Shima : An eminent agricultural economist of the country, Professor Vijay Paul Sharma from Himachal Pradesh has been reappointed Chairman, Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India.
The Appointments Committee of The Cabinet (ACC) approved the appointment of Prof. Sharma to the prestigious post and sent a communiqué to the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India on 3 January, 2022.
Prof Sharma was Chairman, CACP for five years from June, 2016 to May, 2021 also. Currently, he is a Professor at Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad.
He is an alumnus of CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur and is a leading agribusiness management expert and policy maker with more than three decades of rich and diverse national and international experience. He has been deeply involved in the agri-food policy formulation in the country.
Prof. Sharma is a farmer’s son and belongs to a small village in Bangana tehsil of Una district. He studied in Government High School Hatli in Una district, did his B. Sc. Agri. and M Sc. Agri. from Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur and Ph. D. from National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal.
His reappointment is a matter of pride for the small state as he is not only the first person from the State of Himachal Pradesh to occupy the position of Chairman, CACP, but is also the first person to be reappointed as Chairman, CACP during the last 45 years in the country.
“I am deeply honoured and grateful to the Government for reposing trust and confidence in me and my abilities and giving me a responsibility to serve the CACP for a second term. Serving the CACP is an immense privilege and a great honour,” said Prof. Sharma.
He said he had a very enriching and satisfying experience of serving the CACP in his first tenure from 2016-21.
“I will try to work even harder to meet expectations and aspirations of all stakeholders, and ‘Annandatas’ in particular. I will do my best to fulfill the responsibility given to me,” Prof. Sharma said.
CACP recommends Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) of 23 agricultural commodities. The role of CACP Chairman will be very crucial in the committee on the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and other farm issues, including the promotion of natural farming announced by the Prime Minister.
“It is indeed a proud moment for all of us from Himachal Pradesh. It is a meaningful elevation for the second time and will help agribusiness sector grow with Prof. Vijay Paul Sharma’s vast knowledge, experience and understanding of ground situation and policy matters,” said Prof. Rajeshwar Singh Chandel, Executive Director, Prakritik Kheti Khushal Kisan Yojana (PK3Y), Himachal Pradesh. Dr Chandel is a noted entomologist and is an alumnus of CSK HP Krishi Vishvavidyalaya.
Prof. Sharma has had an illustrious career. He has held important positions in IIM, Ahmedabad, including Chairman, Centre for Management in Agriculture for two terms from 2005 to 2008 and 2010 to 2012 and two tenures as Chairman, MBA in Food and Agribusiness Management (MBA-FABM) from 2002 to 2004 and 2013 to 2015.
He has been a consultant to many national and international organizations in the agri-food, and development sector. He was International Consultant, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), FAO Regional Office for Near East and North Africa, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia during 2015-16 and Advisor to the “USAID’s Economic Reforms Projects in Central Asian Countries” in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 2005. Prof. Sharma has been a Member/Chairman of several national and State level Committees.
Prof. Sharma was a Core Member, Ad-hoc Task Force (ATF) on Performance Monitoring and Evaluation System, Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India, Member, Advisory Committee, Reserve Bank of India – College of Agricultural Banking, Pune, Member, Board of Governing Council, Agricultural Skill Council of India (ASCI), Member, Advisory Group on Agriculture and Food Processing, Ministry of Finance, Mid-Term Review (MTR) Committee and Five Year Plan Working Groups on Agriculture and Allied Sectors, Planning Commission; Long-term Fertilizer Policy Committee, Empowered Committee on Agri-Infrastructure Development.
He has about 10 books to his credit on the Indian agri-food sector, besides over 150 publications, which include research papers in national and international journals, working papers, lead/keynote papers in national/international conferences/seminars/workshops.
