India needs Green revolution 2.0 to make agri more climate resistant, sustainable: RBI

Context:

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in an article titled ‘Indian Agriculture: Achievements and Challenges’ suggested that a second green revolution along with the next generation of reforms is required to make agriculture more climate-resistant and environmentally sustainable.

Achievement of Indian Agriculture:

The article said Indian agriculture scaled new heights with record production of various foodgrains, commercial and horticultural crops, exhibiting resilience and ensuring food security during the COVID-19 period.

Challenges faced by Indian Agriculture:

Food inflation and its volatility.
Crop productivity in India is much lower due to various factors, like fragmented landholdings, lower farm mechanization and lower public and private investment in agriculture.
Environmentally Unsustainable: The overproduction of crops like rice, wheat and sugarcane, has led to rapid depletion of the ground-water table, soil degradation and massive air pollution.

Need to focus:

Use technologies: The use of biotechnology and breeding will be important in developing eco-friendly, disease-resistant, climate-resilient, more nutritious and diversified crop varieties.
Wider use of digital technology and extension services will be helpful in information sharing and generating awareness among the farmers.
Arrest volatility: Better post-harvest loss-management and a revamp of co-operative movement through the formation of farmer-producer organizations (FPOs) can arrest the volatility in food prices and farmers’ income and help harness the true potential of Indian agriculture.

Conclusion:

Addressing these challenges would require a second green revolution focussed on the agriculture water-energy nexus, making agriculture more climate resistant and environmentally sustainable.

News Source: The Economic Times