Soil Health Reforms for Sustainable Agriculture

SOIL HEALTH REFORMS FOR SUSTAINABLE INDIAN AGRICULTURE 

Syllabus:

GS-1: Indian Geography

GS-2: Judgements & Cases, Government Policies & Interventions

WHY IN THE NEWS ?

• Policy Initiative: Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the Khet Bachao Abhiyan on October 22, 2026, in Karnal, Haryana, to promote balanced fertiliser use.
• Nutrient Imbalance: India’s fertiliser pricing policy has encouraged excessive nitrogen use while worsening phosphorus and potassium deficiencies.
• Environmental Concerns: Imbalanced fertilisation is degrading soil health, contaminating groundwater and increasing greenhouse gas emissions.
• Reform Imperative: Experts Ashok Gulati and Ritika Juneja propose four reforms involving subsidy restructuring, state incentives, agricultural innovation and soil-test-based nutrient management.

BACKGROUND AND POLICY CONTEXT:

• Campaign Objective: The Khet Bachao Abhiyan seeks to correct imbalanced chemical fertiliser use and encourage farmers to follow recommendations issued by State Agricultural Universities.
• Policy History: The Nutrient-Based Subsidy (NBS) Scheme, introduced in 2010, was intended to promote balanced fertiliser application by linking subsidies for phosphatic and potassic fertilisers to their nutrient content.
• Pricing Distortion: Urea remains heavily subsidised at a controlled price, while prices of Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) and Muriate of Potash (MOP) have increased substantially.
• Farmer Behaviour: Farmers often prefer nitrogen-rich urea because it produces visible greening of crops, whereas deficiencies of phosphorus and potassium may cause less immediately visible damage.
• Policy Contradiction: Despite the introduction of NBS, the imbalance in nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium application has worsened, demonstrating the limitations of price-based agricultural policies.

CURRENT STATUS OF SOIL HEALTH AND FERTILISER USE

• Nitrogen Overuse: According to the article, nitrogen application has shifted from 9% below recommended levels to 6% above them, creating a growing imbalance in nutrient application.
• Phosphorus Deficiency: The phosphorus deficit has narrowed from 29% to 22%, but its application remains below crop requirements.
• Potassium Shortage: The potassium deficit has deepened from 48% to 72%, with farmers applying approximately 9 kg per hectare against a recommended 32 kg.
• NPK Imbalance: India’s nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium application ratio stands at approximately 10.5:4:1, compared with the article’s cited normative ratio of 2.8:1.5:1.

• Regional Disparities: Eleven of the 20 major states reportedly overuse nitrogen, while every state under-applies potassium. Jharkhand and Punjab are highlighted for particularly high nitrogen overuse.

ECONOMIC CAUSES OF FERTILISER IMBALANCE

• Unequal Pricing: Between 2010–11 and 2024–25, DAP prices reportedly nearly tripled to ₹54 per kg, while MOP prices increased sixfold to ₹52 per kg. The price of nitrogen in urea rose by only about 1%.
• Subsidy Dependence: Government subsidies keep urea artificially inexpensive, encouraging farmers to use more nitrogen than crops require and weakening incentives for balanced fertilisation.
• Market Signals: Farmers respond rationally to relative prices by choosing cheaper nutrients, but these individual decisions can collectively generate soil degradation and economic inefficiency.
• Fiscal Pressure: The article estimates the fertiliser subsidy budget for 2026–27 at ₹1.71 lakh crore. Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz could push the bill to ₹2.5–3 lakh crore, increasing pressure on public finances.
• Regional Inequality: Punjab reportedly receives around ₹25,700 per hectare in nitrogen subsidy, approximately ten times Kerala’s allocation. Subsidies, minimum support price-based procurement and subsidised electricity reinforce the rice-wheat cultivation pattern.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND AGRICULTURAL CONSEQUENCES

