Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Chouhan on Tuesday said indiscriminate use of fertilisers without soil testing increases input costs and damages soil fertility.
Addressing the Eastern Zonal Agriculture Conference in Bhubaneswar, he urged states to encourage farmers to use fertilisers only as per scientific requirements.
Referring to natural farming as a major focus area of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chouhan appealed to farmers to adopt natural farming practices on at least a portion of their land.
He also announced that a nationwide ‘Khet Bachao Abhiyan’ will be launched from June 1, focusing on balanced fertiliser usage, soil health, modern technology adoption, awareness about government schemes, and farmer education. He stressed the need to prevent diversion of subsidized fertilizers and ensure that subsidised inputs are used strictly for farming purposes.
Describing fake fertilisers, substandard seeds and counterfeit pesticides as “serious crimes against farmers”, the Union minister said a large-scale campaign would be launched against such practices. He also emphasised the need for stricter laws and stronger action by states to ensure that farmers receive quality agricultural inputs without unnecessary increases in cultivation costs.
The conference focused on issues, including pulses and oilseeds production, integrated farming, natural farming, horticulture, agricultural credit, marketing reforms, farmer registry and action against fake agricultural inputs.
He said increasing production, reducing cultivation costs, ensuring remunerative prices, and diversifying agriculture are among the government’s top priorities.
Chouhan stressed that farming should move beyond paddy and wheat cultivation, with greater focus on pulses, oilseeds, fruits and vegetables.
Highlighting the issue of small landholdings in eastern states, he said integrated farming models combining crop cultivation with horticulture, fisheries, animal husbandry, beekeeping and agro-forestry could significantly improve farmers’ incomes. He urged agricultural institutions and state governments to promote such models at the grassroots level.
The agriculture minister further stressed the need to strengthen procurement systems under PM-AASHA and agencies such as the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India and the National Cooperative Consumers Federation of India, to encourage pulses and oilseeds cultivation.
He also highlighted the importance of ‘farmer IDs’ for ensuring faster and transparent access to loans, fertilisers and government scheme benefits. According to him, scientific research and modern agricultural technologies should be directly connected to farmers through institutions such as the Indian Council of Agricultural Research and Krishi Vigyan Kendras.
He said combining crop cultivation with horticulture, fisheries, animal husbandry, beekeeping and agro-forestry, can significantly enhance the incomes of small farmers.
