Digital Agriculture and Pulses Mission

Digital Agriculture Mission and Pulse Self-Reliance Mission

Overview

• Leadership: Initiated under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's guidance.
• Focus: Enhance farmers' income, achieve self-reliance in pulses, and digitalize agricultural services for transparency and efficiency.

Key Objectives

• Digital Agriculture Mission: Aim to fast-track digital surveys for farmers, ensuring all farmers benefit from the mission.
• Pulse Self-Reliance Mission: Increase domestic pulse production to reduce import dependency.

Constitutional and Policy Framework

• Government Schemes: Digital Agriculture and Pulse Self-Reliance Missions are aligned with the government’s priorities to boost farmer welfare and agricultural productivity.
• Farmer ID: Essential for direct payments to farmers, enhancing transparency and speed of transactions.

Economic Indicators

• Farmer ID Creation: 10.41 crore Farmer IDs established across 26 states and UTs, covering 84.68% of PM-KISAN beneficiaries.
• Georeferencing: 5.9 lakh villages covered, representing 93.05% of the identified villages, facilitating accurate crop surveys.
• Production Increase: Pulse production expected to rise from 256.83 lakh metric tons in 2024-25 to 274.09 lakh metric tons in 2025-26.
• Import Reduction: Import dependency for pulses decreased from 72.56 lakh metric tons in 2024-25 to 59.64 lakh metric tons in 2025-26.
• Area Under Cultivation: Pulse cultivation area expanded from 277.20 lakh hectares to 286.46 lakh hectares.
• Productivity Growth: Pulse productivity increased from 926 kg/hectare to 957 kg/hectare.

Implementation Strategies

• Value Chain Strengthening: Emphasis on enhancing the entire value chain from seeds to market connectivity.
• Processing Units: Target to establish 528 processing units by 2026-27 to improve pulse processing and marketing.
• Timely Input and Payments: Importance of timely distribution of inputs and payments to minimize losses for farmers.

Judicial and Administrative Recommendations

• Data Verification: Accurate land and digital surveys are crucial for effective implementation and benefits realization.
• Monitoring: Strict oversight to ensure funds are used appropriately and not wasted.

Future Plans

• Digital Crop Survey Expansion: Coverage to increase from 290 districts in 2024-25 to 692 districts by 2026-27, aiming for a total area coverage of 13.4 crore hectares.
• Focus on Best Practices: Sharing successful strategies from states to improve overall outcomes.

Conclusion

The Digital Agriculture Mission and Pulse Self-Reliance Mission are pivotal for enhancing farmers' livelihoods, ensuring food self-sufficiency, and utilizing technology for effective agricultural practices. The government is committed to fostering collaboration between state and central authorities to achieve these objectives with accountability and transparency.