National Mission For Sustainable Agriculture (2014-15) In Tamil Nadu: Implementation And Effectiveness

Madhuritha D

Background

National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) in 2014-15 under the framework of the National Action Plan on Climate Change. The mission was envisaged as a strategic intervention to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate variability on agriculture while ensuring long-term food and livelihood security. Subsequently, from 2018-19, NMSA was operationalized as a sub-mission within the umbrella scheme of the “Green Revolution-Krishonnati Yojana”. Further institutional restructuring from 2022-23 resulted in its inclusion under the umbrella of Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (PMRKVY), reflecting a consolidated approach to sustainable, climate-resilient agricultural development (PIB, 2026).

Tamil Nadu is one of the major agricultural states in India, with a diverse range of crops and farming systems. Tamil Nadu ranks first in the productivity of finger millet, second in maize, oilseeds, sugarcane and coconut, and third in pulses and groundnut productivity. Further, Tamil Nadu ranks first in the productivity of guava, second in crops such as amla, nutmeg, clove, tamarind, curry leaves and jasmine, and third in the productivity of crops like cocoa and marigold (Government of Tamil Nadu, 2025).

However, the state’s agricultural sector faces several challenges, including environmental degradation, water scarcity, and climate change. Moreover, there are traditional practices and national and state-level schemes introduced by the government to tackle the emerging climate and economic problems. This article aims to examine the initiatives, implementation, and issues under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture with a special focus on the state of Tamil Nadu, one of the prominent schemes focusing on sustainable agriculture nationwide.

Functioning

The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) promotes climate-resilient farming through a set of targeted and integrated interventions. It provides a strong foundation for sustainable agricultural development by enhancing water-use efficiency, improving soil health, and strengthening climate resilient agriculture. Key interventions under NMSA include the Rainfed Area Development (RAD) component, which encourages Integrated Farming Systems (IFS) for diversified and risk-resilient agriculture and the Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) initiative, which promotes micro-irrigation to improve water-use efficiency. These efforts are further complemented by the Soil Health Management (SHM) component, supported by the Soil Health Card (SHC) Scheme, which promotes balanced nutrient use and sustains long-term soil fertility. The following chart exhibits the objectives of the national mission:

Figure 1: Objectives of the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA).

Source: Official website of National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India.

As mentioned earlier, the mission focuses on the three main interventions, one of which is Rainfed Area Development (RAD). It aims to promote sustainable agricultural production through agro-climatic zone-specific Integrated Farming System (IFS) models developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). It encourages a holistic approach by integrating multi-cropping, rotational, inter- and mixed-cropping systems with allied activities such as horticulture, livestock, agroforestry, beekeeping and fisheries to enhance farmers’ income and resilience through various aspects of earning. Under RAD, clusters of about 20 hectares are developed within one or more adjoining villages. Farmers are supported with financial assistance of ₹30,000 per family for adopting IFS. An additional ₹10,000 per cluster is provided for training and capacity-building activities. It emphasises location-specific farming models based on local climatic conditions, promotes integrated nutrient and pest management practices, and focuses on livelihood improvement along with agricultural production and more.

The National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA) functions as the apex advisory, policy-making, and monitoring body, operating as an attached office under the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare with the Department of Agriculture being the nodal agency at the state level. Apart from the mission, the state government provides various subsidies for improving the income of farmers throughout the year. 

Secondly, the Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) initiative is designed to enhance water-use efficiency by promoting the adoption of precision irrigation and other water-saving technologies. Subsidies are provided to beneficiaries to expand coverage of micro-irrigation systems. Under PDMC, the Government provides 55% financial assistance to small and marginal farmers and 45% to other farmers for installing these systems. In addition, some states provide top-up subsidies to farmers from their own budgets. In addition to this, to improve the irrigation systems in the region, the state government has rolled out a scheme called the ‘Drop by Drop water’ scheme with recent budget allocations for the same. Thus, the state provides integrated schemes to promote micro-irrigation in supporting sustainable agriculture. 

Finally, Soil Health Management (SHM) promotes location and crop-specific sustainable soil management practices, including residue management and organic farming. It supports systematic soil fertility mapping, balanced application of macro and micronutrients, and appropriate land-use practices. Issued every 2 years, the Soil Health Card helps farmers understand the nutrient status and physicochemical conditions of their soils. 

The card assesses soil health on 12 key parameters, covering macronutrients, micronutrients, and critical soil properties. It provides crop-specific recommendations on the appropriate use of chemical fertilisers, bio-fertilisers, organic inputs, and soil treatments. The state government ensures timely delivery of SHCs to all farmers, including smallholders and marginal farmers, by adopting a distribution system aligned with the Citizen Charter. Advisory services are delivered through multiple channels, including the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA), Krishi Sakhi (Agri Volunteers), and Mobile Soil Testing Laboratory (MSTL) vans (Global Agriculture, 2025). 

Performance: 

As the scheme encompasses three major, though not mutually exclusive, sub-schemes, a separate analysis of each offers a more nuanced understanding of its performance.

