Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture to Power AgriStack, Crop Registry, Soil Profile Mapping
NEW DELHI, 7 April 2025: In a major push towards digitizing India’s agriculture ecosystem, the Government has set a target of generating 11 crore Digital Farmer IDs by 2026-27 under its ₹2817 crore Digital Agriculture Mission, approved in September 2024.
The initiative aims to build a comprehensive Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for agriculture, including the AgriStack, a Krishi Decision Support System, and a Soil Fertility & Profile Map. These will drive farmer-centric digital solutions, enabling real-time, reliable crop-related information for farmers across the country.
4.85 Crore Farmer IDs Generated So Far
Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Shri Ramnath Thakur informed the Lok Sabha on Monday that as of March 28, 2025, over 4.85 crore Farmer IDs have already been created.
Additionally, the Government has conducted Digital Crop Surveys across 436 districts during Kharif 2024 and 461 districts covering over 23.90 crore plots in Rabi 2024-25. A pan-India rollout of the Digital Crop Survey across all States/UTs is planned from Kharif 2025.
AgriStack: Three Foundational Registries
The AgriStack will be built on three key databases:
- Geo-Referenced Village Maps
- Crop Sown Registry
- Farmers Registry
All these registries are to be created and maintained by respective State Governments and Union Territories, ensuring localized and accurate data management.
Technical & Financial Support for States
The Centre is providing software, training, and financial assistance to States/UTs to implement the Digital Agriculture Mission effectively. Key support initiatives include:
- Software for generating Farmer IDs & conducting Digital Crop Surveys
- Cloud infrastructure for project implementation
- Hiring of Project Monitoring Units in States
- Training programs for State officials
Financial Incentives for Field-Level Implementation
- To fast-track Farmer ID creation and crop data collection, the government has provided:
- INR15,000 per camp to States for organizing field-level mobilization camps
- INR 10 per verified Farmer ID from the PM-KISAN Scheme’s administrative funds, to be used as honorarium for field workers
- Additionally, under the Special Central Assistance (SCA) for Capital Investment 2024-25, with a total allocation of ₹5000 crore, the Centre has already disbursed ₹1076 crore to six states — Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh.
Transforming Agriculture through Data
The Digital Agriculture Mission is expected to revolutionize the way farmers access government schemes, financial services, and agronomic advisories — paving the way for precision farming, smart agriculture, and data-driven decision-making at the grassroots level.
