Centre Clarifies Crop Bonus Letter Was Advisory, Not Directive to States

Recently, Chief Minister Stalin, in a speech, had referred to a letter issued by the Ministry's Department of Expenditure, with regard to the bonus provided by state governments.

"In this context, it is stated that the Secretary, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, had issued a D.O. letter dated January 9, 2026, to the Chief Secretaries of states to align their bonus policy to promote pulses, oilseeds and millets, in line with the national priorities for nutritional security, Aatmanirbharta, and sustainable agriculture. The letter was an advisory to states and was not a directive," the Finance Ministry said in a statement.

The letter was written with the intent for states to align their agricultural policies with broader national priorities and complement them. Alignment with such goals is not a burden on states; it is a shared responsibility that serves farmers, consumers and the country as a whole, the statement said.

"Any attempt to portray it as an imposition or to deliberately misread its purpose is a distortion of the record," the statement said.

The Centre announces the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for various crops to support farmers. However, in many states, especially in northern India, crop production remains heavily skewed toward wheat and paddy. When state governments announce an additional bonus over and above MSP for these crops, it further encourages their cultivation, leading to reduced acreage under pulses, oilseeds, and millets, greater environmental stress due to water- and fertiliser-intensive farming, and higher import dependence for essential crops like pulses and edible oilseeds, it said.

Thus, the Centre has taken a responsible and forward-looking position by encouraging greater crop diversification in the national interest. The larger objective is to discourage monoculture of wheat in certain parts of Northern India and paddy in several states across India, by encouraging states to work towards sustainable agricultural practices that protect both farmers' interests and national food security needs, the statement said.

Expanding domestic production in pulses, edible oils, and oilseeds is essential not only for strategic and economic reasons, but also for farmer welfare. Domestic production of pulses, oilseeds, and edible oil will reduce reliance on imports that are often exposed to international uncertainty, supply-chain disruptions, and price volatility, while strengthening nutritional security and promoting a more balanced and resilient crop pattern in the country, the statement observed.

In a period when self-reliance in key food crops has become increasingly important, it is imperative that the states and the Centre work towards making India self-reliant in pulses and oilseeds, it said.

The Centre has already taken several concrete steps to increase domestic production of pulses, oilseeds and edible oils. These include the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses, the National Mission on Edible Oils-Oilseeds and the National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palm, the statement said.

The government has also consistently aligned MSP increases in favour of pulses and oilseeds to encourage farmers to shift away from over-concentration in a few crops. The Economic Survey 2025-26 also said imported edible oil dependence had fallen from 63.2 per cent in 2015-16 to 56.25 per cent in 2023-24, showing movement in the right direction. Between 2014-15 and 2024-25, the area under oilseeds increased by over 18 per cent, production by nearly 55 per cent, and productivity by about 31 per cent.

Thus, the Centre's approach integrates research, improved seed dissemination, MSP-backed procurement support, processing infrastructure, and value-chain development to ensure farmer profitability. By promoting crop diversification, the profitability of farmers will further increase, the statement added.

- IANS