PRODUCTIVITY, PRODUCTION AND EXPORT OF FOOD GRAINS:ODISHA’S CONTEXT TO INDIANSTRATEGIES .

The country has achieved self-sufficiency in food grains especially in rice, wheat, maize. Indian origin rice (both aromatic and non-aromatic) are exported to African, Middle East, South East and Far East countries and one of the major foreign exchange earner for the nation. Indian maize is also exported to overseas markets for feed and food use as the country has exportable surplus. The country has achieved tremendous growth in the field of pulses production and India has emerged as net exporter in the last few years. In this backdrop this study analyses the contribution of Odisha state in the field of food grain production and export. The agri economy of Odisha is yet

The country has achieved self-sufficiency in food grains especially in rice, wheat, maize. Indian orig in rice (both aro matic and nonaromat ic) are exported to African, Middle East, South East and Far East countries and one of the major foreign exchange earner for the nation. Indian maize is also exported to overseas markets for feed and food use as the country has exportable surplus. The country has achieved tremendous growth in the field of pulses production and India has emerged as net exporter in the las t few years. In this backdrop this study analyses the contribution of Odisha state in the field of food grain production and export. The agri economy of Odisha is yet to achieve its full potential due to various factors related to socio-cultural, economic, co mmercial, technological and infrastructure. But the state can utilize abundant natural resources to undertake commercial farming and capable of meeting the demand of overseas buyers in terms of quality and quantity. The state machinery and procurement agencies should ensure fair and remunerative prices to the farmers. There is urgent need to promote scientific farming techniques and adoption of advanced pre and post harvesting technologies to increase production and productivity. During study it was observed that rice and maize exported fro m Od isha play secondary or filler role as get mixed with other orig ins by the exporters. Pro motion and adoption of Organic farminghas tremendous scope in the state and can provide livelihood to majority of small and mediu m farmers living on sustenance farming.
India has emerged as one of the world"s leading rice exporters after the removal of the export ban on coarse (non -Basmat i) rice in 2011. It was predicted that rice exports from India in M Y 2017-18 were lo w at @8.5 MMT (4.5 MMT coarse and 4.0 MMT scented Basmati rice) depending upon expected poor intercontinental demand and devaluation of INR and government restrictionsSingh S. K., USDA, 2017 [6] .Globally, maize is chosen as a staple food for 900 million poor fro m (120 -140 million farm families), and about 33.33% of malnourished childrenMurdiaet al, 2016 [7] .Mishra et al 2016 [8] , has mentioned that the soil and ground water quality of Odisha coast is favourable for gro wth of crops.It is observed that many districts of coastal Odisha have depicted better performance in agricultural sustainability in comparison to the district of Western Odisha as a whole.Sharma et. al., 2011 [9] observed that the prevailing market ing system is grossly inefficient in Od isha where farmers are ignorant of access to market and are constrained to local tradings at abysmally low prices. The open auction method is nonexistent due to lack of infrastructure and dedicated staff at market level and marketing transparency. Kannanet. al., 2011 [10] , and Pal et al., reported [11] that technological and institutional support for a few crops like Rice and Wheat brought significant changes in crop area only but not to other crops. Raghuramet. al., 2008 [12] , 2010 [13] has observed that the promotion of Basmat i and Non-basmati rice export in the global market require policy in itiative like 769 induction of advanced technology, disease and pest free varieties, awareness on price and market rents and other policy in itiat ives at the grass roots level and on Govt. level to boost the exports which is lagging in Od isha. Ku mar and Srinivas et.al., 2013 [14] reported that maize outlook and investment opportunities in India found that the demand for maize in livestock based products are increasing and the demand for maize as a food product is constantly declining in India. The market surplus of maize crop has increased and has suggested imp roved access to domestic and international market with economy of scale and value creation. Sharma and Kachroo et al., 2016 [15] mentioned in their study on the growth and instability of Maize in Jammu and Kashmir and reported that the area, production and yield instability in maize is very prominent in J&K state. Das et. al., 2012 [16] ,indicated that genetic and biotechnological interventions in maize can ensure food security and economic growth. Ku mar and Srinivaset. al.,2014 [17] mentioned that with congenial policy environment India can participate in Maize expo rt market in a big way in future.Bhatta et al., 2018 [18] and Fact finding report on popularization of hybrid maize in Odisha, 2011 [20] , has noted that districts like Nawarangpur,Ganjam, Kalahandi, Koraput, Malkangiri, Kandh mal have highest areas under irrigated maize cultivation in Od isha. A special programme for popularizat ion of hybrid maize has been taken up in twenty western and southern Odisha districts in PPP model.

