Yogi govt transforms farmer lives in UP — from suicidal despair to empowerment

Lucknow, Aug 2025 : In Uttar Pradesh, a land blessed by nature and divinity, the Yogi government regards farmers—the providers of food—as a top priority. Consistently working towards their upliftment and prosperity, the government has undertaken historic initiatives over the past eight years under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Notably, although Uttar Pradesh holds 11% of the country’s cultivable land, it contributes over 20% to India’s total food grain production—a testament to the state’s agricultural strength. One of the first major decisions of the Yogi government in 2017 was the historic waiver of ₹36,000 crore in farm loans, benefitting 86 lakh farmers.

Agriculture now plays a pivotal role in the Yogi government’s mission to transform Uttar Pradesh into a $1 trillion economy. For the first time, maize was procured at MSP during the Rabi season—an unprecedented move that not only benefited farmers but also ended the exploitation faced under previous governments. Today, farmers are earning lakhs through maize cultivation, thanks to fair prices and government support.

In a groundbreaking step under the leadership of the central government, agricultural scientists have moved beyond laboratories to engage with farmers in the field directly, strengthening the bridge between research and rural reality.

Uttar Pradesh’s farmers are also the biggest beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, one of the world’s largest DBT schemes. So far, 20 instalments totalling over ₹90,000 crore have been transferred to the accounts of around 2.5 crore farmers in the state. In Varanasi alone, farmers have received approximately ₹900 crore under this scheme.

As part of the Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan-2025, between May 29 and June 12, direct communication was established with more than 20 lakh farmers across all 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh. At over 10,125 locations, public representatives and officials of the Agriculture Department actively interacted with farmers, reaching around 135 locations daily to listen to their concerns and ensure timely redressal.

Before 2017, the plight of farmers in Uttar Pradesh was dire—many were driven to suicide, and sugarcane farmers were struggling to receive their dues. Procurement centers for crops like maize, oilseeds, pulses, potatoes, millets, sorghum, paddy, and wheat were in poor condition and lacked proper management.

One of the Yogi government’s first major decisions in 2017 was to waive off ₹36,000 crore in farm loans, benefitting 86 lakh farmers. To strengthen irrigation infrastructure, the government leveraged the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, through which an additional 23 lakh hectares of land have been brought under irrigation so far. In addition, 15 lakh private tube wells were provided free electricity, with the government allocating ₹2,700 crore annually to the power department to ensure uninterrupted supply to farmers.

In a landmark move, the Yogi government purchased maize directly from farmers at MSP for the first time during the Rabi season. This initiative marked a significant step toward the economic empowerment of food-producing farmers.

Under the 2024–25 marketing year, maize was procured at ₹2,225 per quintal from farmers in multiple districts, including Badaun, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, Etah, Kasganj, Firozabad, Hathras, Mainpuri, Hardoi, Unnao, Kanpur Nagar, Auraiya, Kannauj, Etawah, Farrukhabad, Bahraich, Ballia, Gonda, Sambhal, Rampur, Ayodhya, and Mirzapur.

Special achievement of UP in the field of agriculture

• Agricultural growth rate has increased from 5.1 percent in the year 2016-17 to 13.70 percent now.
• Agriculture plays a vital role in CM Yogi’s vision to make Uttar Pradesh a $1 trillion economy.
• Sugarcane payment of Rs 2,88,795.78 crore to more than 46.20 lakh farmers in 8 years
• Agriculture sector employs about 65 percent of the population, and has a 20 percent share in the state’s economy. Uttar Pradesh’s share in food grain production at the national level is 20.89 percent. While the food grain production was 557.46 lakh metric tons in 2016-17, it has now increased to about 725.12 lakh metric tons.
• UP is on top in the production of food grains, vegetables, mint, mango, guava, milk, honey, etc.
• UP’s share in pulses production is 35.58 lakh metric tons, and in oilseeds production 36.24 lakh metric tons.
• Under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, compensation of more than Rs 5603.98 crore has been paid to about 72.86 lakh farmers since 2017-18.
• Through DBT, a subsidy of about Rs 1850 crore has been made available to farmers on agricultural equipment so far. In eight years, single agricultural equipment was provided to approximately 3.35 lakh farmers, custom hiring centres to around 11,000, and the benefits of the farm machinery bank to about 10,000 farmers.
• Through PM Kusum Yojana, solar pumps have been made available to more than one lakh farmers so far.
• Khet Talab Yojana was started in 2017-18. In 8 years, about 37403 farm ponds were constructed in Uttar Pradesh. A subsidy of Rs 52,500 is being given on small ponds. This increased the income of farmers from irrigation as well as fisheries and aquaculture.
• 2.65 lakh hectare area was covered under sprinkler/drip irrigation, benefiting more than 1.80 lakh farmers.
• 258523 farmers were trained from 2013-14 to 2016-17 to help farmers adopt advanced agricultural technology, while more than 9.25 lakh farmers have benefited from it since 2017. 1.20 lakh participants went on farmer study tours before 2017, while more than 4 lakh 9 thousand farmers have benefited from learning advanced technology since 2017.
• A total of more than 1.53 lakh pathshalas were organized in more than 76,000 villages in The Million Farmers School (Kisan Pathshala). In this, more than 1.71 crore farmers were trained in modern agricultural technology in 9 cycles.
• Under the UP Millets Revival Program, 43,475 mini kits were distributed in 2023-24, while more than 2.36 lakh seed mini kits were distributed free of cost in 2024-25.
• The fifth agricultural university (Mahatma Buddha Agricultural and Technology University, Kushinagar) is being established in Uttar Pradesh.
• Under the Mukhyamantri Krishak Uphar Yojana, tractors are distributed to farmers while celebrating the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna Late Chaudhary Charan Singh as Kisan Samman Diwas.