Affiliation:
1. Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi, India
2. Public Health Foundation of India, Gurgaon, Haryana, India
Abstract
In 2016–2017, Indian government set a policy target of doubling farmers’ incomes by 2022. This article investigates farmers’ perspectives on this contentious policy. Results suggest that only 18% of farmers were aware of this policy. Most farmers blamed the government’s support, high cost of cultivation and low MSP for their inability to increase their farm profitability. While synthesizing farmers’ perspectives, past trends, and the debate among agricultural scientists and policy analysts, this policy could not help farmers in doubling their incomes by 2022. However, it could have been possible if the governments had initiated some targeted programmes to provide them with farm inputs at lower prices and bought their crops at a higher MSP.
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