Budget wishlist: Marginalised farmers' growth key to $5-tn economy

Chennai: If the lives of millions of marginalised farmers are better and their standard of living improves, India as a nation should be coasting easily towards the target of a $5 trillion economy in the near future, said a top official from Lawrencedale Agro Processing (LEAF).

"Farmers are and should be the centre of focus in all discussions, as they are the important stakeholders. Farmers are always confused by the various and frequent changes in the market on what will be the value for their harvest. We need to bring in significant transparency for them so that farmers can plan their livelihoods," Palat Vijayaraghavan, Founder & CEO, Lawrencedale Agro Processing (LEAF), told IANS on his expectations from the FY24 Union Budget to be presented on February 1.

Vijayaraghavan said the Indian agriculture sector is at significant cross-roads and there is explosion of private sector participation in agriculture.

"Many intermediaries in the farming sector are solely reliant on this sector and we need to bring in clarity as to how we can clear their confusion and empower all the stakeholders in the agriculture ecosystem. No one should to lose their livelihoods and we must ensure that this is addressed," Vijayaraghavan added.