By linking farmers’ digital IDs to land and crop data, the government can track what, where and by whom they are sowing, prevent overuse of fertilizers, eliminate fake beneficiaries and match support payments with actual cultivation. Officials say the reform could make India’s farm subsidy system more efficient, data-driven and transparent.
The Center plans to involve the Ministries of Chemicals and Fertilizers; consumer affairs, food and public distribution; and fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying on the AgriStack platform, a senior government official said.
Developed by the Department of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, AgriStack is a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) project with three core registries – farmers, georeferenced village map and crop sown – that help answer three key questions: who farms, where the land is, and what crop is grown on it. By assigning a unique digital ID to each farmer, AgriStack can help accurately track subsidies, loans, insurance and procurement services.
The government announced that more than 73.7 million farmer IDs have been generated so far, while 558,000 villages have been georeferenced out of 654,000 villages in India. Digital crop. The survey (DCS) is conducted at 440,000 villages this kharif season out of a target of 477,000.
With the introduction of digital records, the platform is expected to significantly reduce leakages and fraud in scheme delivery, input distribution and procurement operations by ensuring that beneficiaries are properly identified and linked to their land and crop and by enabling real-time digital verification.
“We are in initial discussions with several ministries and have plans to include the ministries of chemicals and fertilisers, consumer affairs, food and public distribution and fisheries, animal husbandry and dairy on the platform,” said Anindya Banerjee, advisor (digital agriculture) in the ministry of agriculture and farmer welfare.
This move will not only help extend the benefits of government schemes to farmers but will also help curb malpractices. For example, with farmer ID, digital land record and crop survey in place, the government can know the exact amount of fertilizer a farmer would need. In this way, indiscriminate or incorrect use of fertilizer can be avoided.
The move is aimed at curbing excessive fertilizer use, harmonizing domestic farming practices and checking India’s growing subsidy burden, a second government official said. According to the official, the plan could potentially reduce India’s fertilizer subsidy, which is ₹1.68 trillion for the current fiscal year.
Similarly, in grain procurement, only genuine farmers would get the assured minimum support price and traders would not be able to enter the procurement process under the guise of farmers. Currently, leakages occur due to duplicate or fake identities of farmers, incorrect land records and lack of coordination between departments.
Only genuine beneficiaries will also benefit under the centre’s food subsidy programme. The Center has pegged its food subsidy bill for FY26 at ₹2.03 million crowns. The entire food subsidy bill is to be spent under the government’s Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, under which the government provides free food grains to the poor.
AgriStack can eliminate such thefts by verifying farmer credentials in real-time and tracking every rupee spent. It will also integrate with platforms like PM-KISAN and Department of Food and Public Distribution.
Through transparent records and accountability, AgriStack is expected to reduce corruption, reduce interference by middlemen and improve the delivery of farm support programs. Overall, the platform will strengthen governance and ensure efficient use of public funds intended for farmers.
Some experts have expressed doubts about the data security and implementation aspects of the plan. “The convergence of all information, including farmers’ data, on a single platform needs security. It is not clear what measures the government would use to protect the data. The expected market gain seems far-fetched as the government has failed to implement reforms,” said Sudhir Panwar, a farm expert and former member of the Uttar Pradesh state planning commission.
