Rural Manufacturing Based Model to Double Farmers’ Income

What is the issue?

• The present agri-production based model in India has various shortfalls.
• It has s to be replaced with a rural manufacturing based model.

What are the concerns with the present agricultural model?

• Agricultural sector employs major portion of the workforce yet its current growth rate is merely 3%.
• The farmers are concentrating more on increasing the per acre productivity and not on getting sustainable income from the land.
• The explosion of service sector and stagnation of manufacturing sector are also contributing to the disguised employment and declining growth in agriculture.
• There are issues with the policies formulated as they concentrate more on remedying the immediate requirement so the farmers without analysing the consequence of their actions.

What is the rural manufacturing based model about?

• The rural manufacturing based model connects the individual households with the local markets in villages and these with domestic and global consumption markets.
• The goal of this model is to double income of agricultural households and to boost the agriculture & related manufacturing.
• Central to this approach is creating a market-place that supports a rural enterprise which is partly agricultural and partly non-agricultural.
• It will also involve the under-employed adults in rural households in low-skilled non-crop activities that integrate output from these activities into the existing or future markets.

What areas should be specifically developed under this model?

• Menstrual hygiene market – Assembly of sanitary napkins in small units should be localised so that women from the villages run it.
• This will create a rural-based production system that generates employment and creates basic industrial skills.
• Goat rearing – It has a potential for net annual income of Rs.1000- Rs.2000 per goat including milk, its value addition, meat and leather processing.
• Collecting goat milk from households and distribution through the milk co-operatives will create a large, broad-based collection, processing and storage infrastructure and generate employment.
• Honey production – Apiculture is a low-cost source of income for rural households.
• Apart from its revenue potential, bees help in pollinating the crops which is a viable solution to the declining natural bee population.
• Value addition to crops – Excessive production of crops like tomatoes, potatoes, and other vegetables can be processed into purees and dry flakes to reduce wastage and glut in the market.
• Policies can be formulated to extract the natural antibiotics present in herbs and roots such as tulsi and turmeric which will increase the income of the tribal farmers.
• Bio-fuel market – Biofuel crops like Jatropha should be encouraged to be planted by the farmers as it would serve both as fodder and also fuel required for running the equipments in the farm.
• Collection and processing units when set up in villages will generate additional employment for the people.
• Also, turning farm waste into fuel instead of burning will improve the health of people as well as the environmental conditions.

Source: Business Line