 Welcome to NewsClick. Since 1957, when a government was elected in Kerala led by EMS Nambudri Pat, there are lot of steps taken by that government in case of land reforms. Those land reforms have played a crucial role in the development of the state as a whole. When the farmers are facing lot of crisis all across the country, Kerala has sold out a separate model which has been received with lot of attention. To discuss about the plans rolled out by the government, the approach towards the farming sector and the advancements made in the sector, we have with us Professor V.K. Ramachandran, the Vice Chairman of the Kerala State Planning Board. Welcome, sir. So, Kerala is one of the states which implemented land reforms way back in the 19th century. So, what is the role of such a reforms in the present day situation of the state? Kerala's land reform is something that affected not only agriculture but land reform was the key element in Kerala's progress as a whole. It was central to our development as in the first assembly in 1957, within six days of the government taking office, they brought forward the land reform legislation. Today, if Kerala is known, if we are known for our achievements in education, in health, in social justice, in the position of women, the health, then land reform played a very key role in that. It could not have been, it would not have happened without land reform. So, when we think about the progress that Kerala has made is a progress that was not brought to Kerala by modern capitalism, contemporary capitalism or by the market. It was through public action, through the struggles of the people against class and caste oppression, against gender discrimination and in which the process of land reform played a crucial role. So, if we are thinking about progress and comprehensive social transformation in our society as a whole, we must pay attention to this, we must learn the lesson of facing and attempting to resolve the agrarian question. That is what Kerala took seriously right from the beginning. So, what is the support the government, the successive LDF government given for the presence of this? Today, I think, of course, as it has been well noted that the per quintal support in say in rice cultivation in Kerala is higher than, is the highest in the country. So, we support the planned supports and other agencies support the input. We help the farmer with respect to input prices. We intervene with, there is administrative and subsidy intervention with regard to input costs with regard to the marketing procurement and the MSP. So, we have a comprehensive program for support to farmers, particularly rice farmers here. But it goes beyond that, we have schemes and detailed schemes for special crops, for coconut, for special agricultural efforts, for irrigation and so on. So, there is a great deal of attention paid to agriculture and water resource management in the plans in Kerala. So, what is the projects which are envisaged for the modernization or mechanization of agriculture industry? Let us see. Now, what I do not want to give the impression that Kerala is in a very advanced agricultural state. We still have far to go. And the slogan we have taken up for agricultural progress in the 13th plan and now the 14th 5th plan is productivity, profitability and sustainability. These profitability means we have to increase productivity means we have to increase the productivity of crops. It is not enough whether it is rice or whether it is a coconut or many of our major crops. We have to intervene through the application of science and technology in improving our productivity. This is very clear. Kisan Sabha has discussed this. We are very clear on the need for this, whether it involves seed material, improvement of the soil, technical improvements in farming practices. All of these must contribute in a modern and scientific way to the enhancement of productivity. The second is profitability. We must enhance the incomes of farmers. We must, through modern methods, increase productivity and by ensuring higher incomes, we also want to encourage youths to take up farming, to help transform us into an advanced state with respect to the crops that we do grow. The third is sustainability and we have our duties. Kerala is a state which is characterized by great biodiversity. While we use that biodiversity to increase the incomes of our people, we also are very conscious of the need to preserve the environment and biodiversity. But we seek not to be environmentally sensitive after the fact, but to build in issues, build in safeguards regarding sustainability into our agricultural program itself. Another important aspect of Kerala is the role of the local self-government. So, what role do they play in encouraging farmers? As you know, I do not know if you know. We now, the budget gives 26.5 percent of the budget goes to is reserved for local bodies and this will increase at 0.5 percentage points every year until we reach 30. This is an assurance given by the government and if you take the entire amount that is spent by local bodies and the local self-government organization, it will be about more than 40 percent of the budget goes through them. So, they play up till now and we have had a people's movement for decentralization and they have succeeded greatly in mobilizing, you know, in being instruments of local democracy and people's participation. The call that the government has given now is that not only should they be instruments of people's participation and people's and local democracy, they should also be instruments for to harness that energy for improving production and indeed our new MSME scheme has they have been very active in that but we also want them to become instruments of enhancing agricultural production and progress in water management irrigation and so on. So, that is a very important part of the future path of agricultural of the local self-government. Similarly, in circumstances where you have very small plots as you know in Kerala, cooperation is going to, cooperatives will play a major role in bringing the advantages of scale, scale enhancement to small farmers in that cooperatives have to play a very crucial role. So, cooperatives and local governments we envisage the government envisages both as having a very important role to play in Kerala's agricultural progress. So, what is the way forward for the presentry in Kerala? So, I think elaborating and putting into practice this slogan of productivity profitability and in other words productivity enhancement, income enhancement and sustainability, I think that would be the way forward. Thank you. Thank you.