Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the Economic Survey 2025-26 in Parliament, said that several states in India have introduced innovation-driven reforms over the past few years in key areas such as land governance, agricultural markets, water management, technology adoption, and crop diversification. She noted that these initiatives have had a visible impact on agricultural output, transparency, and efficient resource management across states. The minister highlighted that state-level, scheme-based innovations and good governance models are giving a new direction to the agriculture sector.
In Andhra Pradesh, the Resurvey Scheme-2021 introduced tamper-proof digital land records using drone-based Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) and GIS technology. In 2025 so far, land resurvey work has been completed for 81 lakh land parcels across 6,901 villages, and nearly 86,000 boundary disputes have also been resolved.
In Bihar, the government launched the Chief Minister Integrated Chaur Development Scheme in 2025 to promote the development of chaur land for agriculture. Under this initiative, fish-based production activities have been started on over 1,933 hectares of land across 22 districts.
Madhya Pradesh, the “Sauda Patrak” initiative, launched in 2021, enabled direct procurement from farmers at Minimum Support Price (MSP) through a digital platform. This reduced farmers’ dependence on mandis and improved transparency in payments. By December 2025, more than 1,03,000 transactions had been completed through this system.
The Assam State Irrigation Scheme (2022) aimed to expand irrigated area through new interventions and promote the use of solar pumps. As a result, the state recorded a 24.28% increase in gross irrigated agricultural land in FY 2024-25.
Uttar Pradesh, the Groundwater Regulation-2020 strengthened legal provisions related to groundwater extraction. According to the report, despite increased groundwater withdrawal in 2025, the groundwater level showed a marginal improvement.
Technology and Digital Agriculture: India Moving Towards Data-Driven Farming:
Karnataka’s FRUITS platform (2020) created an integrated farmer database by linking Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), MSP-based procurement, and crop surveys. Through this platform, around 55 lakh farmers have been covered under various schemes.
Jharkhand, the state launched a GIS-based Climate-Smart Agriculture and Agri-Stack initiative in 2024. The programme integrates land monitoring and climate information with planning systems, helping make farming more scientific and sustainable.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Bihar Agriculture Roadmap (2023–28) replaced earlier roadmaps and has contributed to a significant rise in the state’s fisheries and dairy production, the report added.
FAQs:
Q1. What is the main focus of the Economic Survey 2025-26 for agriculture?
It focuses on state-led reforms, technology adoption, market transparency, and sustainable resource management.
Q2. Which states showed major land governance reforms?
Andhra Pradesh and Bihar recorded significant improvements through digital land and chaur development schemes.
Q3. How did Madhya Pradesh help farmers through market reforms?
Through the Sauda Patrak initiative, enabling direct MSP procurement via a digital platform.
Q4. What role does technology play in agriculture reforms?
Platforms like FRUITS and GIS-based Agri-Stack support data-driven, climate-smart farming.
Q5. How does Khetivyapar relate to these reforms?
Khetivyapar aligns with these initiatives by promoting transparent agri-markets and farmer-centric digital solutions.
