Serving Farmers and Saving Farming, Jai Kisan: A Draft National Policy for Farmers – Fourth Report

The eight-member National Commission on Farmers (NCF), chaired by Prof. M.S. Swaminathan, was set up in 2004 by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to assess the extent of India’s agrarian crisis. It produced five reports (the fifth report was in two volumes). This fourth report of the series, submitted to the then Minister of Agriculture Sharad Pawar on April 13, 2006, summarises the recommendations made by the Commission in its earlier reports. In this report, the NCF presents a Draft National Policy for Farmers that focuses on the ‘human element’ in agriculture, and rejects the idea that agricultural progress must be measured only through the quantity of foodgrains and farm commodities. It highlights the immense contribution of over 650 million women and men in India’s agricultural sector to ensuring food and livelihood security and national sovereignty. The NCF reminds readers that Lal Bahadur Shastri’s ‘Jai Kisan’ slogan is yet to be converted into policies that recognise the pivotal role of India’s farming communities.