Agricultural input subsidies in India

Volume : VII, Issue : VI, June - 2018

Shilpa Sree R, Dr Baasavaraj S Benni

Indian government providing income support to the agricultural sector and larger food self–sufficiency for poor consumers. The

government of India uses several of policy instruments to achieve those goals. Domestic subsidies to inputs, outputs, storage and

consumption to reduce producer costs of production and consumption prices, and transportation. Such as subsidies measures the

tariffs, quotas and non–tariff measures to protect the domestic producers from import competition, manage domestic price levels

and domestic supply. Since the input subsidies are one of the most expensive aspects of India‘s food and agriculture policy regime

requiring a steadily larger budget share. Indian government gives input subsidies to agricultural sector in an attempt to keep farm

costs low and production high. The main intension of Indian government is for the farmers to benefit from/lower cost, but also for

them to pass some of the savings on to the consumers in the form of lower than food prices. The Indian government pays fertilizer

producer directly in exchange for the companies selling fertilizer lower than market prices. Irrigation and electricity, on the other

hand, are supplied directly to farmers by government at price that is below the cost of production. The input subsidies can also

produce unintended effects and growth in non– product specific support. In this present study examine the input subsidies and

growth in non–product support (power, fertilizers, irrigation) in 1980–81 to 2020–2021. Result of this study is growth in nonproduct

support was increasing significantly. This study based on secondary data collected from various report, ministry of

statistics, ministry of agriculture, ministry of agriculture and farmer welfare, directorate of economics and statistics, ministry of

finance. Suggest government policy in this study.