Category: Agriculture
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The Fertilizer Vulnerability: When a Gas Shock Becomes a Food Crisis
The Hidden Energy System Beneath Every Farm Agriculture still looks natural from a distance. There is soil, rain, sunlight, seed and human labour. But modern farming is also an industrial system built on natural gas, mined minerals, global shipping, credit and government subsidy. A farmer may sow wheat in India,…
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When Food, Fuel and Climate Begin Competing for the Same Crop
From food shortages to a complicated abundanceIndian agricultural policy was historically built around one central fear: the country might not produce enough food. The Green Revolution changed that reality by expanding irrigation, improving seeds, increasing fertiliser use and creating public procurement systems. India gradually moved from dependence on food imports…
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When Food, Fuel and Climate Begin Competing for the Same Crop
From food shortages to a complicated abundanceIndian agricultural policy was historically built around one central fear: the country might not produce enough food. The Green Revolution changed that reality by expanding irrigation, improving seeds, increasing fertiliser use and creating public procurement systems. India gradually moved from dependence on food imports…
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When an Asset Exists on Paper but Cannot Enter the Economy
From Revenue Collection to Economic Confusion India’s land problem did not begin with modern industry, urbanisation or infrastructure. Its roots lie in a system historically designed to collect revenue rather than guarantee ownership. Colonial-era surveys, village maps, tax registers and possession records were created by different authorities for different purposes.…
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The Climate Vulnerability Crisis
Growth Without Climate Resilience Is Becoming an Expensive Illusion For decades economic growth was measured through factories built, roads constructed, electricity generated and cities expanded. Nature was treated as a free resource that could absorb unlimited pressure. Climate change was discussed as a problem for future generations. That future has…
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Ethanol Blending in India: Growth Promise or Hidden Cost
Historical Push Towards Energy Security and Rural SupportIndia’s journey with ethanol blending has been shaped by two long-standing concerns: dependence on imported crude oil and the need to support farmers, especially in the sugar economy. The ethanol blending programme, accelerated in the last decade, aimed to reduce oil imports, stabilise…
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From Basic Consumption to Value-Driven Food Systems
The food and consumption sector has undergone a profound transformation over the past few decades, moving from subsistence and basic consumption toward a more sophisticated ecosystem driven by branding, health awareness, and value addition. Historically, food systems were local, seasonal, and largely unprocessed, with minimal differentiation across products. However, as…
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From Farms to Food Systems: A Structural Shift
The traditional narrative of agriculture—centered on crop output, monsoon performance, and farm productivity—is undergoing a decisive transformation into a broader and far more complex food-systems story. Historically, agricultural economics was largely about land, labor, and yield, where the Green Revolution marked a turning point by stabilizing food grain production and…
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Agriculture at the Crossroads: Price Instability without Income Stability
The Historical Illusion of Price-Led ProsperityFor decades, agricultural policy—both in India and globally—has operated under a simplistic assumption: higher food prices would naturally translate into higher farmer incomes. This belief was rooted in classical economic thinking where producers benefit from price increases. However, the reality of agriculture has always been…
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The Illusion of Control: Why Farmers Still Don’t Decide Prices
Historical Roots of Price Powerlessness The inability of farmers to decide the price of their produce is not a recent dysfunction—it is structurally embedded in the evolution of agrarian economies. From colonial-era revenue extraction systems to post-independence procurement frameworks, agriculture has historically been treated as a sector to stabilize food…
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