Agrarian Distress in India:Causes and Remedies

India accounts for nearly 17 per cent of world’s population but only has 2.4 per cent of the land resource. India is an agro-based economy where agriculture (including allied activities) accounted for only 13.9 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP-at constant prices) in 2016-17 while it was 15.2 per cent during the 11^th plan period. Nearly half of the population (48.6%) depends on the agriculture sector fort their livelihood. Agriculture is the main livelihood for two-third of its population. The Indian peasantry, the largest body of surviving small farmers in the world, today faces a crisis of extinction. Fifteen years of economic liberalization have adversely affected Indian agriculture. The most prominent manifestation of this is in the drastic decline in the growth rate of food grains.