User:Mpavan143/Sharad Joshi (agriculturist)

Sharad Joshi is the most articulate spokesman of the new farmers movement.

JOSHI Sharad, born September 3, 1935, at Satara (Maharashtra, India); son of Anant Narayan (1905-70) and Indirabai Joshi (1910-92); wife Leela (1943-82); two daughters: Mrs. Shreya Shahane, M.A., B.Arch. and Dr. Mrs. Gauri Chandrashekhar, MBBS, DIS (France).

M.Com. (Sydenham College, Bombay, 1957), Dip. Informatics (Lausanne, 1974); Awards: C.E. Randle Gold Medal for Banking (1955), Cursetjee Dady Prize for work on Computation of Irrigation Benefits.

Lecturer in Economics and Statistics, University of Poona, 1957-58; I.P.S Indian Postal Service (Class I) 1958-68; Chief Informatics Service, International Bureau, UPU, Bern, Switzerland, 1968-77.

Agriculturist and Peasant Leader, founder of Shetkari Sanghatana1 Peasants' Organisation in Maharashtra and at national level, of the Kisan Coordination Committee (KCC1) comprising of sister organisations from 14 states; led a number of mass agitations in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana etc. for remunerative prices of onions, sugar cane, tobacco, milk, paddy, cotton, against hike in electricity tariffs, for liquidation of rural debts and against State dumping in domestic markets. Original and persistant propounder of the postulate that the Government imposed negative subsidies on farmers as a matter of deliberate policy which has, since, been vindicated.;

Founder of the largest organisation of rural women Shetkari Mahila Aghadi (SMA) celebrated for its work for women's property rights notably for the 'Lakshmi Mukti' programme that has conferred land titles on lakhs of rural housewives.

Executive Trustee, Krishi Yogakshema Samshodhan Nyasa (KYSN, Research Foundation on Economics of Sustainable Agriculture). Founder President, Swatantra Bharat Party, 1994 devoted to abolition of License-permit-quota raj and to minimal government and plural society; Chairman, Shivar Ltd. (Supermarket network); Chairman, Bhama Consructions Ltd. (Farmers undertaking industrial estate development)

Agriculturist and Peasant Leader founder of Shetkari Sanghatana - Farmers' Organisation in Maharashtra and at national level, of the Kisan Coordination Committee (KCC) comprising of sister organisations from 14 states - Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala; led a number of agitations in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana etc. for remunerative prices of onions, sugar cane, tobacco, milk, paddy, cotton, against hike in electricity tariffs, for liquidation of rural debts and against State dumping in domestic markets.

Founder of the largest organisation of rural women - Shetkari Mahila Aghadi - celebrated for its work for women's property rights notably for the `Lakshmi Mukti' programme that has conferred land titles on lakhs of rural house-wives.

Founder and National President, Swatantra Bharat Party, 1994-96, devoted to abolition of License-permit-quota raj and to minimal government.

Chairman, Standing Advisory Committee on Agriculture (SAC), 1990-91 with the rank of a Central Cabinet Minister.

Member, National Integration Committee (NIC) since 1990.

Executive Trustee, Krishi Yogakshema Samshodhan Nyasa (Research Foundation on agricultural Economics).

Chairman, Shivar Agroproducts Ltd., agroproducts processing and marketing company promoted by farmers for setting up chain of departmental stores.

Chairman, Bhama Constructions Ltd., a company promoted by farmers for developing industrial estates.

Columnist - The Times of India, The Hindu, Lokmat and severel other dailies in Marathi etc.

Farmer, Economic Columnist; Founder Leader Shetkari Sanghatana, All India Kisan Coordination Committee;

Member, Advisory Board of the World Agricultural Forum (WAF), St. Louis;

Chairman WAF India Chapter and South Asia Chapter of the World Agricultural Forum (WAF).

Chairman, Standing Advisory Committee on Agriculture (SAC), 1990-91 with the rank of a Central Cabinet Minister; Member, National Integration Council (NIC) since 1990; Member, Committee for Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Independence (1997)

Publications: 'Organisation of Peasants: Thought and Practice', and several other books and articles in Marathi, translated into Hindi, Gujarati, Kannada, Telugu; 'Bharat Speaks Out' (1982); 'Bharat Eyeview' (1986), 'The Women's Question' (1986), 'Answering Before God' (1994) ; Columnist 'The Times of India', ' Business India', 'Lokmat' etc. and hundreds of articles.

Gave guidance for research work of manyResearchers- Scholars students including Dr. Ashutosh Varshneya, Harvard University, ; Dr. Conney Lenneberg, La Trobe University, Melbourne; Dr. Staffen Lindberg, Lund University, Sweden; Mike Youngblood, USA; Dr. Gail Omvedt, University of California.

An economistic, non-political, secular and non-violent peasant movement that is opposed to all subsidies and militates towards non-intervention by the State in the economy and particularly in the commodity markets

References: (1) http://agricoop.nic.in/sharad.htm (2) http://www.angelfire.com/in/swatantra/ (3) http://www.shetkari.in/sharad_joshi.html