Incentivise pvt cos to invest in agriculture: Par panel to states

New Delhi: With FDI in retail marred by controversy, a parliamentary panel has suggested that states should frame appropriate policies to encourage private investment in agriculture as a viable alternate to foreign investment. “The Committee strongly feels that the state government should extend necessary incentives to private players to invest in backward linkages … The only drive required is in the shape of right policy-mix that encourages creation of investor-friendly environment in the country,” the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce said in its report. It said that this approach would help the government ride the economic growth path “without looking much outside for FDI in sectors like retail business” and will also put Indian agriculture on a sustained growth trajectory. [caption id=“attachment_162303” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Private investment in agriculture would help the government ride the economic growth path “without looking much outside for FDI in sectors like retail business”. Reuters”]  [/caption] Availability of huge domestic market along with immense export potential of agricultural and processed food products is one big reason that the country can see explosion of infrastructure necessary for backward linkage, it said. The government suspended its decision on allowing 51 percent FDI in multi-brand retail sector after continuous logjam in Parliament. In its decision, the government has said that global retailers would have to invest half of their total investment in the backend infrastructure. “The committee is immensely perturbed to note that the colossal loss caused to the country on account of wastage of agricultural produce. It is of the view that the only way out to this abyss is that desired investments are made available for creation of post harvest infrastructure with steady electricity supply in rural areas,” it said. The report said that because of lack of proper backward and forward linkages for food processing industries, India, second in food production globally, is able to process only two percent of the total production. It has strongly recommended the Planning Commission and the concerned ministries to devise efficacious policy/schemes complemented with adequate funds for creation of post harvest infrastructure as well as general infrastructure during the 12th Plan. PTI