• Soil Degradation: Excessive nitrogen combined with insufficient phosphorus, potassium and micronutrients disrupts soil fertility, reduces nutrient availability and weakens long-term agricultural productivity.
• Groundwater Pollution: Nitrate leaching from fertilisers contaminates groundwater. The article reports nitrate concentrations above safe limits in parts of 502 districts, posing risks to human health.
• Climate Impact: Nitrogen that crops fail to absorb can escape as nitrous oxide, a powerful greenhouse gas with approximately 273 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide over 100 years.
• Crop Vulnerability: Potassium deficiency reduces resistance to drought and disease and can lower grain quality, while phosphorus deficiency delays flowering and affects crop development.
• Nutritional Security: Deficiencies of zinc, boron and other micronutrients in soils can reduce the nutritional quality of crops. This contributes to hidden hunger, in which people lack essential micronutrients despite consuming adequate calories.

EVIDENCE FROM SOIL HEALTH ASSESSMENTS

• Soil Testing: The article reports that, among 96 lakh samples tested under the Soil Health Card Scheme in 2025–26, 72% were low in nitrogen, 52% in organic carbon, 42% in boron and 37% in zinc.
• Nutrient Paradox: Low nitrogen in many tested samples, despite excessive nitrogen application nationally, indicates that fertiliser overuse does not necessarily translate into adequate nutrient availability in every field.
• Low Efficiency: Only around 30–40% of applied nitrogen is reportedly taken up by crops, while much of the remainder is lost through leaching, volatilisation or gaseous emissions.
• Soil Carbon: Low organic carbon weakens soil structure, water retention and nutrient-holding capacity, making fertiliser application less efficient and agricultural systems more vulnerable to climate variability.
• Scientific Diagnosis: Soil testing, crop-specific nutrient recommendations and plot-level assessment are essential to distinguish actual nutrient deficiencies from indiscriminate fertiliser use.

FOUR POLICY REFORMS TO RESTORE SOIL HEALTH

• Subsidy Reform: Shift gradually from input-price subsidies towards per-hectare direct benefit transfers that are neutral across nutrients and crops. Digital farmer IDs under AgriStack and fertiliser-sale tracking can improve accountability, although tenant identification requires attention. A gradual alternative is bringing urea under NBS while adjusting DAP and MOP prices.
• State Incentives: Strengthen PM-PRANAM, which aims to incentivise states to reduce chemical fertiliser consumption and promote alternatives. Timely disbursement, transparent performance indicators and support for sustainable farming are essential for effective implementation.
• Agricultural Innovation: Redirect savings from fertiliser subsidies towards drip irrigation, fertigation, customised and coated fertilisers, biofertilisers, nano fertilisers and research into crops that use nitrogen more efficiently. Technology adoption must be supported by field trials and independent evaluation.
• Precision Farming: Implement the 4Rs of nutrient stewardship—right source, right rate, right time and right place—using soil tests and crop-specific advice. This can improve nutrient-use efficiency while reducing losses to air and water.
• Cropping Diversification: Promote crop rotation, especially cereals with pulses, to improve soil health and reduce nitrogen requirements for subsequent crops. Reform procurement incentives and electricity pricing in Punjab and Haryana to make diversification economically viable for farmers.

SOIL HEALTH AND NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT

• Soil Functions: Soil supports plant growth, stores carbon, regulates water movement, sustains biodiversity and recycles nutrients. Healthy soil is therefore essential for food security, climate resilience and ecosystem stability.
• Macronutrients: Nitrogen supports vegetative growth and chlorophyll formation; phosphorus contributes to root development and energy transfer; potassium regulates water balance and strengthens resistance to stress.
• Micronutrients: Zinc, boron, iron and other micronutrients are needed in smaller quantities but remain essential for plant growth, crop quality and nutritional security.
• Integrated Management: Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) combines chemical fertilisers with organic manures, compost, crop residues and biofertilisers according to soil and crop requirements.
• Sustainable Agriculture: Balanced fertilisation, crop diversification, conservation agriculture and efficient irrigation help maintain soil fertility while reducing environmental damage and long-term input costs.

