A4
“The next generation is not interested in joining agriculture as it has become a loss-making enterprise”
AGRICULTURE SECTOR is in distress due to various reasons. While its impact on farmers is clearly evident, what remains ignored is that fact the younger generation in the rural India have fallen victim to this agrarian crisis. This is the reason, inspiring the country’s youth to take up farming has become the biggest challenge not only before policymakers but also for farming households.
Nowadays, it is a well-proven fact that agriculture is a loss-making enterprise. Therefore, the next generation is not interested in investing time or energy in learnimng the skills required for agriculture. The rural youth are getting higher education and expecting jobs based on some other skills in urban areas. Farming communities are also not willing to see the young family members toiling in the fields. Thus, psychological and social transformation is one of the major reasons behind the youth staying away from agriculture.
Even the Union government and the state governments have started looking at the agriculture sector as a development activity instead of focusing on it as the largest private sector economic activity. Hence, not much investment is happening in the sector. There is also a stagnation in the production of crops and on-farm activities. Unfortunately, as farmers are relinquishing agriculture, we do not have sufficient infrastructure for off-farm activities. Agribusiness sector is still in its infancy. Supply chain of agriculture commodities is handled by unskilled and uneducated human resources, which is one of the stumbling blocks for increasing farmers’ share in consumers’ rupee. There is no scheme to attract the youth towards agriculture, though there is an opportunity in processing and marketing of agricultural produce. Agricultural research and education is failing to address the challenges before the agriculture sector and create competent agriculture scientist and skilled human resources to drive the sector.