For a long time, the foremost visible issue of Odisha is its dependency on other States to meet its domestic consumption demand. The State imports inland fish, meat, egg, vegetables, potato, onion , wheat, Dal, fruits, banana, sugar and edible oil, besides many more consuming products to feed its four crore plus population. The State Government has no control over the market price and quality of the produce. To minimise the import dependency, the State must improve its agriculture production and storage facility by ensuring application of modern farming.
The present image of Odisha as a consuming State must change to a producing State. The change is much needed to ensure food security and to raise the nutrition level of the State. The other important issue getting more attention during Covid-19 is the plight of migrant workers.
Along with huge under employment, there has been persistent increase in distress migration of labourers to outside. Odisha remains one of major suppliers of migrant workers along with Bihar, UP, MP, Rajasthan, Assam and WB. A sizeable work force of the State, about 30 lakh vulnerable migrant workers, are working outside the State and data shows that this number has been growing in recent years. Advantageous migration as such is a boost to domestic economy through remittance but distress migration is undesirable. Covid-19 has very well exposed the vulnerability of migrant workers.
Majority of our workers here are low paid and unskilled. About half of the population is employed in seasonal agriculture as workers and cultivators among whom a substantial number is small producers. It is highly essential
to shift our existing surplus labour force in farming to non-farm activities. It will be economically good to keep less number of labour force in agriculture by application of modern ways of farming using innovations of science and technology. The approach will change the agriculture scenario of the State while boosting production and improving the quality of life of people engaged in agriculture. The growth of non-agricultural sector will generate employment and self-employment which can arrest the growth of inter-State migration.
Globally, India is featured among top 10 agricultural producing countries such as China, Brazil, Russia and USA. Odisha lags behind in application of technology in comparison to other agricultural producing States. Data on agriculture economics shows that there is very less percentage of people engaged in agriculture in the developed countries but here the percentage is quite high.
Similarly the application of fertilizer, pesticide and modern agricultural appliance is also very less in Odisha in comparison to others. Odisha must follow the best practices of the global trend. A major chunk of farmers in the State are STs. Learning from development of other tribal States shows that the over dependency of STs on agriculture and forest in Odisha is one of the reasons of their continued backwardness; so they must be supported to increase their participation in non-agricultural activities such as services, business, manufacturing and industry sector which has emerged of late as largest sources of employment.
The Census data 2011 says the number of tribal cultivators has reduced by 10 percent while the number of STs in the population of agricultural labourer has increased in the same rate. The tribal mobility in search of opportunities to non-tribal areas has also increased.
The ongoing self-glorification of traditional agriculture and selective campaign of Jala, Jami and Jangle must stop and priority should be on modern farming. The STs, constituting one-fourth population of Odisha, are left with no choice but to continue with backward agriculture and forest based livelihood to live in a subsistence economy.
They continue to constitute a large portion in the State BPL box without major positive change in their income, scope of employment and quality of life. They must be included in the market economy to play a role in capital formation by expanding their economic activities. The other area is to bring change in the cropping pattern.
During the year 2019-20, around 52 per cent of the gross cropped area was used for production of cereals, 22 for pulses, 7 for oil seeds, 8 for vegetables, 4 for fruits and 6 per cent for other crops.
Agriculture must not be dependent on seasonal single crop “paddy’ only, but it must not delay in adopting other areas such as fishing, dairy, animal husbandry, fruit orchards, vegetables, pulses and agro-forestry with equal importance.
Now the question is why the potentialities of the State to increase production in agriculture and non-agriculture sector have not been fully explored to its desired extent? May be the less application of technology and scientific know how in production and soil and water management, and also lack of capital investment have been some of the major reasons which are not yet addressed by the State since long. While the world is moving towards knowledge society and the priority must be on use of scientific knowledge and technology.
The State must be politically mobilised into a homogeneous social and economic unit to bring benefit to all its people. Our political mobilisation for Odisha’s nationalism must be socially inclusive of its number of sub or smaller nationalities, languages, faith and believe systems existing within its political, administrative and geographical region. Disrespecting or undermining diversity/differences or inequality may lead to disintegration.
Odia nationalism must not be religious or caste/ethnic or language based; rather it should be secular and most inclusive and accommodative based on principles of fraternity and dignity with modern world view.
The over glorification of mother tongue will not be helpful in brining nationalism or economic growth; rather it will push the State backward. The Government of Odisha must encourage quality education and teaching of languages such as English, Spanish, French, Chinese and other languages useful to connecting Odisha with the international job market.
(manasbbsr15@gmail.com)