CHALLENGES:

• Pricing Distortions: The artificially low price of urea encourages nitrogen overuse, while relatively expensive DAP and MOP discourage farmers from applying balanced nutrients.
• Fiscal Burden: Increasing fertiliser subsidies constrain public expenditure on agricultural research, irrigation, rural infrastructure and soil restoration.
• Regional Lock-in: MSP-based procurement of rice and wheat, combined with subsidised electricity and assured markets, discourages farmers from shifting towards pulses and other less water-intensive crops.
• Weak Implementation: Although schemes such as PM-PRANAM seek to encourage balanced fertilisation, inadequate implementation and delayed incentives can weaken their effectiveness.
• Tenant Identification: Linking subsidies to digital farmer IDs and land records may exclude tenant farmers, sharecroppers and cultivators without formal documentation.
• Knowledge Gaps: Many farmers lack access to timely soil testing, locally appropriate nutrient recommendations and effective agricultural extension services.
• Environmental Damage: Nitrate pollution, nitrous oxide emissions and declining soil organic carbon create long-term risks for public health, biodiversity and climate resilience.
• Technology Barriers: Precision fertilisation, fertigation and customised fertilisers may require investment, technical knowledge and reliable access to quality products.
• Measurement Problems: Total fertiliser consumption alone cannot establish whether nutrients are being applied efficiently or whether soil fertility is improving.
• Transition Risks: Abrupt subsidy reforms or fertiliser price increases could raise cultivation costs, reduce farm incomes and create resistance among farmers.

WAY FORWARD:

• Rebalance Subsidies: Gradually replace distorted input-price incentives with transparent, per-hectare support that encourages balanced nutrient application while protecting small and marginal farmers.
• Strengthen NBS: Consider a carefully sequenced reform of urea pricing and nutrient-based subsidies, with safeguards against sudden increases in cultivation costs.
• Revitalise PM-PRANAM: Establish transparent state-level targets, measurable outcomes and timely incentive payments to reward reductions in excessive chemical fertiliser consumption.
• Expand Soil Testing: Improve the reach of Soil Health Cards and provide plot-specific recommendations through agricultural universities, Krishi Vigyan Kendras and trained extension workers.
• Promote Precision Agriculture: Encourage drip irrigation, fertigation, soil mapping and site-specific nutrient management to improve fertiliser-use efficiency and reduce losses.
• Support Innovation: Increase research into biofertilisers, customised fertilisers, improved nutrient-release technologies and crop varieties with higher nutrient-use efficiency.
• Diversify Cropping: Strengthen procurement, processing, storage and market access for pulses, oilseeds and other suitable crops to reduce dependence on rice-wheat cultivation.
• Reform Electricity Pricing: Encourage efficient irrigation and groundwater conservation while ensuring that small farmers retain affordable access to essential agricultural power.
• Protect Tenant Farmers: Design direct benefit transfers with practical mechanisms to include verified cultivators, tenants and sharecroppers without encouraging fraudulent claims.
• Measure Outcomes: Evaluate reforms through soil organic carbon, nutrient balance, groundwater quality, crop productivity, farm profitability and fertiliser-use efficiency rather than aggregate consumption alone.

CONCLUSION:

India’s food security depends not merely on the quantity of fertilisers applied but on the balanced availability of essential nutrients. Reforming subsidy structures, strengthening soil testing, diversifying cropping patterns and promoting precision agriculture can restore soil health. Sustainable fertiliser management must become a central pillar of agricultural policy.

SOURCE: HT

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTION:

Question: India’s fertiliser subsidy policy has contributed to nutrient imbalances, soil degradation and environmental pollution despite its objective of supporting agricultural productivity. Examine the structural causes of this problem and discuss the reforms required to promote balanced fertilisation, sustainable agriculture and long-term food security in India.