Farm sector’s continued poor performance, an area of concern for Tamil Nadu

Agriculture is the weak spot of Tamil Nadu’s economy as the sector has registered only a negative growth in the last two years (2023-24 and 2024-25), according to a perusal of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s latest handbook of statistics on Indian States.

However, thanks to the far better performance of the secondary and tertiary sectors, the State has been able to grow in an impressive manner. For the purpose of this study, constant prices (base: 2011-12) have been considered. 

As for total food grains (which cover rice, pulses and coarse cereals in the context of Tamil Nadu), the production hovered around 107 - 120 lakh tonnes. The highest of 119.98 lakh tonnes was achieved in 2021-22, the year after the COVID-19 pandemic and the lowest of 107 lakh tonnes was recorded in 2023-24. 

As far as the State is concerned, while rice remains the lead component of the total food grains, coarse cereals, especially millets,  come next with pulses contributing marginally.  While the production of rice and coarse cereals has been, by and large, comfortable over the years, experts are of the view that the State should focus on producing more pulses, whose production is around 3.6 lakh tonnes. In 2014-15, the production was as high as 7.5 lakh tonnes.  

As for non-food grains, the production of cotton, sugarcane and oilseeds has seen a southward trend. The improvement in this area will certainly boost the performance of agriculture, point out the experts. 

For example, the State, 20 years ago, produced oilseeds to the tune of  11.5 lakh tonnes, a figure that has not been exceeded so far.  Again, in cotton, the production dwindled to 2.1 lakh bales last year  whereas it was 6.86 lakh bales in 2014-15. The fall in sugarcane production was much more apparent with the figure being around 133.5 lakh tonnes. In 2006-07, the State produced 411 lakh tonnes. 

A host of factors is cited by the experts for the performance of the farm sector. Vagaries of the monsoon, price fluctuations in the open market and lack of procurement arrangement for crops other than paddy (rice), non-availability of many new varieties  are mentioned by the experts, who emphasise that coordinated efforts among policy makers - both at the level of Union and State governments, agricultural scientists and farmers have to be made to improve the showing of the farm sector. More importance to raising horticultural crops, particularly in rain-fed areas, has to be provided, the experts add.