International Rice Research Institute and policy leaders urge shift toward resource-efficient farming, Direct Seeded Rice adoption, and smarter subsidy frameworks

India faces an urgent need to rethink its rice policies as environmental and climate pressures threaten the country’s position as a global rice leader. India produces 150 million metric tons of rice, accounting for 28% of global output, and exports about 20 million metric tons, or roughly 40 per cent of the world rice trade. Despite these figures, traditional rice–wheat systems are under strain from declining groundwater, soil degradation, rising labor costs, and greenhouse gas emissions. Experts are calling for re-designing of incentive systems for farmers, wider adoption of Direct Seeded Rice (DSR), and stronger collaboration among farmers, researchers, and policymakers to create resilient and resource-efficient rice systems.

The recommendations came during the two-day national policy dialogue, “Repurposing Rice Policies for Sustainable and Resilient Systems in India: Lessons and Priorities,” jointly organized by the International Rice Research Institute South Asia Regional Centre (ISARC) and the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations from March 7–8, 2026.

The dialogue brought together policymakers, scientists, economists, and representatives from leading institutions such as IRRI, ICRIER, and Indian Council of Agricultural Research, along with senior government officials including Awanish Kumar Awasthi, Advisor to the Chief Minister, Government of Uttar Pradesh; Ravinder, Principal Secretary, Agriculture, Government of Uttar Pradesh; Dr. K. V. Raju, Economic Advisor to the Chief Minister, Government of Uttar Pradesh; Dr. Rajbir Singh, DDG (Agricultural Extension), ICAR; Dr. A. K. Singh, Padma Shri and Former Director, ICAR-IARI; Dr. Shiv Kumar, Director, ICAR-NIAP; Dr. G. A. K. Kumar, Director, ICAR-CRRI; Dr. J. S. Mishra, Director, ICAR-Directorate of Weed Research; Prof. Baldev Raj Kamboj, Vice Chancellor, CCS Haryana Agricultural University; and Dr. U. P. Singh, Director, IAS, BHU, reflecting strong policy, institutional, and scientific leadership in advancing sustainable agriculture.

The dialogue examined long-standing policies, including minimum support prices, assured procurement, and input subsidies. While these measures have ensured national food security, they have also transformed India from a rice-deficit to a rice-surplus nation. India’s rice stocks stood at about 63.7 million metric tons in January 2026, nearly ten times the buffer norm, creating high storage costs even as per-capita consumption declines.

Inaugural Session Highlights (Day 1)

Opening the event, Dr. Sudhanshu Singh, Director of ISARC, welcomed participants and emphasized the Centre’s commitment to evidence-driven innovations and policy engagement to strengthen India’s rice-based food systems.

“It is critical to repurpose policies to improve resource-use efficiency and output per unit area. Innovations such as DSR can help address labor and water crises while reducing production costs,” he said.

Ravinder, Principal Secretary, Agriculture, Government of Uttar Pradesh, highlighted the complexity of agricultural policymaking, noting that it involves multiple stakeholders at the central, state, and local levels and requires balancing diverse interests. He underscored the potential of DSR to transform rice cultivation by enhancing water-use efficiency and promoting sustainable practices. He also emphasized the importance of policy dialogue platforms in enabling constructive engagement and supporting evidence-based decision-making.

Dr. Ashok Gulati, Distinguished Professor at ICRIER, recommended shifting subsidies toward crop-neutral incentives to encourage diversification away from water-intensive rice. He outlined a four-point approach—policy, product, practice, and partnership—to guide the transition toward resilient agricultural systems.

Environmental challenges remain acute in northern India, where rice fields emit roughly five tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent per hectare and groundwater levels decline by approximately 1.7 feet annually. Studies indicate that DSR can reduce irrigation requirements by 20–25 per cent and cut methane emissions by 18–20 per cent without impacting yields, though adoption remains limited due to gaps between research and field implementation.

Dr. K. V. Raju, Economic Advisor to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, highlighted key sectoral challenges including groundwater depletion, rising labor costs, and changing rainfall patterns. He emphasized the need for data-driven strategies, pilot interventions, value-chain support for sustainable technologies such as DSR, and safety-net measures to facilitate crop switching.

“Carefully selected demonstration sites and empirically identified bottlenecks can help governments repurpose regional rice policies more effectively, with institutional collaboration and consortium models serving as key catalysts,” he said.

Dr. Rajbir Singh, Deputy Director General (Agricultural Extension), ICAR, noted that rice remains a key and resilient kharif crop, with its cultivation area expanding despite diversification efforts. He emphasized the need to improve productivity while gradually reducing area, and highlighted that technologies like DSR require proper training, soil monitoring, and advisory support to scale effectively.

Soumya Srivastava, Agriculture Specialist at the World Bank, highlighted the importance of coordinated, science-based policymaking supported by strong partnerships among government, academia, and institutions. She emphasized the need for field validation and scaling of technologies to ensure effective and sustainable adoption by farmers.

Closing Ceremony Highlights (Day 2)

Delivering the keynote address, Awanish Kumar Awasthi, Advisor to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, emphasized the state’s commitment to expanding DSR adoption through enhanced mechanization and targeted farmer support.

“Promotion of DSR is a key strategy to improve production efficiency and reduce water use. The government plans to procure around 15,000 machines to support large-scale DSR adoption,” he said. He added that digital farmer databases, such as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, can be leveraged to better target farmers for technology adoption programs.

Closing the dialogue, Dr. Virender Kumar, Research Director at IRRI, highlighted the potential to transform rice cultivation into a climate-resilient solution through improved practices. “Rice cultivation is often seen as part of the climate problem, but improved practices can transform it into a climate-resilient solution,” he said.

He emphasized the importance of research, participatory approaches, and precise planning, noting that environmental sustainability must be central to agricultural decision-making. He also highlighted the role of convergence platforms and multi-stakeholder networks in supporting DSR adoption. Discussions also covered initiatives such as the Grow Indigo carbon credit program benefiting farmers, alongside focused white-paper sessions where experts and state teams developed practical policy recommendations.

During the closing ceremony, the dignitaries launched the Proceedings of the Global Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) Conclave, held from October 5–7, 2025 at ISARC. The publication highlights global insights and policy directions to advance climate-resilient and resource-efficient DSR systems in India.