NEW DELHI, 31 May 2025: India's agriculture sector posted a robust 5.4% growth in Q4 FY25, a significant improvement over the 0.9% growth recorded in the same quarter last year.
This has pushed the full-year growth in Gross Value Added (GVA) for agriculture and allied activities to 4.6%, compared to 2.7% in FY24, according to provisional government data.
Measured in real terms, this performance outpaced the manufacturing sector, which clocked 4.8% growth in Q4 and 4.5?ross FY25. In nominal terms, the farm sector grew by 8.7% in Q4 FY25, slightly higher than the 7.9% rise during the same quarter last year. The full-year nominal GVA for agriculture stood at 10.4%, up from 9.6% in FY24.
Analysts attribute the uptick in agricultural performance to a favourable monsoon, which supported bumper kharif and rabi harvests. In the June–September 2024 period, India received 935 mm of rainfall — 8?ove the long-period average, marking the best monsoon since 2020.
The record monsoon boosted foodgrain production to an all-time high of 353.95 million tonnes (mt) in the 2024–25 crop year, ending in June. This includes:
Rice: 149.07 mt (up 8.2%), making India the world’s largest rice producer, overtaking China.
Wheat: 117.50 mt, higher than the Centre’s earlier estimate of 115 mt.
Maize: Over 42 mt, a 12.3% increase.
Oilseeds: 42.60 mt, up 7.4%.
However, not all segments saw growth. Sugarcane output dipped by 0.7% and cotton production dropped by 5.6%, reflecting crop-specific challenges.
Experts believe that if forecasts for another good monsoon in 2025 hold true, the agriculture sector may maintain or even accelerate this high-growth trajectory in FY26.
This robust agricultural rebound comes after a challenging FY24 marked by below-normal rainfall and prolonged heatwaves that hampered output.
Image credit: grainmart.in