Objecti ve of the Study:-
To analyze the present status of food grain production and its export potential fro m the state of Odisha and suggest measures to increase the export activit ies.

Methodol ogy of Data Collection:-
The present study is based on primary data collected through the open -ended interview method over phone and in person. The exporters, suppliers, buyers and service providers interviewed are directly connected with export activities fro m Odisha region. Statistics with regard to figure on production, consumption and trade is relied up on the Govern ment sources and the specialized bodies associated the activities connected with export activit ies and promotion.
Assumpti ons & li mitation in the Study:-1. The export activity is primarily a commercial activity and the present study is aimed a t finding out the "commercial aspect" of rice and maize export fro m Odisha. Hence the focus of the study is to bring out the factual details behind acceptability and viability of export of rice and maize fro m Odisha region in overseas market exported through custom borders. 2. The focus of study is on export of Non-basmat i Rice as compared to Basmati Rice i.e. scented/fragrance Rice.
The quality of rice defined as specifications laid down in the in export co ntract mutually agreed between exporter and importer as India exports many varieties of rice with different quality specifications. The quality parameters like length, broken percentage moisture, damaged and discolored, chalky grain, foreign matter, paddy percentage differ fro m contract to contract. 3. In case of maize exports the quality parameters like mo isture and aflatoxin content is mutually agreed between exporter and importer and the end use as "feed purposes" or "food purposes" is not differentiated in this study. The export fro m Od isha means Maize produced in different parts of Od isha only. 4. The export fro m Orissa means Rice produced/ milled in Orissa region and delivered to port areas for export purposes.It also does not include paddy transported or delivered fro m Odisha to neighboring States like Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh for milling purposes. 5. The export consignment of rice and maize require both backward and forward integration such as sourcing of bagged cargo from mills, transportation to the port, warehousing, engagement of CHA and stevedores for loading into vessel etc. Most of the millers cannot undertake these activities in an organized manner. Moreover, this kind of transactions involves financial and co mmercial risk. Hence traders/exporters undertake these activities and millers generally p refer to deliver the cargo to traders/exporters on ex-mill basis for export. 6. In the recent past Indian maize is out priced by South American origin and no majo r export activ ities with regard to maize except some parcels moving to neighboring country like Bangladesh, Malaysia, UAE and Yemen etc. Hence the response of the respondents is based on their experience not so recent one. 7. In this study logistics constraints imp ly bottle-necks in respect of transportation, go down and storage, port facilit ies, loading of vessels in both pre-shipment and post-shipment. The exporters prefer to maintain low inventory before shipment and try to coordinate movement of export cargo to port to synchronize with vessel loading operation. These approaches enable the exporter to cut down inventory, transportation and storage cost.

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Expected Benefits of the Study:-1. Chalking out plans to develop rice and maize farming on co mmercial scale. 2. Policy initiat ive to provide inputs like good quality seeds, pre and post harvesting technology and milling techniques. 3. Developing Od isha state as hub for sourcing organic rice, maize and pulses 4. Developing infrastructure facilities like go down and storage space in the produc ing areas or hinterland and emphasis on rail/ road connectivity with hinterland to port areas.. 5. Formulat ing the strategy for pro motion and branding of Orissa Rice and maize. 6. There is urgent need to restructure and strengthening of Mandi system across the st ate for ensuring remunerative price to growers through Minimu m Support Price (MSP).

Food grainsproduction in Indi a:-
India is one of the largest producers of paddy (rice  United States Depart ment of Agriculture (USDA) The above production time series of production of total food grain wheat, rice and corn (incl. maize) in Indian indicate with the rising population the food grain production is also increasing from 1960.Production of rice is higher (in terms of tonnage) than the wheat as east, south and some parts of west coast are traditionally paddy cultivators as their staple food is rice. In comparison to rice and wheat the growth rate of maize production is less which may be due the cultivation corns take place generally in non -irrigated and tribal and hilly areas.
As far as theconsumption of total food grains (wheat, rice and corn including. maize) in Indian scenario, the rate of intake per year has increased keeping pace with the increasing population. The domestic consumption graph indicates the consumption of rice is higher than the wheat may be due to the fact that more consumers use rice a s their daily foodFig 1. As far as the consumption of production of total food grain wheat, rice and corn (incl. maize) in Indian scenario is concernedthe consumption of different food grains per year has increased keeping pace with the increasing Co mparing the production vs. consumption figuresit can be concluded that India used to import food grain due to demand supply mismatch i.e.do mestic consumption exceeding production till 1982. The period (1983 to 2002) witnessed growth in the production of food grains and India became less dependent on imports and resorting to imports on need based only. Post 2003 India reg istered impressive growth rate in p roduction of food grains and achieved self-sufficiency meeting demand of domestic consumption and becoming net export er of foods grain. (barring 2006-2008 when what was imported). India has ambitious plan of achieving food security by supplying subsidized food grains to targeted population through its network of public distribution system (PDS).

