Chennai: A task force to devise specific strategies for boosting Indian agricultural exports will be set by the Centre shortly, Union Minister of State for Finance Balasaheb Vikhe Patil said on May 23.

"The idea is to set up a task force having representations from the government, agricultural export promotion agencies, banks, agricultural experts and farmers to chalk out immediate strategies to enhance Indian competitiveness in the global agricultural export market," he said while inaugurating a national seminar on export of Indian agricultural products.

Patil said the task force would be entrusted with the task of identifying specific agricultural products for exports, preparing a product profile of Indian agricultural export products and recommending removal of procedural hurdles.

He said that it was also proposed to set up a mission exclusively for agricultural exports in due course.

Stating that globalisation of Indian agricultural was inevitable he said, "Focus will need to shift from demand for subsidies and favours to investment in technology application, in rural infrastructure, in research and education and extension of service to farmers."

Patil said while in India, the farmer got only one-fourth of the ultimate retail price of the products due to presence of a number of intermediaries in the supply chain, in the developed countries, they got 50 per cent of the retail price.

"We have to devise suitable mechanisms through which the Indian farmer is compensated for the risks he takes," he said adding that it is a matter of grave concern that share of agricultural-products in the country's total exports has fallen from 18.5 per cent in 1990-91 to 13.1 per cent in 2001-02.

Pointing out that India's agricultural-exports account for a marginal 1.1 per cent share in world agricultural-products exports valued at $ 558 billion in the year 2000, he said that in order to boost India's agricultural-exports, the success achieved by other countries needed to be studied closely.

He said the country was failing in the agricultural export front mainly due to weaknesses such as high wastage, high seasonality, perish ability and lack of post- harvest infrastructure.

PTI