|
The NAIP will not predefine
the specific research projects that it wishes to pursue
under the Components 2, 3 and 4, but will allow the
agenda to evolve from the bottom through a competitive
process that will guide the resource allocation
criteria.
The broad thrust areas
mentioned below are the national and sectoral-level
thrusts, as reflected in the National Agricultural
Policy and the Tenth Five-Year Plan of India (2002-07),
including its Mid-Term Appraisal Report, recommendations
of the National Commission of Farmers and several
consultations held with a wide array of stakeholders.
For making the Indian
agriculture profitable, sustainable and competitive, we
target a multi-faceted approach with greater
appreciation for various site-specific needs and
compulsions of the farming systems, agro-climatic
conditions, endowments of land and water resources,
rural infrastructure, and the market demand both within
and outside the country. Facilitating services and
support systems, covering, credit, extension, marketing,
prices, etc. are critical for successful
diversification. This would require efficient field
operations/ hatchery management, facilitating and
improving processing, post-harvesting management,
marketing, quality assurance and strengthening of
infrastructure for rapid multiplication of disease-free
planting material. On-farm experimentation would be
accorded high priority for testing and disseminating
technologies suitable for increasing food, feed, fodder
and fuel (rural energy) security, and improving the
livelihoods of resource-poor farmers.
Emerging as “sunrise
sectors”. Livestock in India is largely owned
by small and marginal farmers and landless people in
rural areas, especially in the dry land areas. So this
sector’s rapid growth provides direct benefits to the
poorer households. Further, the contribution of women in
these sectors is substantial. Focused attention on
genetic up gradation, nutrition, management, disease
surveillance and control, production of feeds,
diagnostic kits and vaccines, post-harvest handling and
processing and marketing of livestock and aquaculture
produce, by-produce and wastes will certainly bring
prosperity to poor and gains to the country.
Studies on monitoring and control of trans-boundary
livestock diseases have important implications for human
health, international trade and compliance with hygiene
and sanitary requirements of the importing country.
Regular improvements in
germplasm (plants and animals, including fish and
microbes) and nutritional value of staple foods, besides
management of diseases and pests of crops and livestock
need to continually attempted.
Genetic resources (plant, animal and
microbial) constitute one of the most important and
invaluable natural resources and their proper
documentation and effective utilization is an important
endeavour. The importance of undertaking such an
activity with the help of local communities, NGOs, etc.
cannot be overemphasized.
Bio-prospecting will have to lay the
foundation for effective mining and targeting the
transfer of genes for specific traits. The vast
microbial gene pool has to be explored and utilized for
crop and animal improvement.
This is capital- and knowledge-intensive sector, but at
the same time warrants strong public-public and
public-private partnerships. Interactions between
research institutions and the industry need to be
strengthened for realizing the full potential of
frontier sciences.
In view of the increasing
water scarcity and the growing competition for water-use
in agriculture, household and industry, efficient and
sustainable management of
water resources, with focus on
watersheds and local-level community management is
needed. Through its Consortia approach, the NAIP will
aim to combine short- and possibly long-term economic
benefits (farmers’ interests) with long-term
environmental concerns (public interest) and favorable
institutional development.
Soil health
has been affected adversely owing to depletion of
organic carbon, imbalanced use of nutrients,
micronutrient deficiency, etc. IPNM approach with
appropriate policies, precision agriculture, etc. may be
explored to tackle the inadequate replenishment of
nutrients to the soil.
Global warming is becoming an important
issue for sustainable agriculture. Understanding its
effects and developing adaptation and mitigation
strategies should receive attention.
Selected areas having competitive advantage and
technologies that support modern organic farming
may be generated/ strengthened. This research
will not only contribute to enhanced nutritional and
environmental security but also improve export prospects
of agri-products.
Pesticides are often not
accessible to small-scale farmers and skill and
knowledge in the sound use of pesticides is lacking.
Pesticide-misuse is therefore a significant health and
economic hazard to producers, consumers and the
environment. The evolution of new races, pathotypes,
strains and biotypes of the pathogens and insect-pests
worsens the scenario further. In this context, to manage
such biotic stresses, efficient and effective integrated
approaches are required. Consortia within the NAIP may
take up elaboration and validation of IPM
policies and practices for the
ecologically-tolerable and economically-sustainable use
of pesticides.
Value-addition to and post-harvest processing of agri-produce
is an area of immense significance to meet the global
competition. At present, only 7% of the output of the
agricultural sector is provided value-addition and 2% of
the volume of perishables is processed. In view of the
small and scattered farm holdings and a majority of
farmers being resource-poor, strengthening of
co-operatives, self-help groups, and contract farming
assumes significance. Processing technologies
need to follow the changing consumption patterns.
Establishing local storage and
small-scale processing capacity to minimize
post-harvest losses is important.
In the scenario of
globalization and emergence of
increasingly competitive, fast-changing and quality-concious
markets the importance of market intelligence
to predict the trends and develop models for
forecasts cannot be overemphasized. Integration
of markets within the country and with world markets,
supported by appropriate policies,
needs to be seriously considered. |
