Pranab sows seeds of farm growth hope

Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi on Friday. Picture by Ramakant Kushwaha

Our Special Correspondent

New Delhi, Jan. 7: Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee was optimistic about agriculture making a turnaround in this fiscal on the back of a good monsoon and grow 6 per cent compared with a measly 0.2 per cent growth in 2009-10.

The projection comes at a time higher prices of vegetables, fruits, milk and eggs have pushed food inflation to over 18 per cent.

Mukherjee today held his customary pre-budget meeting with the stakeholders in agriculture.

“In the current year with normal monsoons, we are looking at a significant rebound in the growth of agriculture and allied sectors at about 6 per cent,” an official said. The official was privy to Mukherjee’s meeting with the farm sector representatives.

Already agriculture and the allied sectors, comprising forestry, fishery and poultry, have notched up 3.8 per cent growth in the first half because of good rains.

The meeting was attended by agriculture economists such as Ashok Gulati of the International Food Policy Research Institute and the leaders of farmers’ associations, including Sharad Joshi.

According to Mukherjee, agriculture and the allied sectors need to grow at 4 per cent annually to attain and sustain double-digit economic growth. “Already, some good results have been observed in the production of pulses in the current year,” a statement quoting the minister said.

Mukherjee is scheduled to meet industry captains and associations, including CII, Ficci and Assocham, on January 11.