The Rice and maize scenario Odisha:-
Odisha is a small east coastal state in India where the staple food of massesis rice in plains and maize in hills.The state is having agrarian economy with advantageous agro -climatic and soil condit ions to grow variety of cropsincluding commercial crops. The crops grown in the state are paddy, pulses, sugarcane, maize, jawar, oilseeds, turmeric, jute, cotton, coconut, rubber, tea, ground nuts, potato and onion. These crops depend heavily on rain and distribution of monsoons is a prime factor in deciding the output and yield. Paddy inOd ishais cultivated usually under varying topographical settings from EGBHills of western Odisha to coastal tracts in eastand under variable climatic conditions. Rice crop needs humid to sub -humid regions under subtropical and temperate climate under r/f > 12 to 15cm even mo re. Od isha has some endemic variet ies of paddy (in 20th century) are Asansodi, Baiananda, Ratanchudi, Pratiksya, Puja, Masuri, Jajati, Phalguna, Condomo, Para, Khandgiri, Ratnalu, Khandagiri, Pratika, Anura, Bhutia, Tulasiganthi, Hald igodi and widely shown Champa which are less in production at present.
Maize, a food and a fodder has the advantage of nutrition, appetizer, anti-dyschezial, antacid, and and reduces risk of Alzheimer"s disease, diabetes, cancer, skin and heart diseases.Maizeneeds high humidity, pro longed sunshine and an assured supply of water. at a temperature of 21 to 37 0 C. The local names for maize in India importance to Paddy and wheat, lack of hybrid technology and agri-methodology adaptation, old storage, harvesting and distribution methods and small farm holding"s. Maize consumption has elevated @ CA GR 3.6% for the MY2007-08 to 2013-14 where the consumption in poultry sector was 50-60%, FICCI, The maize summit-2014 [20] .Hilly alluviu m with red loams free but well drained soils are best fit for maize as it is nitrogen rich. Since the productivity is synchronous with climate, meteorological extreme events, the comparison of yield in Kg/Ha is increasing and the trend is isochronous. The trend in productivity is rising for food grain, rice and maize. The total food grain is following linear trend whereas individually the productivity of rice and maize is following polynomial models with R2 values 0.956, 0.94 and 0.973 respectively Fig -3.
Rice production in Odisha:-Odiya"s are rice eaters due its soil, climate and terrain prosp ective and cultivation of wheat is not widespread in Odisha. A comparative study was between the crop yield rate between India and Odisha and it is observed that per hectare production of rice was almost equal between Odisha and India during 1970"s but lat ter the initiat ives taken by the farmers and the state government was slack and the yield rate had declined but during five years after 2010 it 773 is increasing.On statistical study it is observed that the increase in yield rate is linear in Indian context whereas the yield rate is nonlinear on Odisha"s context.  Also it is seen that the productivity of Arahar has declined continuously 1980 -81 onwards due to arhar was cultivated in tribal belts by traditional practices (Podu cultivation method) which is banned by the Govt of Odisha in 1980"s, Das Balaram, 2006 [22] Fig 7. The key for increase of production and productivity is the adaption of new method of cultivation of paddy in Odisha called the system of rice Intensification (SRI) Method. So metraditional co mmun ity of Odisha were cu ltivating paddy, and even pulses of beans, pigeon pea, and mustard seeds with conventional methods. At present they have switched over to this new practice wh ich uses younger seedling technique with less wat er, less seed but labour intensive, mechanized and hand weeded.SRI method is high yielding, and can be applied in the fields of marginal famers with applicat ion of organic manure, the technology has become popular which has augmented the productivity of food grains in Odisha.  [23] has mentioned about a serious decline in Odisha"s agriculture due to highly concentrated in low productive and high water consuming paddy cultivation with little diversification toward pulses, oilseeds and other high value crops like sugar cane, fruits and vegetables etc. In spite of the available opportunities such as favorable Govern ment policy, pro moted network of support system, emphasis on PPP assured market, contract farming and infrastructural support Odisha is lagging in its progress. The emerging threats are changing food habits, recurrent naturalcalamites, low productivity; dominance of rain fed cropping practices, lack of application of advanced farm technology, disaster management and proper distribution/utilizat ion of water resources. The growth rate/crop yield fro m agriculture in Od isha was much lower than average in India during the period (1991-2008) Reddy et al.,2013 [24] .

