Yeddy’s Novel Agri-Budget is Just a Booklet of Mere Gimmicks
From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore
Bangalore, Feb 24: For the first time in the history of India, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa has unveiled a novel and separate budget for Agriculture ahead of the general budget for the year 2011-12 in the State Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
Apart from presenting the first-of-its-kind 46-page agri budget appropriately printed with a green cover has a total outlay of Rs 17,857 crore for agriculture, irrigation and allied sectors against Rs 11,000 crore in the previous year, the Chief Minister created history of sorts by walking to Vidhana Soudha by foot carrying the customary briefcase used for packing the budgetary documents from the Basaveshwara Circle covering a distance of nearly half a kilometer. He was accompanied by some his ministerial colleagues amidst tight police security.
Incidentally, after continuously reading out both the agri-budget as well as the general budget for almost three and half hours, Yeddyurappa performed another first by driving to the Freedom Park, the former Central Jail in the vicinity of Vidhana Soudha, to address a gathering of organic farmers and presenting a copy of the Agriculture Budget to a farmer.
This is the fourth budget presented by Yeddyurappa as Chief Minister by virtue of holding the finance portfolio since the May 2008 assembly polls. He had also presented two budgets earlier as deputy chief minister cum finance minister under the H D Kumaraswamy-led JD(S)-BJP coalition regime, making Yeddyurappa’s latest annual budget for the year 2011-12 as the sixth.
However, the question remains as to what is the speciality of the first-of-its-kind agri-budget presented either at the State level or at the Centre. The most obvious answer is that Yeddyurappa’s agri-budget is not really a budget in the general accepted financial terminology as it lacks the basic ingredient of explaining how the budgetary allocations for the various schemes/programmes spelt out in the budget will be funded. Budgeting in common parlance implies a statement of income and expenditure or revenue receipts and expenditure. Even household statement of accounts must necessarily consist of income and expenditure, without which budgeting will be meaningless.
Viewed in this point of view, Yeddyurappa’s agri-budget is at best a booklet listing of the problems plaguing the farm sector besides a statement pious hopes and goals and spelling out various schemes/programmes with specific financial allocations. But the document, despite Yeddyurappa’s desire that it will ``facilitate serious discussions to find a comprehensive solution to the problems in agriculture and also identify necessary strategies to tackle them,” does not really suggest any quick-fix or lasting solutions.
If the country can have a separate budget in addition to the general budget, a legacy of the British Raj even after Independence, the Chief Minister contends that it is all the more necessary to formulate an exclusive budget for the agriculture sector, considering the fact that 70 % of the country’s population as well as in the State is dependent on agriculture.
"This unique attempt is aimed at giving a new dimension to the schemes related to land and water,” he said pointing out that the condition of farmers, who are the back-bone of the country, has not improved to the expected level. Lack of adequate investment, appropriate strategy, processing and marketing facilities and partnership programmes were the main problems affecting the farm sector, he said explaining that the agriculture sector has an high potential to create employment and generate income in rural areas besides helping in the GDP growth.
The single biggest plus point of the so-called agri-budget, which has been deliberately called Part I of the General Budget (is it because, the document cannot be termed a real budget as pointed out earlier?) is the move to offer crop loans upto Rs 3 lakh for cooperative institutions at the lowest interest rate of 1 % and provision of assuring easy credit to farmers. However, the interest rate on crop loans from all commercial banks in the State shall continue to be at 3 % upto a limit of Rs 50,000.
Organic farming is the biggest thrust area with Karnataka being the first state to constitute an Organic Farming Mission and helping 87,200 farmers in 1.18 lakh hectares to adopt organic farming practices. The number of farmers covered by organic farming will be increased to 5.28 lakh in the coming years and Rs 200 crore will be provided for training, skill development, foreign tours, product processing, marketing assistance and evaluation activities this year.
A global agri-investment meet in June 2011 to boost the investment in the sector is another initiative to attract investment, Yeddyurappa said pointing out that at least Rs 51,000 crore would be required to implement strategies for improving livelihood of farmers, give required training to their children, construct warehouses and cold-storages throughout the State besides having a system of grading agricultural products in order to secure better prices, establish connectivity with national and international markets and provide infrastructural facilities for agriculture and allied activities.
Recognising the need for giving a fillip to the irrigation sector, Yeddyurappa has provided an outlay of Rs 7,800 crore to the sector during the coming year, which is 50 % more from the previous year. It has a novel proposal for establishing an Agriculture Infrastructure Fund of Rs 500 crore to overcome the infrastructure deficit and an increase in the Agriculture Revolving Fund corpus to Rs 1,000 crore.
It has proposed to set aside Rs 1,000 crore for development of 10 lakh farmer’s families under the `Suvarna Bhoomi Yojana’ scheme. Under the scheme, lives of 10 lakh farmer families would be revived in 2011-12.
Under the scheme, every family with holding up to two acres would be given financial aid of Rs. 10,000 a year in two installments. The average holding size has declined from 3.20 hectares in 1970-71 to 1.63 hectares in 2005-06. In case of the holding less than two acres, the incentives would be given proportionately. There are 76 lakh farmer families in the State and of them 75 per cent small and marginal farmers.
The first installment would be given before the commencement of monsoon. It would be applicable mainly to dry land farmers and would not cover command and irrigation areas, he said.
The budget has proposed an Rs 100 crore subsidy for drip irrigation and sprinkler irrigation and a Rs 100 crore subsidy for agricultural purchases. Sub-sector-wise allocation in the farm sector is: agriculture and horticulture – Rs. 3,180 crore, animal husbandry and fisheries – Rs. 1077 crore, irrigation – Rs. 7,800 crore, free power to IP sets – Rs. 3,900 crore.
The Budget also sets aside Rs 40 crore for extending the ‘Bhoo Chethana’ (soil enrichment) programme to all 30 districts of the state. The government proposed to hold a Global Agro—Investment Meet for the first time in India and also plans to formulate a Karnataka Agri Business Development Policy.
The other budget highlights included a Rs 40 crore provision for making available a modern mobile unit in each taluk to carry out extension work in agriculture, horticulture and animal husbandry, beside a Rs 10 crore special grant for floriculture development.
To overcome the shortage of technical hands in rural areas, it proposed to offer diploma and certificate courses in agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, and fishery subjects for agricultural graduates through agricultural, horticultural and animal husbandry universities. Long duration of training would be provided to 1000 students with short duration training to 3,000 students with a stipend of Rs. 1,000 per month to each student.
To facilitate the education of farmers’ children, interest-free loans would be given for their higher education. Special emphasis has also been laid in the budget on updating land records and amendment of the Land Reforms Act. An amount of Rs 9 core has been made to increase paddy and sugarcane productivity and Rs 60 crore provided in 2011-12 to facilitate the purchase of quality seeds with a 50 per cent subsidy, he said
The budget contained a provision of Rs 5 crore for construction of 50 fish markets, Rs 100 crore for construction of small harbours and Rs 100 crore for construction of warehouses.