Kisan Diwas: To those who Work in Acres, Not in Hours

Kisan Diwas: To those who Work in Acres, Not in Hours

How often do we think of a farmer who might have toiled day and night for the grain of rice that you ate? How often do we recollect the effort of those who have worked tirelessly to produce the food on our table? The truth is, it never really occurs to us. Because we never consider the tremendous effort that goes behind each and every morsel of food that we have.

And despite our lack of acknowledgment or appreciation, the poor old farmer continues to toil hard, in the sun and rain to ensure have a bounty of what we need for our daily nutrition. And thus, on this day today, the National Farmers’ Day, let’s thank our farmers and think of all that they do.

December 23rd is celebrated as Kisan Diwas to honor India’s farmers and mark the birth anniversary of the nation’s fifth Prime Minister, Choudhary Charan Singh. He was a farmer’s leader, who introduced several policies to improve the lives of the Indian farmers. Generally, on this day, there are awareness campaigns and drives are organized across the country to educate people on the role of farmers and their contribution to the economy.

If we consider India’s history, it talks about its rich agricultural efficiency and abundant availability of natural resources. We are a country which employs extensive parts of its land for cultivation of wheat, rice, and cotton, and is also a leading producer of spices, pulses, and milk in the international market.

According to the statistics by the World Factbook 2014 of the CIA, a few decades ago, the agriculture sector contributed upto 75% of India’s GDP, and while this has gradually come down to 14% in recent times (as industries & services sectors improve), we are still the second largest agriculture economy with a $367 billion agricultural production. This is only next to China who produce over a trillion dollars worth agriculture produce, and amongst the top four countries that account almost 40% of the global agricultural output.

Despite its importance and size, the agricultural sector has been facing structural problems for decades. Some of these are well known challenges and the others have been contingent ones. Insufficient water supply, lack of mechanisation, sub-par application of modern farming techniques, inability to adopt and learn new farming technologies, over dependence on traditional crops, poor storage facilities, lack of proper transportation facilities, and inadequate reach of government welfare schemes are some of the problems faced by farmers.

Recently, the inability to meet rising consumer needs and expectations, and rising demand for more food of higher quality have also affected the farmers. Also there is a growing need for farmers to adapt to climate change and modify their farming methods accordingly. The lack of motivation among youth to take up farming is another big concern in our country.

In a country where farmers and all its allied activities are considered the backbone of the rural economy, the rising concerns need to be addressed soon. Educating and spreading proper awareness among the farmers regarding the welfare schemes by the government is highly necessary. Most often the welfare schemes never reach the deserving people and thereby the good initiatives dont yield as results as expected. The government can play a huge role in changing this by involving small social service groups to spread awareness. Encouraging and inspiring young people to take up farming by making use of their technological know-how to implement modern farming techniques can be a huge boost to the farming sector.

Above all, when we have a plateful of food next time, let us remember and thank the farmers who toiled day and night for it. Every small step in our lives can help bring huge differences. Stopping wastage of food is one of the crucial steps everyone needs to follow. Also, whenever possible, we must try to purchase from a local farmer rather than from big corporates. By doing so you might be helping a parent pay a child’s school fees! Just as the famous quote goes “To those who work in acres, not in hours!” We thank you!