To ease the implementation process of farmer-related government schemes, the Indian government will launch first of its kind Aadhaar-authenticated digital database of farmers in June, agriculture secretary Sanjay Agrawal told media.

Highlights:

  • The database will be used as a reference point for all government-run schemes
  • It will also help the government identify the needs of farmers based on their landholdings
  • The database is likely to be launched in June

This will be used as a master database for implementing any farmer-related government schemes, he said, adding that the database will be a consolidation of all kinds of genuine lists of farmers available with the government. “We have database beneficiaries for soil health cards, Kisan Credit Cards, crop insurance scheme, PM-KISAN, and other government schemes.

Now all the databases will be linked and integrated and one Aadhaar-authenticated data, which will be used as a reference point for all government-run schemes, will be created. Bringing all databases under one umbrella is expected to help the government reach only the authentic beneficiaries. Agrawal said. He said the database will be launched with 60 million farmers and their landholdings will also be mapped. “We have started the exercise. We have asked states to verify the landholdings of the farmers. In the PM-KISAN scheme itself, we have got a database of more than 9 crores (90 million) farmers. Out of which, 84% are now Aadhaar authenticated. This is an ongoing process and we will keep updating it,” he said.

The master database of farmers is aimed to help the government identify the needs of farmers based on their landholdings and the crop varieties they produce. “The government is discussing ways to reduce the use of chemicals and fertilizers to boost the productivity of land,” Jai Shankar Mishra, director at Lucknow-based think tank Agriculture Research and Economic Development Institute.“The genuine land record and the crop farmers are producing will help government design and run schemes specific to their needs.”

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