Management of the Pandemic: Agriculture, Food Management and Resilience During Covid-19 in India

Abstract

This article aims to analyse the impact of Covid-19 on agricultural activities, food security and policies of food management during the pandemic in India, particularly with reference to hardships caused to the most vulnerable communities due to the loss of livelihood, issues of access and availability. The explorations suggest that the growing inclination to centralise the structure of contemporary food and farming would make the entire system fragile, further accentuating the issues of food insecurity in the country. On the other hand, the localised, diverse systems of farming practices existing in various parts of India are rooted in agroecology, judiciously using and conserving the local natural resources. Thus, they have emerged as not only sustainable in the long run but are also food secure. While this impending crisis has exposed the systemic weakness of globalised food systems like never before, it also provides us with a crucial opportunity to mend our food and farming, keeping the long-term sustainability and food security as the goals.