MAINS DAILY QUESTIONS & MODEL ANSWERS
Q1. Analyse critically if legalising the Minimum Support Price (MSP) in India is necessary and feasible.
GS II – Government Policies and Interventions
Introduction:
- In India, the government sets the Minimum Support Price (MSP) as a floor price to guarantee farmers receive a minimum payment for their agricultural products. The government releases the Fair and Remunerative Prices (FRP) for sugarcane as well as MSPs for the 22 required crops.
A few arguments in favour of legalising the minimum support price are as follows:
- Legalising MSP ensures that farmers obtain a minimum price for their produce, shielding them from market volatility and providing equitable returns on their labour and investment. This ensures the financial viability of agriculture. The minimal price of produce required to maintain the financial viability of agriculture is known as the MSP.
- Reducing the Debt Burden on Farmers: Farmers are carrying more debt as a result of not receiving the declared MSP and a small increase in MSPs. The guaranteed MSP loses all meaning for the farmers if they are forced to sell their produce for less than that amount. As a result, an MSP legal guarantee is required.
- From Rs 9.64 lakh crore on March 31, 2014, to Rs 23.44 lakh crore in 2021–22, there were more loans outstanding for farmers.
- Encouraging Farmers’ Livelihoods: The legalisation of MSP contributes to the assistance of millions of farmers, especially small and marginalised farmers who are susceptible to fluctuations in the market.
- Approximately 50% of the nation’s population makes their living from agriculture and related industries.
- Risk mitigation: Farmers are being harmed by market forces and natural disasters. Farming is becoming more challenging due to climate change. The weather and the forces of the market cannot be allowed to dictate to the farmer.
- Legalising MSP offers a safety net, lowering the possibility that farmers could lose money in a down market.
- Reducing Disparities: In 2015, the Shanta Kumar Committee came to the conclusion that the support price policy had benefited only 6% of farmers. Legalising MSP can assist in reducing these problems by giving farmers a fixed, consistent price.
- Thirteen states—Punjab, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh—accounted for eighty-five percent of wheat procurement in 2019–20 alone.
The Principal Obstacles to MSP Legalisation:
- Financial Burden: It takes a lot of money to buy crops at MSP, and continuing these purchases could put a pressure on public coffers.
- Without the backing of supply-side and demand-side elements, legal MSP cannot function.
- Investment Disincentive: The legalisation of MSP may deter private investment in agriculture, especially in MSP-eligible crops.
- Innovation and modernization initiatives may be hampered by private actors’ reluctance to participate in industries where price manipulation by the government is common.
- Water scarcity is made worse by MSP-supported crops like sugarcane and paddy, which require a lot of water, causing overuse of available water in areas where they are grown widely.
- Neglect of Non-MSP Crops: If MSPs are legalised, there may be a drop in the cultivation of non-MSP crops, such as oilseeds, pulses, and nutrient-dense food crops.
- Food security, dietary diversity, and nutritional results may suffer as a result, especially for disadvantaged groups.
- Trade conflicts: If the government offers subsidies or other types of support to maintain MSP prices, legalising MSP may result in trade disputes with importing nations.
A number of actions could be taken to move forward:
- Balanced Agricultural Pricing Policy: To guarantee fair prices for agricultural products through programmes like MSP and direct income assistance programmes, the government must devise an appropriate transition to agricultural pricing policy.
- Implement the Swaminathan Committee Recommendation: The committee suggested that the MSP be at least 50% higher than the C2 cost, also known as the weighted average cost of production (CoP).
- Extension of MSP Criteria: When calculating MSP, the average cost that the farmer spends on his family’s health and education must also be taken into account.
- Price Deficiency Payments (PDP): Under PDP, farmers receive the difference between the market price and MSP, if the former is lower, rather than the government physically buying or stockpiling any crop. The amount of harvest they sell to the private market will determine how much they are paid.
- Increasing Farmers’ Income: In addition to raising daily pay, the government should incorporate agricultural activities within the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
- To boost farmers’ income prospects, encourage crop diversification and support high-value, climate-resilient crops.
- Investing in Agricultural Infrastructure: To improve agricultural productivity and market access, the government should invest more money in rural infrastructure projects like roads, storage facilities, electrification, and irrigation systems.
- Encourage the use of new and innovative agricultural technologies by providing access to cutting-edge farming methods and inputs, extension services, and research and development.
- The Ashok Dalwai Committee has recommended a 14% annual increase in public spending in irrigation and agriculture. Additionally, the current major-medium irrigation projects need to increase the efficiency of their capital utilisation.
- Strengthening producer groups, cooperatives, and farmer organisations will empower farmers by facilitating access to markets, collective bargaining, and decision-making.
- Increase the size of social safety nets and insurance programmes to help vulnerable agricultural households during difficult times like crop failures, natural catastrophes, or market shocks by providing income and support for their livelihood.
