SSC
The National Commission on Farmers (2004-06), which recommended that MSP be at least 50 per cent above the cost of production, was chaired by:
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)View answer ▾Hide ▴
Answer: Option A — Prof. M. S. Swaminathan
Detailed Solution
- S. Swaminathan. The National Commission on Farmers (NCF) was set up by the Government of India in November 2004 under the chairmanship of the agricultural scientist Prof. M. S. Swaminathan. It submitted five reports between December 2004 and October 2006.
Main recommendations of the Commission:
Minimum Support Price (MSP) should be at least 50 per cent more than the weighted average cost of production. This is often described as the "C2 + 50 per cent" formula, where C2 is a comprehensive cost that includes the rental value of land and interest on capital.
Land reforms, including preventing the diversion of prime farmland to non-agricultural uses.
Irrigation reforms, including rainwater harvesting and recharging of groundwater, and a "Million Wells Recharge" programme.
Better access to institutional credit at lower interest rates, and crop insurance covering the whole country.
A national policy for farmers. The National Policy for Farmers was approved in 2007, based on the Commission's work.
About M. S. Swaminathan:
- Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan (1925-2023) was a plant geneticist who played a leading scientific role in introducing high-yielding wheat and rice varieties in India in the 1960s.
- He worked closely with Norman Borlaug and is widely regarded as the scientific leader of India's Green Revolution.
- He later promoted an "Evergreen Revolution", meaning productivity growth without ecological harm.
He was the first recipient of the World Food Prize (1987) and founded the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation in Chennai.
He was awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously in 2024.
Demand for the Swaminathan formula:
Farmers' organisations have often demanded a legal guarantee of MSP based on the C2 + 50 per cent formula, especially during the farmers' protests of 2020-21.
Why not the other options?
- ✗K. Alagh is an economist and former Union minister.
- ✗Ashok Dalwai headed the committee on Doubling Farmers' Income (2016-18).
- ✗Bhanu Pratap Singh is a farmers' leader and former Member of Parliament.
Quick tip
Remember: National Commission on Farmers (2004) = M. S. Swaminathan, MSP at C2 + 50 per cent; he received the first World Food Prize (1987) and Bharat Ratna (2024).
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Agriculture in India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Agriculture in India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers agriculture in India: cropping seasons (kharif, rabi and zaid), major food and cash crops and their leading producer states, irrigation, the Green, White, Blue and other agricultural revolutions, and allied activities such as animal husbandry and fisheries. Questions usually ask which crop belongs to which season, which state is the largest producer of a crop, and which revolution relates to which product. For example, the White Revolution relates to milk and was led by Verghese Kurien, and the Blue Revolution relates to fisheries. Producer rankings can change from year to year, so check the latest data for those questions. Practise the agriculture in India questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.