Calling for a nationwide shift towards sustainable farming, Union agriculture and farmers’ welfare and rural development minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan urged farmers to reduce the indiscriminate use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides and join a mass movement to restore soil health and conserve natural resources.
Chouhan, accompanied by Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini, addressed the concluding ceremony of the ‘Khet Bachao Abhiyan’ (Save the Farm Campaign) at the College of Agriculture in Bawal, Haryana.
Chouhan warned that the indiscriminate use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides is steadily degrading the country’s agricultural land and threatening food security. He emphasised that protecting soil health is essential for ensuring future food security and securing the prosperity of Indian agriculture.
The Union minister said the country’s soil was “crying out” under the burden of excessive fertilisers and pesticides. He urged farmers to apply fertilisers only after scientific soil testing and strictly according to crop requirements.
Comparing soil treatment with medical care, Chouhan said just as an overdose of medicine could harm a patient, excessive application of urea and DAP damages soil health by increasing acidity, creating nutrient imbalance.
Chouhan said that Centre was developing a mobile application that would allow farmers to instantly access their soil health card data in the field. “The app would help them identify nutrient deficiencies and determine the exact type and quantity of fertilisers required, thereby reducing unnecessary input costs while improving productivity and soil health,” Chouhan said. Advocating natural farming, Chouhan encouraged farmers to begin with a small portion of their land and gradually expand after witnessing the benefits.
{{/usCountry}}Chouhan said that Centre was developing a mobile application that would allow farmers to instantly access their soil health card data in the field. “The app would help them identify nutrient deficiencies and determine the exact type and quantity of fertilisers required, thereby reducing unnecessary input costs while improving productivity and soil health,” Chouhan said. Advocating natural farming, Chouhan encouraged farmers to begin with a small portion of their land and gradually expand after witnessing the benefits.
{{/usCountry}}Haryana launches ‘FPO Mission-2026’
Chouhan and Saini jointly launched the Haryana FPO Mission-2026, an initiative to strengthen farmer producer organisations (FPOs), improve market access, promote value addition and enhance farmers’ incomes.
Calling it a landmark initiative, Saini said the mission would empower small and marginal farmers through collective entrepreneurship. He said that nearly 775 FPOs are already functioning across Haryana in the agriculture, horticulture and dairy sectors, and the new mission would strengthen them by improving supply chains, expanding storage and marketing infrastructure.
Highlighting concerns over declining groundwater levels and climate change, Saini urged farmers to regularly test their soil and adopt balanced fertiliser use under schemes such as Har Khet Swasth Khet and the soil health card programme. On this occasion, Chouhan and Saini also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones of development projects worth approximately ₹125 crore for the Bawal Assembly constituency.