Security Measures for Farmers’ Welfare in India

The paper has outlined the causes of farmers’ distress; these include land fragmentation, poor irrigation, low productivity, poor access to credit and insurance, lack of market structure, etc. The paper has also discussed various security measures for the welfare of the farmers. These include livelihood security, financial security, technological security, food security, health and environmental security, social security, infrastructural security, etc. The paper has suggested that formation of joint groups of farmers like community based organizations (CBOs), krishak smajs, etc. can strengthen farm productivity in several ways. Some specific measures like minimum support price, Seed Bill 2010, agricultural research, irrigation, subsidy, food processing, organic farming, testing laboratories, etc. have been suggested for the welfare of the farmers. The paper has suggested that implementation of the recommendations of National Commission on Farmers will also help in mitigating agrarian distress in the country.