Rs 35,440-Crore Push: Dhan Dhaanya Scheme and Pulses Mission Anchor New Farm Drive
The Centre's twin agriculture schemes, worth Rs 35,440 crore, target 100 districts for productivity and crop diversification while pursuing self-reliance in pulses across the country.
The NE Times National Desk
Commentary & Analysis ·
As the monsoon spreads and the kharif sowing window opens, the Centre's flagship agriculture package, anchored by two schemes with a combined outlay of Rs 35,440 crore, has moved into the spotlight as a test of whether targeted spending can lift productivity and reduce India's reliance on imported pulses.
A focus on 100 districts
The PM Dhan Dhaanya Krishi Yojana, with an outlay of Rs 24,000 crore, concentrates resources on 100 selected districts identified for relatively lower agricultural performance. Its goals include raising productivity, encouraging crop diversification and sustainable practices, expanding post-harvest storage, improving irrigation and widening access to credit for farming families.
By convergence with existing schemes and a district-level delivery model, the programme aims to turn lagging regions into more resilient farm economies, an approach officials compare to the aspirational-districts framework used in other sectors.
Betting on pulses self-reliance
The second pillar, the Mission for Aatmnirbharta in Pulses, carries Rs 11,440 crore and targets a long-standing structural weakness: India remains dependent on imports for tur, urad and masoor in many years. The mission seeks to expand acreage, improve seed quality and strengthen procurement so that domestic output can meet demand and cushion households from price spikes.
- Combined outlay of Rs 35,440 crore across two schemes
- Dhan Dhaanya Yojana of Rs 24,000 crore covers 100 districts
- Focus on productivity, diversification, storage and credit
- Pulses mission worth Rs 11,440 crore to cut import dependence
- Rollout aligned with the kharif sowing season
“Bringing storage, irrigation and credit together in the weakest districts is the surest way to raise farm incomes, officials said of the design.”
Timing against an uncertain monsoon
The rollout coincides with a monsoon the IMD has forecast at below-normal levels, with El Nino conditions expected to suppress rainfall. That backdrop sharpens the stakes for crop diversification and water-use efficiency, the very levers the schemes are built around. Sitting alongside long-running programmes such as PM Kisan and e-NAM, the new package signals the government's intent to pair direct income support with structural investment in the farm economy.
The NE Times View
Targeting 100 districts and pulses self-reliance is the right diagnosis: India's chronic dependence on imported lentils is a strategic vulnerability, not just a price problem. But farm schemes live or die on last-mile delivery, not headline outlays. Rs 35,440 crore matters only if procurement, seed access and assured buyers reach smallholders. The test is whether diversification sticks once the launch publicity fades.
This article is original commentary and analysis by The NE Times. Background facts were referenced from PIB and The Indian Express.
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