India Sets New Rice Production Goal: Less Land, More Yield

05-May-2025 10:53 AM

India Sets New Rice Production Goal: Less Land, More Yield
★ Two genome-edited rice varieties developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) were launched on Sunday. On this occasion, it was announced that India aims to reduce the rice cultivation area by 5 million hectares and increase production by 10 million tonnes.
★ Under the "-5, +10" plan, the land saved from rice cultivation will be used to promote the farming of oilseeds and pulses. India is not yet self-sufficient in these two sectors, and the government has already launched separate missions to address this.
★ In the 2024–25 crop year, the rice cultivation area was 47.73 million hectares, and production reached 135.84 million tonnes.
★ The newly developed rice varieties—*Kamala-DRR Dhan-100 and Pusa DST Rice 1*—require less water. However, they will take another 4–5 years to reach farmers as they must first go through the full seed production cycle (breeder, foundation, and certified seeds).