In the light of the ongoing farmer protests and the pandemic wiping out livelihood for many farmers while also reshaping the agritech sector, what will the budget dole out for India's agricultural economy?
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The year 2020 has seen a lot of conversation about agriculture and farming. The sector forms an important part of the budget every year, with successive governments proposing new policies. All eyes will be on Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1 as she announces plans for economic revival from the wrath of Covid-19, including for the agricultural sector, amid farmer protests that continue unabated since November 26. 70 percent of India’s rural sector depends on agriculture for livelihood, and much more needs to be done to ease the excessive burden on the sector.
In 2020, with the introduction of several policies and new laws—from the announcement of the Agri infra fund of Rs 1 lakh crore, to the implementation of the three farm laws—the need for increased agricultural investment has been apparent.
The three ordinances introduced in the parliament in June 2020 that were passed in months and became laws—the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020—have led hundreds of thousands of people to protest by camping at several borders of New Delhi. A deadlock between the government and the farm protest leaders continues despite 11 inconclusive meetings.