Leaders in Agriculture Call for Comprehensive Reforms in the Union Budget for 2025–2026

In order to promote rice milling, food processing, and supply chains, leaders in agriculture sector recommend subsidies, tax incentives, and infrastructure upgrades, highlighting congruence with India’s sustainable energy and agricultural goals

Leaders in the agro processing and related sectors are calling for revolutionary changes to dramatically increase the sector’s growth and sustainability as the Union Budget 2025–2026 draws closer. Modernizing procedures, increasing productivity, and supporting the agricultural economy with calculated governmental interventions are their main priorities.

The chairman and managing director of Sona Machinery, Vasu Naren, emphasized the need to provide incentives for modernization in the rice milling industry, which is essential to India’s rural economy and food security. He advocated for tax breaks and incentives to encourage the use of automated and energy-efficient equipment that would increase output and reduce waste. In keeping with India’s goals for ethanol blending, Naren also emphasized the possible incorporation of rice milling by-products, including rice husk, into the ethanol manufacturing process.

In his remarks, he said, “These steps would modernize the rice milling industry and position it as a key enabler of India’s sustainable energy transition and ethanol blending targets. India’s position in the international agriculture and biofuel markets will be strengthened, rural livelihoods will be improved, and the agricultural economy will be strengthened with policy support for rice milling and ethanol generation.” In the meantime, Megha Pavan, the founder and CEO of Arkaa Cluster Private Limited, argued for more funding to advance the food processing and nutraceuticals industries. She called for tax breaks, more farmer subsidies, and investments in research to create cutting-edge processing technologies.

Such programs, according to Pavan, will not only increase access to better food options but also position India as a pioneer in nutrient-dense and ecological solutions. She said, “We anticipate that the budget will prioritize the advancement of agriculture and agri-tech sectors, with particular emphasis on enhancing the processing and innovation capabilities of the food processing industry.”

Praxis Global Alliance’s Practice Leader of Food & Agriculture, Akshat Gupta, underlined the significance of resolving the major issues confronting the agriculture industry. In order to improve cold storage, warehousing, and supply chains and lower post-harvest losses, he argued for a larger budget than the present Rs 1.52 lakh crore.

Additionally, Gupta suggested increasing NABARD funds to assist small farmers, tripling PM-KISAN installments to Rs 12,000, and establishing uniform agricultural loan interest rates of 3-5 per cent. He emphasized strengthening Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) with training, loan access, and better storage facilities, as well as digitizing farming through the Digital Agriculture Mission.

“With strong agri-databases and frameworks, Accelerating the Digital Agriculture Mission can modernize farming,” he said. Productivity will increase with improved mandi infrastructure, MSP revisions, and consulting services for crop-specific clusters. Leaders in the industry agree that these tactics will guarantee a more resilient and sustainable future for Indian farmers in addition to increasing the agricultural sector’s productivity and profitability.

In order to promote rice milling, food