Maize producti on strategies Odisha:-
Maize is one of the major crops grown in Od isha apart fro m Paddy, Pulses and Sugarcane. Fro m growers point of view Maize crop needs less input cost and provides more profit margin. It"s a versatile crop that requires less water with wider adaptability to soil type, seasons and ecologies. Moreover it has varied and diversified use as food, feed and industrial ingredients and ready market for disposal. The different types of Maize are yellow/wh ite grain, sweet corn, baby corn, popcorn, quality protein Maize, waxy corn, high oil corn, fodder meal. Maize is also used as Industrial raw material and used in variety of products directly and indirectly. The Maize production in India has been largely driven by growing demand by feed industry and various industrial u se Kumar, &Srinivas et al., 2014 [17] . Recently, advance countries like USA, Canada and Europe utilize maize crop as an important ingredient in b io fuel. The trend in area cult ivated vs. corresponding production of maize in Od isha (Source: NIC Od isha)is in Fig 8 and the graph indicate that, the maize cu ltivated area is increasing slowly whereas production has increased sharply fro m the 21 st century. The increase in area follows a polynomial function whereas production agrees an exponential function

Maize consumption India:-
The consumption maize in different sectors are Poultry feeds (47%), d irect consumption (20%) and bovine fodder (14%), starch 12% and other foods and beverages 7% according to KLEFMAN g roup.Fro m the trend of productivity of all food grains, Rice and maize in Od isha it is found that the rice being the major food grain both the trends are parallel whereas the productivity of maize is less in comparison to rice. The best fit curve for the trend of productivity of food grains, rice and maize are polynomial models shown on the graphsMohantyet. al., 2014 Fig-09. Majority of the respondents were of opinion that Odisha rice has ready acceptability in markets like Bangladesh and South Africa.Rice gro wn and milled in Orissa have short length and higher broken percentage. The traders and exporters source Odisha rice and mix with rice of West Bengal or Chhattisgarh to cater to the demand of Bangladesh market. It was found out during survey that the paddy from Orissa crosses the borderin g States milled there and then exported. The reason for transfer of Orissa paddy to neighboring region is absence of sufficient milling facility, distress sales by farmers, unscrupulous traders taking advantage of ruling lo wer price in the region. State Govern ment to take immediate steps to protect the farmers and also measures to develop milling facilit ies on commercial scale.
The milling of paddy has not been undertaken in Odisha in commercial scale due to reasons like s mall holding of farmers, subsistence farming, lack of infrastructural facilit ies, natural calamities , lack of investment in agro sector and socio economic condition of the state etc. Since the capacity of Odisha millers are small say 2-3 MT per day the exporters find difficu lty in aggregating the vessel load cargo of say 30,000 to 40,000 MT. Difficu lty to "aggregate" the export cargo to meet both pre-shipment and post-shipment deadline was cited as one of the limit ing factor fo r exporters to rely on Odisha for rice export.
The few respondents who were satisfied with quality and logistic factors from Orissa region were large exporters. During the discussions they pointed out that the export of Orissa Rice can be capitalized with patience and experience. Like short grain length Bihar Suvarna Rice Orissa can develop the Rice or Orissa belt in specific overseas markets. The reasons of inferior quality is the result of agro -climat ic conditions and lack of poor milling technology in most of the mills. Hence there is an urgent need to adopt Rice cultivation and milling in a commercial scale and to adopt latest milling technology like installing sortex and grading machines. The Rice trade in Punjab Haryana, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh is highly organized through the network of farmers, millers, trader"s, brokers, agents and exporters. Orissa should facilitate the network by developing the infrastructural facilit ies in the region.
The logistic factors such as storage of paddy in mill co mpound transportation of milled rice to the port areas and generating intermediate go-down and storage space would go in a long way in build ing confidence of exporters looking to volu me exports.
There was unanimity among the respondents that the Rice fro m Orissa region rare exported fro m ports o utside Orissa mainly Kakinada, Visakhapatnam and Haldia. There is urgent need to develop Paradeep port located in Orissa for Rice export. On positive aspect of the survey is that Orissa Rice can be placed in the overseas market as a niche product due to application of less fertilizer and more of organic product. For promoting Orissa Rice in the export market one integrated strategy is required with the involvement of all stake holders like millers, logistic agents and exporters.

