The benefits of intensive agriculture have failed to reach small and marginal farmers in India despite several efforts over the last seven decades. It not only jeopardises the livelihood of millions of such small and marginal farmers but also seriously threatens India’s food, nutritional and ecological security. It is alarming because approximately 86 per cent of land holdings in India are farmed by this group of small and marginal farmers who have little or no access to improved seeds, costly chemical fertilisers, assured irrigation or mechanical implements that are essential inputs on an intensive farm.
There is a need to identify and scale up an alternative model that can help these small and marginal farmers earn their livelihood and contribute to India’s food, nutritional, and ecological security and economic growth. In this regard, it is pertinent to revisit the existing agricultural policy and subsidy regime, as the vast amount of subsidies for chemical fertilizers only benefits a handful of large farmers. These subsidies amounted to Rs 2.5lakh crore in FY 25.
Regenerative farming promises to be such an alternative farming model. It is defined as a set of practices that avoid agrochemicals, improve soil health by increasing the organic carbon content, manage pests using biological pest control, and improve farm biodiversity. Regenerative farming must be tested all across India, and pathways must be developed to scale it up with appropriate policy.
The 2024 budget outlined nine key priorities to create ample opportunities for all, with agriculture taking centre stage as priority number 1 under the theme "Productivity and Resilience in Agriculture". It announced plans to review the agricultural research framework, focusing on productivity and climate-resilient crop varieties, with 109 such varieties of 32 crops slated for release over the next two years. It was particularly encouraging that the budget emphasised regenerative farming by targeting one crore farmers nationwide for training and adoption of regenerative farming by 2026. The implementation of the scheme would be supported by scientific institutions in the agriculture sector and voluntary participation from gram panchayats. The cabinet also approved Rs 2,481 crores for supporting the National Mission on Natural Farming.
While the 2024 budget took some measures to encourage regenerative farming, more must be done to incentivise farmers to adopt such sustainable practices. Instead of addressing soil degradation, the current fertiliser subsidy system inadvertently rewards unsustainable behaviour. Overuse of chemical fertilisers has severely damaged soil health, reducing their effectiveness from 12 kg of grain per unit in the 1960s to just 5 kg in recent years. In response to declining chemical fertilizer efficiency, farmers have resorted to using increasing quantities of fertilisers, further depleting soil organic carbon, which has fallen from 2.4 per cent to just 0.4 per cent over the last 70 years. Despite this, fertiliser subsidies have continued to grow, with the subsidy bill ballooning from Rs 60 crores (1976-77) to Rs 2.25 lakh crores (RE 2023-24), an increase of a humungous 4,000 per cent. This practice exacerbates soil degradation and places an ever-growing burden on the exchequer, effectively perpetuating and rewarding harmful agricultural practices.
By contrast, regenerative farming offers a sustainable alternative, improving soil health while conserving critical resources like water and electricity due to its reduced reliance on irrigation and the overuse of groundwater resources. With the 2024 budget laying the foundation for promoting regenerative farming, the budget for 2025-26 could take this vision further by reallocating a portion of fertiliser subsidies to direct benefit transfers (DBT) for farmers practising regenerative agriculture. This will surely provide the much-needed financial incentive support for scaling up the adoption of regenerative farming. The government can promote sustainable practices by compensating the regenerative farmers with the equivalent subsidy paid for chemical fertilizers that is used per acre of cultivated land. For instance, the average consumption of Urea per acre is around 100 kilograms (or slightly more than two bags of urea) for paddy. The government provides a substantial subsidy for urea. This works out to approximately Rs 1,958 per 45 kg bag. While the market price of a 45 kg bag of urea is around Rs 2,200, farmers only need to pay Rs 242 per bag as a result of the subsidy. The total subsidy for urea per acre, thus roughly amounts to Rs 4,348. This amount should ideally be directly transferred to regenerative farmers. Similarly, for wheat, with an average consumption of 80 kg of urea, the subsidy amounts to around Rs 3,466 per acre. Subsidising farmers who do not use chemical farmers will reward sustainable farming practices and help them scale them across the country.
Worldwide, regenerative farming practices have increased productivity, and biodiversity and reduced farmer costs. Regeneration of natural farming also helps minimize negative externalities such as greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, a transformative approach to farming is much needed in India to restore soil health and improve the financial and general well-being of farmers. It will also have multiple positive ecological impacts.
This improved farming is essential for India to achieve its vision of "Viksit Bharat" by 2047, fostering a future that balances economic growth with ecological responsibility. Redesigning Indian agriculture through scaling up regenerative farming offers a sustainable path forward, addressing critical challenges such as soil degradation, water scarcity, and climate change, while also aligning with India’s environmental goals and international commitments to reduce carbon emissions. The last budget demonstrated the government’s intent to promote regenerative farming. By providing targeted incentives and support, this budget can encourage the adoption of regenerative farming practices, ensuring long-term agricultural resilience and ecological sustainability.
- Dr Rajiv Kumar, Chairman, Pahle India Foundation,
- Prof. Harpinder Sandhu, Federation University. Australia
- Dr Aditi Rawat, Associate Fellow, Pahle India Foundation
