India plans a 3.25-mn-ha boost to chemical-free farming by FY31

The Centre is considering bringing 3.25 million hectares under chemical-free natural farming by FY31, scaling up efforts to promote sustainable agriculture and improve farm incomes, two government officials said.

- Dhirendra Kumar & Vijay C.Roy

The department of expenditure, under the finance ministry, in coordination with the agriculture ministry, is drafting a proposal to create 65,000 clusters of 50 hectares each under the National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF), the officials said.

The targeted 3.25 million hectares would account for about 1.8% of India's total farm land of 180.12 million hectares. At present, about 880,000 hectares are estimated to be under natural farming.

For FY27, the government plans a ₹750 crore outlay to bring an additional 650,000 hectares under natural farming, said the first official on the condition of anonymity.

The second official said FY27 targets are indicative, as the full outlay for FY27-31 is yet to be approved.