Impact of COVID-19 on the Indian agricultural system: A 10-point strategy for post-pandemic recovery

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the Indian agricultural system extensively. Nevertheless, the recent quarterly GDP estimates post-COVID scenario showcase robustness and resilience in Indian agriculture, the only sector to register a positive growth of 3.4% during the financial year (FY here after) 2020-21 (Quarter 1: April 2020 to June 2020). At the same time, the immediate past quarter growth was estimated at 5.9% witnessing a decline by 2.5% point. In this context, we aim to synthesize the early evidence of the COVID-19 impact on the Indian agricultural system viz., production, marketing and consumption followed by a set of potential strategies to recover and prosper post-pandemic. Survey findings indicate that the pandemic has affected production and marketing through labour and logistical constraints, while the negative income shock restricted access to markets and increased prices of food commodities affecting the consumption pattern. The pandemic wreaked a substantial physical, social, economic and emotional havoc on all the stakeholders of Indian agricultural system. Seizing the crisis as an opportunity, the state announced a raft of measures and long-pending reforms. We propose a 10-point strategy ranging from social safety nets, family farming, monetizing buffer stock, staggered procurement to secondary agriculture to revive and prosper post-pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19, agricultural system, food system, COVID impact, 10-point strategy

JEL Classification: E31, Q11, Q18, Q13