Shivraj Singh Chouhan

Agri minister takes stock of crop losses from hailstorm, heavy rainfall

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday took cognisance of heavy rainfall and hailstorm damage across several states, directing ministry officials to conduct a comprehensive review of crop losses and coordinate with state authorities to gather ground-level information. The Agriculture Ministry, in a statement, said Chouhan has instructed officials to reach out to concerned state governments and compile damage assessments. The minister is scheduled to hold discussions with the agriculture ministers of the affected states later in the day over the extent of crop damage. Chouhan assured farmers that the Modi government stood with them in this hour of crisis. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned that a fresh Western Disturbance will affect Northwest India from April 7, triggering widespread rainfall, thunderstorms and hailstorms across Jammu-Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh through April 10. Thundersqualls .

Centre cracks down on fertiliser black-marketing, reviews MSP procurement

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday chaired a virtual meeting with state agriculture ministers, flagging gaps in farmer registration, fertiliser distribution, and pulse procurement under PM-AASHA. With 9.25 crore farmer IDs created across 19 states so far, Chouhan directed state governments to mount a joint campaign between agriculture and revenue departments to hit 100 per cent coverage of the scheme within six months. He stressed that registration must go beyond PM-Kisan beneficiaries to include all eligible farmers, an official statement said. On fertilisers, the minister came down hard on hoarding and black-marketing, asking states to enforce strict checks -- particularly in border areas, where he flagged illegal movement of inputs as a pressing concern. He called for a technology-based distribution system to ensure equitable access and nudged states towards promoting organic and natural farming to curb imbalanced fertiliser use. Haryana's 'Meri Fasal

Centre to hold regional meets to boost agriculture policy execution

Centre will organise regional agriculture conferences in April-May to improve policy execution, strengthen Centre-State coordination, and address implementation bottlenecks

Excessive use of fertilisers, water harms soil fertility: Shivraj Chouhan

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday said in the Rajya Sabha that overuse of chemical fertilisers and excessive use of water are adversely impacting soil fertility in some parts of the country. In a reply to supplementary queries during Question Hour, the minister said the central government is promoting crop diversification and has launched many schemes, including the Millets Mission. Through these schemes, Chouhan said the Centre is making efforts to boost production of millets, pulses and oilseeds. "Due to excessive use of chemical fertilizers and higher use of water, the soil fertility is getting affected at many places," he said. Chouhan said the area and production of mills have increased in the last few years and expressed hope that the output and consumption would increase further. He appreciated the farmers of Punjab for helping India achieve self-sufficiency in foodgrains production. "Punjab ko pranam karte hain. Punjab ke kisanon ko pranam karte h

Shivraj Chouhan to convene meeting on fertiliser supply amid West Asia war

The meeting will focus on assessing key issues impacting agriculture, especially in light of emerging global uncertainties and their potential effects on the agricultural sector

Farmers' income doubled; govt taking initiatives for agri sector: Chouhan

Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday told the Lok Sabha that the government has taken various initiatives for the agriculture sector and the farmer's income has doubled. During the Question Hour, the production has increased and various measures, including providing Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops and extending fertiliser subsidies. Chouhan, who is in charge of the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, asserted that the income of farmers has doubled and in some cases, the income has even increased three to four times. The Union minister was responding to queries from TMC leader Saugata Roy who said the government has not kept the promise of doubling farmers' income. "We will reward the efforts of farmers," Chouhan said. Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party MP Dharmendra Yadav asked supplementary questions persistently even as Speaker Om Birla asked Chouhan to respond. Against this backdrop, Birla told the members not to be too agitated during the Question Hour and urged both me

Shivraj Chouhan orders assessment of rabi crop losses after unseasonal rain

Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday directed officials to coordinate with state governments for accurate assessment of crop losses after unseasonal rainfall and hailstorms damaged standing rabi crops, including wheat, across several states. Chairing a comprehensive review of the country's agricultural situation, Chouhan said the adverse weather had hit several states at a time when crops were ripe and ready for harvest. "Not only did it rain, but many areas also experienced hailstorms, resulting in damage to the crops," he told reporters after the meeting. The minister directed officials to immediately establish contact with state governments to identify specific locations where crop damage has occurred due to hailstorms and excessive rainfall, which often leads to crops lodging or flattening on the ground. While state governments provide assistance through their respective State Disaster Response Funds (SDRF), Chouhan said he has specifically instructed officials

Many Opposition-ruled states have provisioned VB G RAM G funds: Chouhan

Chouhan also said that the Opposition's protest against VB G RAM G has failed to garner any public support because the country has accepted it as a better scheme than its previous version (MGNREGA)