Maize producti on/ export strategies:-
All the respondents were interviewed and asked specific questions about their experience in respect of maize exports in general and fro m Od isha and their response is summarized belo w as under: The Maize corn needs rain during sowing and growing period and dry and sunshine weather during maturing and harvesting time.
Increase in moisture, bad weather make the corn discolored mouldy, increase the aflato xincontentandmakethe seeds germinate and sprout. The quality of maize produced in Karnat aka and AP are of superior quality. The production and productivity of maize in Odisha is below all-India average.
As per the respondents maize fro m Odisha are being exported for the last few years to Bangladesh, Indonesia and Thailand fro m eastern coast ports namely Vizag. The shipment to Far East destination is by vessel and containers depending upon the contractual requirement. Mostly the shipment to Bangladesh is effected through rail/trucks by the exporters. Much of the cargo is sourced by the local traders and exporters in AP fro m Od isha and the cargos are mixed/blended with other origins and then get exported. All the respondents were unanimous in their opinion that maize fro m Od isha is not exported on "standalone basis" due to not so positive percep tion about Odisha maize.
The size of maize crop gro wn in Odisha is estimated to be about 5.5 Lakh MT to 6.0 Lakh MT as co mpared to total country production in the range of 22 to 23 Million Tones. There was divergent opinion among the 777 respondents about the quantum of maize exported during the last few years on average basis. About 60% of respondents felt 50,000 Mts of exportable surplus available and about 30% of the respondents put the figure about 1,00,000Mts and balance 10% of the respondents stated that abbot 1,25,000 to 1,50,000 Mts has been exported fro m Odisha on yearly basis during the last few years.
Majority of respondents felt quality of maize produced in Odisha is co mparable to quality of maize produced in Bihar. Given a choice majority (96% of respondents) felt that supplier would not like to take maize fro m Odisha. Respondents overwhelmingly opined that exporters look for exporting Od isha maize in case other origins are not easily available especially fro m Bihar or exporters meeting lo w priced contract or urgent need to meet loading deadline and failure to deliver the cargo would land exporters in trouble. Respondents also stated that Maize grown in Odisha was earlier used in the starch industry due to inferior quality however 75% of the respon dents felt Odisha has started growing quality maize recently and catering to the demand of feed industry.
Almost 80% of the respondent responded that presence of "high moisture" and "aflato xin content" are primary reasons for them to keep away from exporting Od isha maize. As per the majority of the respondents the moisture content in Karnataka and Andhra origin maize is between 12-13% as compared to Odisha maize around 15% on average. The size of maize produced in Odisha is smaller as compared to Karnataka and Andhra maize. Hence the Odisha maize is used as "blending" for export consignment. Maize gro wers of Odisha use the traditional method of separating kernels from ear head is to dry under sun shine and put on the road and ply the roller on it to separate. In contrast the mechanized method of drying through mach ine by sucking mo isture and putting on the thresher to separate kernel fro m the ear head. The expo rt operation of maize needs adequate care before it gets shipped in containers or in bulk vessels. In a closed space corn generates heat and tends to become mouldy and began to sprout if there is excess mo isture in the cargo. In the port premises when other cargo are stored, insects are bound to be there and they attack the corn as it is sweet commodity. 92% of the respondents were in favor of farmers and traders in Odisha to use modern t echnology for harvesting, drying and storage of corns enabling to meet export standards.
All of the respondents were in favour of transparent mandi system in place so that farmers receive remunerat ive price for their produce. Majority of respondents (96%) were of view that Govern ment should intervene for enforcement of M inimu m Support Price to the maize growers. About 88% of the respondents attributed lack of commercial farming and basic infrastructural facilit ies as cause for Od isha lacking in export fron t.
Most of the respondents have expressed that there is immed iate need to build enough storage space with modern facilit ies to facilitate export activities in maize. The present storage space available in maize growing region are generally in s maller in size capacity 1,000 Mt to 2,000 Mts only. An exporter shipping in vessel load need minimu m 4,000 Mt to 5,000 Mt capacity to build up and aggregate the cargo. 20% of the respondent stated that there is element of VAT on storage of maize and their concern need to be addressed.
Discussion on Export scenario:-1. Buyers in markets like Bangladesh and South Africa prefer parboiled short length variety typically confirming to Odisha origin. . The farmers in Odisha adopt traditional farming technique and apply less fertilizer as compared to their counterpart in Punjab, AP and Haryana. The Odisha rice can be pro moted in overseas markets like M iddle East as healthy and organic rice. 2. The millers should be provided adequate incentives to install advanced milling technology (like sortex and grading) to meet the stringent quality parameters of the overseas buyers. The end product of milled rice containing uniform length and consistent colour and less broken percentage would gain greater acceptability in the overseas markets.The mechanical handling of food items like rice during milling, packing, grading, storage, transportation and loading reduce contamination to be pro moted extensively. 3. The improvement in logistic facilit ies like storage, transportation, rail connectivity, intermed iate go down space, loading and documentation facilit ies would attract exporters and traders to depend upon Odisha as regular and dependable supplier of rice. There is unanimity among the respondents that the facilities in port like Paradeep and Gopalpur in Odisha to be upgraded to handle dry bulk cargo like rice with min imal risk of co ntamination. 4. Majority of the respondents stressed upon building Odisha rice as "standalone brand" just like Swarna rice of Bihar in the overseas market. The promotion has to be undertaken by the all stake holders like millers, traders, exporters and policy makers.
778 5. The present study focused mainly on co mmercial aspect of rice export fro m Odisha. Most of the respondents" are optimistic about the potential Odisha rice in the overseas market. However issue of rice expo rt is lin ked with lot of associated factors like climatic conditions, government support, business environment, viability of export etc. Further study is needed to identify these factors and all stake holders working towards the goal of placing Odisha in the global rice export map. 6. The problems in export of maize are primarily related to quality and specifications like h igher moisture and aflato xin content, storage space constraints, unfavorable tax structure for storage of cargo etc. Apart from agroclimatic conditions the other influencing factors are poor economic conditions, small size holdings, absence of commercial farming, lack of knowledge about the market, low productivity, non -application of advanced technology and lack of other infrastructural facilities supporting export activ ities. Respondents have expressed their disappointment that most of the farming commun ity still emp loy traditional sun drying technology before market ing their produce. Despite these unfavorable factors respondents have overwhelmingly supported the fact that Odisha has all the potential to become major maize growing state like neighboring state Bihar. The positive sign that the quality of maize produced recently in Odisha has improved due to introduction of hybrid maize seeds in some pockets and advanced technology in farming. 7. Majority of respondents have strongly suggested that Odisha can market their maize as organic and for food use in export markets.

