WHEN MOST of India's laws on farming were adopted, in the 1950s and 1960s, the country was often on the brink of famine. In 1966 mass starvation was averted only by the arrival of 10m tonnes of American food aid. Small wonder that a Himalayan range of regulations rose up, to boost output and stop hoarding. Happily, much has changed since then. In 2020 India exported 14m tonnes of rice alone. The government has amassed grain stores of around 50m tonnes. Yet even as the food has piled up, the rules have remained the same. The bill for the subsidies has risen dramatically. So have the environmental costs, in the form of sinking water tables, for example, and choking smoke from the burning of stubble. The prime minister, Narendra Modi is trying to enact reforms. His failure to make them stick illustrates much of what is wrong with Indian politics.
展开▼