Chouhan marks 67th birthday with schemes for students, PwDs, rural health

Chouhan also took five major pledges related to public service for his Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency

'Mamata should be ashamed,' Shivraj slams Bengal govt over law and order

Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday slammed the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal over the law and order situation, and alleged that it was sheltering infiltrators. The BJP leader also accused the TMC of preparing fake Aadhaar and voter cards for infiltrators and attempting to change the region's demography. "Mamata Banerjee should be ashamed. Though Bengal has a female CM, cases of rape and torture of women continue," Chouchan said while addressing a 'Poriborton Yatra' rally here in North 24 Parganas district. "TMC is trying to change the demography of this region by giving shelter to infiltrators," Chouhan said. On border security, he claimed that the TMC government is not providing land for fencing along the Bangladesh border, as it would stop infiltrators from entering India. Chouhan promised action against all those crimes if the BJP comes to power in the state.

Centre has no plan to bring back farm laws: Shivraj Chouhan at BS Manthan

Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday stated that there is no proposal currently to bring back the farm laws that were repealed earlier.

UP targets pulses crop area of 3 mn hectares: State Agriculture Minister

Uttar Pradesh plans to raise pulses crop area by 20% in 2025-26, targeting higher farm incomes and reducing India's dependence on imports

Agriculture Minister renews push for DBT of fertiliser subsidy to farmers

Shivraj Singh Chouhan says it would give them the freedom to choose which fertilisers to buy and in what quantities

Agri Minister Shivraj Chouhan pitches for DBT of fertiliser subsidy

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday pitched for transferring the central government's Rs 1.7 lakh crore annual fertiliser subsidy to farmers' bank accounts through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), saying it would give them the freedom to choose which fertilisers to buy and in what quantities. Addressing the Pusa Krishi Vigyan Mela at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) campus here, Chouhan said a bag of urea that actually costs Rs 2,400 reaches farmers at just Rs 265-270 because of the subsidy the central government absorbs. "If such a large subsidy is transferred directly to farmers' accounts through DBT, farmers will be able to decide which fertilisers to purchase and in what quantities. This system will ensure that the actual beneficiary of the subsidy is the farmer who applies the fertiliser to the fields," he said. Currently, fertiliser subsidies in India are primarily transferred to companies rather than directly to farmers. Though the ...

BS Manthan 2026: AI, trade currents reshape policy discourse on Day 1

Speaker after speaker assessed the likely impact of emerging technologies, especially AI, on risk and opportunity scale while exploring ways to make India future-ready at BS Manthan 2026

Time has come for national debate on DBT in fertilisers, says Chouhan

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan calls for a national debate on direct benefit transfer in fertilisers to curb diversion and ensure subsidies reach farmers

At BS Manthan 2026, leaders debate AI, trade and India's future readiness

At BS Manthan 2026, ministers, industry leaders and policy experts debated AI, trade, demographics and sustainability as India navigates geopolitical shifts and prepares for a tech-driven future

Centre clears 5,000 PMAY-G homes for displaced families in Manipur

Union Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has approved the construction of 5,000 houses for the rehabilitation of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Manipur, officials said. The approval was given by the minister following a meeting with Manipur Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh in the national capital on Monday evening. The state's two deputy chief ministers, Nemcha Kipgen and Losii Dikho, accompanied Khemchand in the meeting. According to the officials, the houses will be constructed under PMAY-G in the Financial Year 2025-26 to rehabilitate the internally displaced persons (IDPs) affected by the law and order crisis (ethnic violence). Chouhan assured all help to bring peace and normalcy to the state. The proposal for the houses was submitted by the Manipur government earlier this month. Meanwhile, the Union Rural Development Ministry approved a special window of Awass+ 2024 household survey for capturing the details of the eligible affected

Centre has no plan to bring back farm laws: Shivraj Chouhan at BS Manthan

At BS Manthan, Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the Centre has no plan to revive farm laws and is preparing a national and crop-wise roadmap to raise output, ensure fair prices and boost farmer incomes

Centre approves construction of 5,000 homes for displaced people in Manipur

Union Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has approved the construction of 5,000 houses for rehabilitation of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Manipur, officials said. Chouhan cleared the construction of the houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) for the IDPs affected by the ethnic violence in the northeastern state, after meeting Manipur Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh on Monday evening in New Delhi, they said. The Union minister also assured all help to bring peace and normalcy in the state, an official statement said. At least 260 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in the ethnic violence between Imphal Valley-based Meiteis and hills-based Kuki-Zo groups since May, 2023. Earlier this month, the Manipur government had submitted a proposal for the construction of 5,000 houses for IDPs. The state government had in January said it aims to resettle 10,000 internally displaced families by March 31. Ti