Will Modi's Government B udget address "Man-made Poverty" in villages? By: Vijay Sardana When income is less than expenditure, this will lead to poverty or bankruptcy. In agriculture, when cost of production is more than the price realization from the farm output, this will lead to poverty among farmers and in rural economies. India is a global agricultural powerhouse. It is the world’s largest producer of milk, pulses, and spices, and has the world’s largest cattle herd (incl. buffaloes), as well as the largest area under wheat, rice and cotton. It is the second largest producer of rice, wheat, cotton, sugarcane, farmed fish, sheep & goat meat, fruit, vegetables and tea. The country has some 195 m ha under cultivation of which some 63 percent are rainfed (roughly 125m ha) while 37 percent are irrigated (70m ha). In addition, forests cover some 65m ha of India’s land. India’s food security depends on producing cereal crops, as well as increasing it...