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What happened
India's agriculture sector has undergone significant transformation since 2014, with foodgrain production rising to a record 332 million tonnes in 2023-24. The government has raised MSP across 23 crops, expanded PM-KISAN to cover 9.3 crore farmers with ₹2,000 per instalment, and scaled up schemes like PMFBY and KCC. Allied sectors — fisheries, animal husbandry, and horticulture — have grown rapidly, with India becoming the world's second-largest fish producer and largest milk producer.
02 Understand
Why it matters
This factsheet consolidates India's agricultural policy architecture across five major pillars: income support, crop insurance, credit access, market reform, and allied sector development.
**Income Support — PM-KISAN:** Launched in 2019, PM-KISAN provides ₹6,000 per year in three equal instalments of ₹2,000 directly to landholding farmer families. Over ₹3.24 lakh crore has been disbursed to 9.3 crore beneficiaries cumulatively.
**Crop Insurance — PMFBY:** The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, launched in 2016, caps farmer premium at 2% for Kharif, 1.5% for Rabi, and 5% for commercial/horticultural crops. The remainder is shared between Centre and State.
**Credit — KCC and AIF:** The Kisan Credit Card scheme provides revolving credit for crop cultivation, post-harvest, and allied activities. The Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), worth ₹1 lakh crore, finances post-harvest management and agri-logistics.
**MSP Framework:** The government fixes MSP for 23 crops annually based on the CACP recommendation. The MSP for paddy in 2024-25 is ₹2,300 per quintal.
**Allied Sectors:** India is the world's largest milk producer (239 million tonnes, 2023-24) and second-largest fish producer (17.5 million tonnes). The PM Matsya Sampada Yojana targets raising fish production to 22 million tonnes by 2024-25 with an outlay of ₹20,050 crore. Horticulture production stands at ~352 million tonnes, exceeding foodgrains.
The interconnection of these schemes — from input subsidy to market linkage — forms the static backbone of agricultural policy questions in both NABARD and UPSC.
**Income Support — PM-KISAN:** Launched in 2019, PM-KISAN provides ₹6,000 per year in three equal instalments of ₹2,000 directly to landholding farmer families. Over ₹3.24 lakh crore has been disbursed to 9.3 crore beneficiaries cumulatively.
**Crop Insurance — PMFBY:** The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, launched in 2016, caps farmer premium at 2% for Kharif, 1.5% for Rabi, and 5% for commercial/horticultural crops. The remainder is shared between Centre and State.
**Credit — KCC and AIF:** The Kisan Credit Card scheme provides revolving credit for crop cultivation, post-harvest, and allied activities. The Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), worth ₹1 lakh crore, finances post-harvest management and agri-logistics.
**MSP Framework:** The government fixes MSP for 23 crops annually based on the CACP recommendation. The MSP for paddy in 2024-25 is ₹2,300 per quintal.
**Allied Sectors:** India is the world's largest milk producer (239 million tonnes, 2023-24) and second-largest fish producer (17.5 million tonnes). The PM Matsya Sampada Yojana targets raising fish production to 22 million tonnes by 2024-25 with an outlay of ₹20,050 crore. Horticulture production stands at ~352 million tonnes, exceeding foodgrains.
The interconnection of these schemes — from input subsidy to market linkage — forms the static backbone of agricultural policy questions in both NABARD and UPSC.
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