A RBI survey report concluded that red chilies are the most profitable for Indian farmers in the current market while potato ranked in the last. As per reports, the survey was conducted in December 2018 and covered 9,403 farmers, traders, and retailers across 18 States. Input costs for agriculture have been rising over the past few years, while food inflation has been declining, the survey reveals.
This indicates the severe problem of lying with the lower-income of farmers as they are getting lower returns from some types of products while investing more than before. The survey shows that farmers get widely varying returns based on the crops.
Moreover, the Wholesale Price Index reflects a measure of the change in price over time and shows that the cost of investments by farmers has risen between 2016 & 2019.
Food price inflation in India has witnessed a sharp and sustained moderation since the 2014-15. Annual average food inflation based on CPI-C, which was 11.9 percent in 2013-14 has declined over every successive year to less than 1 percent in 2018-19. In 2019-20 so far (April-August), food inflation has averaged 2.2 percent (2.4 percent during the corresponding period of 2018-19).
Source: krishijagran.com