The pre-budget document for the 2024-25 fiscal has suggested policy reforms to discourage overproduction of cereals while boosting output of pulses and edible oils, which the country currently imports to meet domestic shortages. The Economic Survey 2024-25, tabled in Parliament on Friday, stressed that India's agriculture sector has "significant untapped growth potential" despite various growth initiatives. Farmers must be allowed to receive unimpeded price signals from the market, with separate mechanisms to protect vulnerable households, it added. The document outlined three key policy shifts needed - establishing market mechanisms for price risk hedging, preventing excessive fertiliser use, and discouraging production of water and power-intensive crops that are already in surplus. "These policy shifts will help lift agricultural productivity in the economy by boosting land and labour productivity in the sector," the survey said. Agriculture sector growth averaged 5 per cent ...