Conclusion:-
The growth story of primarily agri-economy of Odisha is replete with regular yearly occurrence of natural calamit ies like flood, cyclone, drought, flash flood, lightning strike. These calamities adversely affect the production and productivity to large extent depriving farmer"s decent livelihood the backbone of sustenance farming. Predominance of s mall and med iu m scale agricultural units without adequate agricultural inputs like funds, irrigation, quality certified seeds, equipment, fert ilizer, pre and post harvesting infrastructure are major road blocks to undertake agriculture on commercial scale. Underdeveloped an d undeveloped market infrastructure in major part of the state especially in remote, forest, hilly and tribal areas deprive the producers fair and remunerative prices for their produce. The state machinery implement ing various scheme including presence of state and central procurement agencies have brought welco me changes in certain parts of the state.The issue of low production and productivity of the state be addressed by taking integrated and holistic approach to the problem areas. The major steps towards commercial farming are to incentivize the farmers and ensuring remunerative price for the produce. The state can play a leading role and can be placed in the forefront of the agricultural map of the country by promoting organic revolution not only in cas e of rice, maize and pulses but also in case of spices and vegetable. The producers in tribal and hilly districts of western Odisha use less chemical fertilizers and depend main ly on organic manure for their produce like rice, ragi, pulses, chilly, turmeric, coffee, garlic, ginger, vegetable like cabbage, potato, onion, brinjal, bitter gourd, pumpkins, ridge gourd, arum etc. The state can contribute to the export basket by carving out niche place by branding ,promoting and exporting food grains under GI/ brand products. The authors are quite optimistic of Od isha achieving the status of major contributor to the export basket of the nation in the field of major food grains (rice and maize).