Will 'farmers champion' CM be able to present agri budget again? 

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has recently completed series of consultations with all stake holders and officials to prepare a popular budget in the background of corona pandemic. He is expected to present the 2021-22 budget on the floor of legislative assembly on 8th March. BSY is always referred as a farmers champion and he has credit of presenting krishi budget on earlier occasions.This years' budget also he is likely to provide adequate support to agriculture.

The farming community in the state is a distressed lot owing to the confusions of new farm bills and lack of infrastructure support. In an attempt to support this community, he is focusing on integrated farming. This provides alternative cropping with a hope to provide relief even during the times of natural disasters like floods and famine. Farming community is urging BSY to provide protection legally against purchase of their products below minimum support price as done in Punjab. In this context, the coming budget is going to give higher support to farmers to encourage multi sector farming and  inter sector farming.

The aim of integrated farming includes horticulture, agriculture, fisheries, poultry, animal husbandry and sericulture all put together. Previous oy, these are treated as separate sectors and there was no wholistic approach. The aim of this integration lies in its intrinsic methods to strengthen them in case of any unavoidable disasters. In such situation he will be made able to get some relief from other sector to basically help his family.

Last budget provided 32.6 thousand crore for agricultural sector. But implementation failed due to corona and rain-flood havoc. Farmer producing companies will  have to be set up in higher numbers to make them entrepreneurs. The long standing demand of giving it an industry status to agri sector may gain momentum in this budget. Unless the integrated development of agricultural sector is linked to industrialised growth strategy, the desired goal cannot be achieved.

Besides this, to attract educated youth to take up agriculture, government has to make farming attractive in terms of profit. As mostly our farmers are poor, illiterate with no institutional support made them poverty ridden creatures. Chief Minister now wants to empower them with most advanced mechanisation, marketing and management skill. The dream of making a poor farmer rich with well thought reforms may be the key highlight of this budget.