate resilience: These unique features make millets suited for and resilient to India’s varied agro-climatic conditions.
Drought tolerance: cereals are not water or input-intensive, making them a sustainable strategy for addressing climate change and building resilient agri-food systems.

Effects of Green Revolution: The Green Revolution succeeded in making India food sufficient, however, it also led to water-logging, soil erosion, groundwater depletion and the unsustainability of agriculture.
Deficit mind-set: Current policies are still based on the “deficit” mind-set of the 1960s.
Biased policies: The procurement, subsidies and water policies are biased towards rice and wheat.
Skewed cropping pattern: Three crops (rice, wheat and sugarcane) corner 75 to 80 per cent of irrigated water.
Lack of diversification: Diversification of cropping patterns towards cereals, pulses, oilseeds, horticulture is needed for more equal distribution of water, sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture.

1) Rebranding the cereals as nutri-cereals

The first strategy from a consumption and trade point of view was to re-brand coarse cereals/millets as nutri-cereals.
As of 2018-19, millet production had been extended to over 112 districts across 14 states.

2) Incentive through hiking MSP

Second, the government hiked the MSP of nutri-cereals, which came as a big price incentive for farmers.
From 2014-15 to 2020 MSPs for ragi has jumped by 113 per cent, by 72 per cent for bajra and by 71 per cent for jowar.
MSPs have been calculated so that the farmer is ensured at least a 50 per cent return on their cost of production.

3) Providing steady markets through inclusion in PDS

To provide a steady market for the produce, the Modi government included millets in the public distribution system.

4) Increasing area, production and yield

The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare is running a Rs 600-crore scheme to increase the area, production and yield of nutri-cereals.
With a goal to match the cultivation of nutri-cereals with local topography and natural resources, the government is encouraging farmers to align their local cropping patterns to India’s diverse 127 agro-climatic zones.
Provision of seed kits and inputs to farmers, building value chains through Farmer Producer Organisations and supporting the marketability of nutri-cereals are some of the key interventions that have been put in place.

5) Intersection of agriculture and nutrition

The Ministry of Women and Child Development has been working at the intersection of agriculture and nutrition by -1) setting up nutri-gardens, 2) promoting research on the interlinkages between crop diversity and dietary diversity 3) running a behaviour change campaign to generate consumer demand for nutri-cereals.

India should aim for a food systems transformation, which can be inclusive and sustainable, ensure growing farm incomes and nutrition security. As the government sets to achieve its agenda of a malnutrition-free India and doubling of farmers’ incomes, the promotion of the production and consumption of nutri-cereals seems to be a policy shift in the right direction.

Mains question

Q. Promotion of millet crops serves the dual purpose of securing health and supporting farmers. Elucidate.

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