The amazing growth in Gujarat agriculture of late has attracted a lot of attention in the national and international agricultural policy related bodies. A near double digit annual real growth rate of agriculture over a span of more than a decade in Gujarat has become a phenomenon most have chosen to call a miracle. The agricultural growth story of Gujarat deserves better description than miraculous, magical, or incredible. The spectacular agricultural growth in Gujarat in recent times has been a result of well thoughtout strategy, meticulously planned and co-ordinated scheme of action, sheer hard work and sincere implementation of programmes, political will to take bold decisions and commitment to economic policy reforms by the state government. As such, there is nothing magical or incredible about this growth story. It is reasonably replicable in other states and regions if firm determination exists. The motivation for the present volume is to document the interesting story of growth and structural changes in agriculture and allied activities in Gujarat, analysing factors responsible for the growth performance of the state in recent times.
" I congratulate you all for bringing out this book??.it will help in replicating the growth story in other parts of the nation."
Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam
About The Author:
Ravindra H. Dholakia is a Professor of Economics at IIM Ahmedabad. He has about 33 years of experience in teaching Economics to different groups of people like students, executives, policymakers and senior government officers. He has practical experience in high-powered policymaking and evaluation bodies in both state and central governments such as the Sixth Central Pay Commission in India (2006?08), State Public Finance Reform Committee (1998?2001), Expert Committee to Restructure Public Sector Units (2004?07) and Committee to Restructure Public Debt (2003?05), appointed by the Government of Gujarat. Currently, he is a member of the High Level Expert Committee appointed by the Government of India to suggest measures for efficient management of public expenditure (2010). He has written about 39 monographs, 16 books, and more than 130 research papers, which were published in journals of national and international repute. He has also developed 15 international cases on economic planning and policy reforms based on the experiences of different countries in Asia, Africa, the Caribbean Islands, and North America. For more details, see web-link :
http://www.iimahd.ernet.in:8080/web/iima/alphabeticallist
Samar K. Datta has about 35 years of teaching, research and administrative experience at Calcutta University, University of Southern California, Visva Bharati. He is currently a Senior Professor at the Centre for Management in Agriculture, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. His research areas cover micro economic theory, rural institutions, transaction costs and contracts, stakeholder cooperation, agri-business trade and competitiveness analysis under the WTO regime, natural resources management and rural credit. So far he has published nine research monographs besides writing more than 30 cases and publishing more than 40 articles in nationally and internationally acclaimed books and professional journals. He has worked as a consultant to a number of Indian and international agencies.
Table Of Contents:
Has Agriculture In Gujarat Shifted To High Growth Path ? Five Decades Of Gujarat Agriculture: Some Reflections ?The Economics And Contribution Of Cotton Biotechnology In The Agricultural Growth Of Gujarat ? High Value Crops And Gujarat's Agricultural Growth: Cases Of Castor And Psyllium (Isabgol) ? Examining Gujarat's 'Success Story' In Fruits And Vegetables ? Livestock Development In Gujarat In 2000s: An Assessment ? The Role Of Irrigation In The Growth Story Of Gujarat ? Linkages Of Agricultural Exports And Infrastructure Development In Gujarat ? Appendix: Short-Term And Medium-Term Prospects Of Agricultural Sector In Gujarat ? Some Policy Recommendations
