December 26, 1970 All these industries are based on commercial crops whose cultivation developed at a time when the population was much sparser and when Indian production costs were much lower than abroad. These conditions have passed; export markets for the materials as well as the finished products have either vanished or are declining; and within the country, there is diversion of land from the raw materials to foodgrains. It is clear that in the long run, the agriculture- based industries will either have to give way to new technology
