Focus on agri-exports

The pandemic-driven bonanza will not last

The government’s reported plan to reintroduce transport and marketing support for agricultural exports is a timely move. It will help hard-pressed exporters to cope with high freight costs and other logistical constraints. But this step alone may not suffice to lift farm exports to the desired extent. Other measures, aimed specifically at upgrading the quality and enhancing cost competitiveness of farm products, are equally vital. Though India has traditionally enjoyed a positive trade balance in agriculture — agri-exports being invariably higher than agri-imports — the present level of agri-exports is just around half the achievable mark.

Farm exports in 2020 were