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UPSC GS-III · 15 marks · 250 words

Discuss the role of value addition in doubling farmers' income.

किसानों की आय दोगुनी करने में मूल्य-संवर्धन की भूमिका की विवेचना कीजिए।

What “Discuss” demands

present several distinct facets of the issue and connect them into an argument, giving the competing views real weight rather than one line each.

The characteristic failure: a list of points with no argument running through them.

What a top answer must contain

These are the checkable specifics from the marking standard for this question — the actual case, committee, datum or thinker, not an instruction to “give examples”.

  • Frames the target using the Ashok Dalwai Committee on Doubling Farmers' Income (constituted 2016, 14-volume report 2018), which identified seven sources of income growth and required ~10.4% annual real growth from base year 2015-16
  • Cites NSS 77th Round Situation Assessment Survey (2019): average monthly income per agricultural household ₹10,218, with crop cultivation only ₹3,798 and animal farming ₹1,582 — showing income doubling cannot come from crop output alone
  • Distinguishes forms of value addition: primary (grading, sorting, cleaning, packaging at farm gate), secondary/tertiary processing, and intangible addition through branding, GI tags, organic/PKVY certification and export routing via APEDA
  • Notes CIPHET (2015) estimate of annual post-harvest losses of about ₹92,651 crore, and that loss reduction is itself income addition without extra cultivation
  • Names value-addition schemes with specifics: PM Kisan SAMPADA Yojana (2017), PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME, 2020, ₹10,000 crore, One District One Product), PLI Scheme for Food Processing (2021, ₹10,900 crore), Operation Greens (TOP to TOTAL), Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (2020, ₹1 lakh crore)
  • Links aggregation to bargaining power: Central Sector Scheme for formation of 10,000 FPOs (2020, ₹6,865 crore); Amul/Operation Flood as the demonstrated cooperative value-addition model; livestock and dairy now roughly 30% of agricultural GVA

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