Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (October 11, 2025) rolled out two major initiatives for India’s agriculture sector, backed by a substantial combined investment of ₹35,440 crore. Among these is a vital pulses mission aimed at reducing the country’s dependence on imports.
The launch event coincided with the birth anniversary of revered socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan.
In addition to the new schemes, the Prime Minister inaugurated various projects across agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, and food processing sectors, collectively valued at over ₹5,450 crore. He also laid the foundation stone for upcoming projects estimated at approximately ₹815 crore.
The ‘Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses’ is a cornerstone of this agricultural push, with an outlay of ₹11,440 crore. Its ambitious goal is to elevate pulses production from the current 252.38 lakh tonnes to 350 lakh tonnes by the 2030-31 crop year, significantly decreasing India’s reliance on imported pulses.
The second major scheme, the ₹24,000-crore ‘Pradhan Mantri Dhan Dhaanya Krishi Yojana’, is set to revolutionize 100 underperforming agricultural districts. This initiative will concentrate on boosting productivity, encouraging crop diversification, enhancing irrigation and storage facilities, and ensuring easy access to credit for farmers in these identified districts.
Both schemes have received Cabinet approval and are slated for implementation from the upcoming rabi (winter) season, extending until the 2030-31 agricultural year.
Key projects unveiled include cutting-edge artificial insemination training centers in Bengaluru and Jammu and Kashmir, advanced centers of excellence in Amreli and Banas, an IVF lab established in Assam under the Rashtriya Gokul Mission, and modern milk powder plants located in Mehsana, Indore, and Bhilwara. Furthermore, a new fish feed plant under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana was inaugurated in Tezpur.
During the event, Prime Minister Modi personally awarded certificates to farmers recognized under the National Mission for Natural Farming, MAITRI technicians, and Primary Agriculture Cooperative Credit Societies (PACS) that have successfully transitioned into Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samriddhi Kendras (PMKSKs) and Common Service Centres (CSCs).
The occasion also highlighted remarkable progress under various government programs. This included achieving 50 lakh farmer memberships across 10,000 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), with 1,100 of these FPOs reporting an impressive annual turnover exceeding ₹1 crore in 2024-25.
Other notable achievements include the certification of 50,000 farmers under the National Mission for Natural Farming, the certification of 38,000 MAITRIs (Multi-Purpose AI Technicians in Rural India), the sanctioning and operationalization of over 10,000 multipurpose and e-PACS for computerization, and the successful establishment and strengthening of PACS, dairy, and fishery cooperative societies.
Mr. Modi also engaged in direct discussions with pulses farmers, hearing about their experiences and the benefits they have reaped from various government schemes designed to foster a value chain-based approach in agriculture, animal husbandry, and fisheries.
The event saw the presence of Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh, and Minister of State for Agriculture Bhagirath Choudhary.