- Ensuring food security, promoting economic growth, and creating social fairness in India all depend on giving priority to the needs of farmers. India can ensure a more resilient and affluent future for its population by prioritising agriculture and providing for the welfare of farmers.
Q2. Examine India’s outstanding achievements and difficulties in pursuing space leadership.
GS III – Science and Technology
Introduction:
- India was a developing nation with limited resources when it started its space programme in the 1960s, and it concentrated on using space to advance its agenda for social and economic development. But in the last ten years, the space programme has grown, and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has accomplished a number of significant goals that have attracted praise and recognition from all around the world.
The following are a few recent space programme milestones for India:
- The Chandrayaan-3 mission: India’s space efforts have entered a new phase with this mission’s exploration of the lunar south pole. India is proud of its successful soft landing near the lunar south pole, which made it the first nation to accomplish the amazing accomplishment of landing a spacecraft so close to the moon’s south pole.
- India became the first nation in Asia and the fourth worldwide to land on Mars with the Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan), following Roscosmos, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), and the European Space Agency.
- The first space-based observatory class Indian solar project, Aditya-L1, is designed to investigate the Sun from a significant 1.5 million-kilometer distance.
- Launch Vehicle Development Programme: The programme includes next-generation GSLV Mark-III launch vehicle missions, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV).
- Modern Indian remote sensing (IRS) satellites including Resourcesat, Cartosat, Oceansat, Radar Imaging Satellite, Geo-Imaging Satellite, and weather/climate satellites like INSAT-3DR missions are all part of the Earth Observation Programme.
- IN-SPACE: It was introduced to give private businesses an even playing field when utilising India’s space infrastructure.
- The main objective of ISRO’s commercial arm, NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), is to make it possible for Indian businesses to participate in high-tech space-related activities.
ISRO’s Future Space Programme:
- Chandrayaan-4: Travelling Down the Lunar Evolution Path
- The Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) project, a joint venture between ISRO and JAXA (Japan), is prepared to investigate the polar regions of the Moon.
- The XPoSat (X-ray Polarimeter Satellite) is the first polarimetry mission specifically designed in India to explore the dynamics of intense astronomical X-ray sources under harsh environmental circumstances.
- NASA-ISRO SAR (NISAR): In 12 days, NISAR will map the whole planet and give consistent data in both space and time to help comprehend changes in Earth’s ecosystems.
- Gaganyaan: The goal of this endeavour is to launch people into space and safely return them to Earth.
- The goal of Shukrayaan 1 is to send an orbiter to Venus, which is the planet that is located after the Sun.
The Mission’s Principal Obstacles in the Indian Space Programme:
- Restricted Budget Allocation: In comparison to other significant space-faring countries, the Indian space programme has a comparatively small budget.
- India spends just 0.05% of its GDP on space exploration. By comparison, the United States devotes 0.25% of its GDP on space exploration.
- Technological Difficulties: India is ranked seventh in the world for the number of satellites it operates. It trails the two leading spacefaring nations, the United States and China.
- India is dependent on the West for vital parts for satellites, launch vehicles, and spacecraft.
- Commercialization and Market Access: India’s involvement in space manufacturing, space tourism, human space flight, and high-altitude platforms is restricted. India makes for just 2.6% of the global space economy.
- Space Policy and Law: It is essential to create thorough space policies and laws that take into account the changing needs of the space industry. One major obstacle is the lengthening of time it is taking to pass the Space Policy.
- Geopolitical Realignment: In the evolving geopolitical landscape, India’s involvement in the Artemis Accords with the USA has been perceived as a counterbalance to China.
- Space Applications for Societal Benefits: To fully realise the advantages that space applications, such satellite communication and remote sensing, can bring to society, it is necessary to integrate these applications with a number of other industries, including environmental monitoring, agriculture, and disaster management.
A number of actions could be taken to move forward:
- Large Investment: There has to be a change from “frugal engineering” to more ambitious initiatives and larger investments. The scientific community has consistently called for increased funding for the department in order to support larger missions.
- Become an Expert in Human Spaceflight: India needs to make investments in astronaut training, human spaceflight programmes, and the construction of the infrastructure required for crewed missions.
- Engagement of the Private Sector: It is imperative that the private sector be involved in space programmes, in line with the worldwide trend where commerce plays a major part in space programmes.
- Geopolitical discussions: Given its ties with China and the fact that great power rivalry extends to space, India must strategically negotiate discussions and cooperation.
- Legal Framework: To govern and advance space business, India requires extensive national and international legislation as space activities grow. Reforms in global governance are required to handle new issues.
- Reviving the Spirit of International Cooperation: India’s space ambitions depend on international cooperation. India must restore the cooperative spirit and make sure that space is a common area for all people.
- Public Support: To increase public knowledge and excitement for its space programme, the government will need to conduct outreach and education initiatives.
- To take India’s space programme to new heights, it needs aggressive international alliances, intelligent budgetary budgeting, and public involvement campaigns.
