Presented as part of the ACES International Distinguished Lecture Series.
Reception to follow from 4 - 5 p.m.
Ashok Gulati is the Distinguished Professor at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER). He is the Former Director at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and former member of the Economic Advisory Council of Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Dr. Gulati is renowned for his deep involvement in policy analysis and advice in India. Read full bio.
Registration requested.
A Preview: India spends a significant amount of resources (almost 10% of the Union budget) on agri-food system to ensure food security to its people. But much of it, almost three-fourths, goes in the form of subsidies for food, fertilisers, agri-credit, crop insurance, etc..There is much less that goes into agri-R&D, irrigation, rural roads, etc, where the marginal returns in terms of agri-GDP growth and/or poverty alleviation, are much higher. Given the challenges of climate change and malnutrition amongst children, there is a need to re-purpose these subsidies towards creating climate resilient and climate smart as well as more nutritious agriculture. Digitalisation of the entire food system from production to marketing to consumption can help re-purposing these subsidies and achieve the desired goals more efficiently with much less resources.