Since Arjuna has not understood the line of reasoning so far he needs adesa instruction, not upadesa advice. So Krsna emphatically says the path of action is better than that of knowledge. However, this is meant only for Arjuna and is not a universal truth.
Most people are in spiritual infancy and are full of desires. In the modern world desires are encouraged, promoted and fuelled. In this scenario there are very few people who qualify for knowledge. The few, like Arjuna, who want to take knowledge as an escape route from unpleasant obligations are in a state of rajasika renunciation. They want to move away from action because of the pain associated with it, not for pursuit of the higher.