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| 'Dying agriculture a glaring example of flawed economic development policy' | | Mir's economic self reliance idea generates debate | | Bashir Assad
Srinagar, Aug17: The idea of economic self reliance envisaged by Agriculture Minister and Chairman J&K Democratic Party Nationalist, Ghulam Hasan Mir has invoked a fresh debate with people from different shades responding to the idea in their own way and style. Though separatist leaders and ruling National Conference were the first to react to the idea, however, from separatist to the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah nobody rejected the idea completely but could not support it too.
Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister Ghulam Hasan Mir on Friday made it abundantly clear that he stands by what he said on August 9 and urged the people of the state to give a serious thought to his assertions on merit as the idea of Economic Self Independence deserves appreciation.
"I stand by every single word I have said regarding the economic independence and I strongly believe that politics can wait but not economy" Mir told Early Times.
He said that people should not let time to go waste, in fact they should strive for economic self reliance as it is the political economy that has taken front seat in global politics.
"Without economic empowerment and self reliance, political independence is blurred and vague" Mir said and added that economy has superseded politics and political problems across the globe are resolved through economic means.
"We are lagging far behind in economic development, the reason being our priority was politics" Mir told Early Times.
Meanwhile, prominent civil society members on Friday reacted to Mir's statement guardedly saying that the idea was good but the economic indicators of the state were tending loosing proportions.
Prominent civil society member and noted Industrialist Sayed Shakeel Qalander , while talking to Early Times said that the idea of economic self reliance was brilliant but Mir's performance as Agriculture Minister was decimal for the reason that ratio of contribution of agriculture to GDP has come down drastically because the agriculture produce per hectare is stagnant and the conversion of agricultural land for residential and commercial purposes is continuing rapidly under Minister's nose.
"In Sixties and seventies Agriculture in Jammu and Kashmir was contributing about 60% to GDP which has now come down to 35% as against the National average of 47%." Qalander told Early Times.
"Economic Independence which Mir talks about is wrong as no nation in the world can be economically independent given the growing inter-dependence of the nations on one another" Shakeel said and added that it is actually the idea of balanced trade which is further referred to as economic self reliance.
"The state has failed to tape its resources to the advantage of its people, we had agriculture, handicraft, and power as the most promising sectors, however, all the three were dying thanks to flawed economic development policy" Shakeel said.
"You have lakhs of hectares of barren land in Samba and Kathua districts and also in other areas and the government has done nothing to make it cultivable by providing irrigation. What economic self reliance Mir is talking about when in the capacity of Agriculture Minister he has failed to improve the agriculture produce" he said.
"We are still producing 10.5 metric tones apple from one hectare as against 40-50 metric tones in European countries. Producing 3-5 metric tones cherry in one hectare as against 35 metric tone in the same land holding in Europe speaks volumes about the flawed economic development planning. Likewise we are lagging behind in other sectors because technological intervention is almost absent" he said adding that Mir owes an explanation to the people as what is his contribution in agriculture growth.
Renowned economist and member of the State Finance Commission, Professor Nisar Ali while talking to Early Times said, "It is not so easy at this stage to realize economic self-reliance, reason precisely being that the state is economically dependent to the tune of more than 90% both economically and financially." Nisar said that it is a big debate, Jammu & Kashmir State development planning should have targeted to achieve self reliance three decades back particularly in agriculture. " But a situation has come when the state agriculture is almost tending to losing proportions, net area sown declining for last three decades, average size of holding at 0.6 hectare, more than 65% of agriculture land is less than 4 to 5 kanals in size" said Professor Nisar adding that Agrarian structure that has emerged today is contrary to self reliant agriculture.
"Every yield almost of major principal crops is almost stagnant, and total food grains production remains stagnant at 16 lakh tones a year against the requirement of 21 lakh tones, therefore, it is extremely difficult to make up the deficiency in food grains production and the domestic demand for food grains at this stage" Nisar said adding that this is true about overall economic self reliance as the structure of J&K state economy has completely tended to import economy as most of the consumer products are being imported today.
He said J&K state is emerging partially a value edition economy rather than a self reliant. Efforts so far in five decades towards import substitution have been literally non-existent and 20% of liquidity requirements are met from central devolution and only 20% of resources are generated by tax and non tax revenue in the state. Therefore, Nisar said, economic self reliance remains a distant dream.
" Idea of economic self-reliance is a very good idea but I don't find any policy in that direction", he added.
"The overall economic structure has established beyond proportions that the state suffers a dependency syndrome which breeds characteristics notably non work culture and further continuation of and contribution to more and more dependence whether economic or financial, therefore a Big Push Policy is required to reverse the current economic trends to take the state to self sustained growth path"
"We have given concrete suggestions rather a policy in Finance Commission Report and it is comprehensive document that has identified the areas which need to be prioritized to change the economic scenario, we should tap our resources, go for import substitution" Nisar added.
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