Millet production stagnates in India

General Studies Paper -3

Context: According to the Reserve Bank of India’s annual report for 2023-24, India grapples with stagnation in both acreage and production of millets.

What are Millets?

• Millets are a group of small grained cereal food crops popularly known as Nutri-cereals.
• Varieties: Multiple varieties of millets are produced such as Pearl Millets, Sorghum, Finger Millet, Foxtail, Kodo, Barnyard, Proso, Little Millet and Pseudo Millets like Buckwheat and Amaranths.

Condition for Millets Cultivation

• Climate: The Millets are grown in tropical as well as subtropical up to an altitude of 2,100 m.
  • A mean temperature range of 26-29°c during the growth is best for proper development and good crop yield.
• Soil: Millet has wide adaptability to different soil from very poor to very fertile and can tolerate a certain degree of alkalinity.
  • The best soils are alluvial, loamy and sandy soil with good drainage.

Millet Production in India

• India is the largest producer of millets in the world. It accounts for almost 80 percent of Asia’s and 20 percent of global millet production.
• India’s two varieties of millets namely Pearl Millet (Bajra) and Sorghum (Jowar) together contribute approx 19 per cent in world production in 2020.
• The major millet producing states in India are Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Benefits of Millets

• Eco-friendly crops: Millets can grow on arid lands with minimal inputs and are resilient to changes in climate.
• Highly nutritious: Millets contain 7-12% protein, 2-5% fat, 65-75% carbohydrates and 15-20% dietary fiber.
• Health Benefits: Millets are gluten free and non- allergenic. Millet consumption decreases triglycerides and C- reactive protein, thereby preventing cardiovascular disease.
• Reduce import dependence: They are an ideal solution for countries to increase self-sufficiency and reduce reliance on imported cereal grains.

Reasons for stagnation in millet production India

• Low productivity: India’s productivity of millets was 1.4 tonnes per hectare, whereas China’s productivity was 3 tonnes/ha, followed by Ethiopia’s at 2.5 tonnes, and Russia’s 1.5 tonnes.
• Low Consumer Demand and Awareness: Despite their nutritional benefits, there is limited consumer demand which reduces market incentives for farmers to produce millets.
• Socio-Economic Factors: In many regions, millet farming is associated with low-income groups. This socio-economic stigma discourages farmers from growing millets.
• Support Schemes Bias: Government subsidies and support schemes are biased towards major cereals like rice and wheat. Millets receive comparatively less attention and financial support, making them less attractive to farmers.
• Environmental Factors: Millets are often grown in semi-arid regions that are vulnerable to erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts, etc which severely affect millet production.
• Inadequate Research and Development: There has been relatively less investment in R&D for millet compared to other staple crops like rice and wheat. This has resulted in fewer high-yield and disease-resistant varieties of millet being available to farmers.

Steps taken by India to promote millet production

• International Year of Millets: India spearheaded the UN General Assembly Resolution for declaring the year 2023 as the ‘International Year of Millets’.
• Agri-Infrastructure Fund: Government is popularizing Agri-Infrastructure Fund Scheme to invite farmers/FPOs/Entrepreneurs to avail the benefit of interest subvention on loans up to 2 crores for setting up primary processing units in millets.
• Higher Minimum Support Prices (MSP): To encourage farmers to take up millet cultivation,higher MSP to Jowar, Bajra and Ragi Has been announced.
• Production Linked Incentive Scheme: The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) has approved the PLI Scheme for Food Processing Industry for Millet-based products for implementation during 2022-23 to 2026-27.

Way Ahead

• Millets are versatile grains that grow in half the time as wheat and use 70 percent less water than rice, providing a multi-fold benefit.
• A concentrated campaign to enhance the production and consumption of millets, which are rich in carbs, proteins and vitamins, can change the entire paradigm of the food and health industry globally.