The sub-scheme of Rainfed Area Development focuses on Integrated Farming System which includes Value Added Resource Conservation System, Vermi-compost units, etc. The target will be fixed according to the number of hectares and the amount contributed by both the central and state government to improve the integrated farming systems across regions. However, it has declined in its implementation, financial allocation and significance in recent years as shown in the chart below. Moreover, 

Figure 2: Achievements of Rainfed Area Development Scheme under the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture in the State of Tamil Nadu from FY2014-15 to FY2025-26.

Source: Compiled by the author from the data available on the official website of National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA).

The chart shows a sharp decline in the achievements as well as the targets set by the mission. There are two main reasons for the drastic decline. Firstly, the continuous change of umbrella missions created uncertainty in making decisions and allocating funds. As mentioned earlier, the mission has gone through three major schemes which significantly affected its implementation. Further, the importance has shifted to stable income and increasing production which are under the other two domains of the same scheme. These are the two major reasons for the decline. 

Figure 3: Number of Beneficiaries in the Rainfed Area Development Scheme under the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) in the State of Tamil Nadu from FY2014-15 to FY2025-26.

Source:  Compiled by the author from the data available on the official website of National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA).

Additionally, an analysis of the number of beneficiaries under the scheme offers another critical inference. As illustrated in the chart above, the number of women beneficiaries has consistently remained lower than that of men. The pandemic and the subsequent years have further exacerbated the vulnerability of the already marginalised communities in the state. Furthermore, there has been a decline in the implementation of the scheme, which has eventually led to a reduction in the total number of beneficiaries.

Secondly, the sub-scheme Per Drop More Crop has gained momentum in recent years with the government focusing on increasing the yield with sustainable usage of water. Implemented since 2015-16, about 109 lakh hectares have been covered under the scheme, with ₹26,325 crore released as central assistance, significantly improving water-use efficiency. Furthermore, the Government has set a target of bringing 100 lakh hectares under micro-irrigation over the five-year period from 2025-26 to 2029-30 throughout the country (PIB, 2026). The achievements of the state of Tamil Nadu are projected in the chart below. 

Figure 4: Number of hectares covered by the Per Drop More Crop Scheme under the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture in Tamil Nadu from FY2014-15 to FY2025-26.

Source: Compiled by the author from the official website of Per Drop More Crop Scheme. 

In the chart, the number of hectares depicts the amount of land covered with drip and micro-irrigation systems with the financial allocation under the scheme. It shows a steep decline after FY2019-20 which is the result of the pandemic and the continuous degradation is because of the overall policy changes done in those years. However, with PMRKVY as the umbrella, the sub-scheme seems to be performing well with 1,29,020 hectares covered in the FY2023-24 in Tamil Nadu alone, exhibiting the growing importance of micro-irrigation. It is also notable that these are not cumulative numbers. Thus, the scheme, in the long term, has been performing well since its implementation. Additionally, there is approximately 25 to 30 percent increase in crop production (PIB, 2025) nationwide through PDMC. 

Finally, the Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme is implemented to serve as the principal farmer advisory instrument under NMSA. An evaluation conducted by NITI Aayog in 2025 indicates that the scheme has contributed to correcting nutrient imbalances, particularly by reducing excessive urea use, and has led to improvements in agricultural productivity. It has also supported the broader objectives of Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) (PIB, 2026). Similar to its counterparts, it also went through a decline in the period of 2019-20. However, the effectiveness of government campaigns can be seen in the period of Cycle I and II as mentioned in the table below. The following table depicts the performance of SHC since its implementation: 

Table 1: Number of SHCs issued in Tamil Nadu from FY2014-15 to FY2025-26. 

Source: Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 295, “Key features of Soil Health Card Scheme” answered by Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare Shri Ramnath Thakur on 6 August 2025. 

With a financial allocation of Rs. 125.19 crore for Tamil Nadu since the inception of the scheme (Lok Sabha, 2025), there are also various types of soil testing laboratories functioning to maintain it as technologically driven and scientifically effective. 

Table 2: The number of soil testing laboratories in Tamil Nadu.

Source: Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 295, “Key features of Soil Health Card Scheme” answered by Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare Shri Ramnath Thakur on 6 August 2025. 

According to data from the official website of the Soil Health Card Scheme (Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India), the number of tests conducted annually has increased significantly, from approximately 2,50,000 tests in 2023-24 to 4,00,000 tests in 2025-26. The target for the financial year 2026-27 has been set at approximately 1,50,000 soil tests, with the targets being consistently achieved every year, indicating effective implementation. However, this lower target does not indicate a decline in implementation, but rather a strategic shift in the state government’s focus from testing to remedial measures, with Rs. 600 crores allocated for schemes aimed at improving soil organic carbon and enhancing chemical resilience.

Therefore, these are performance measures of the three major sub-schemes under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture in the state of Tamil Nadu. 

Impact

India being primarily an agricultural country with approximately 75 percent of its population employed in this sector, the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) proves to be highly essential. It is a need of the hour mission with the global climate becoming unpredictable and developing countries attaining the most vulnerable stages. This mission promotes climate-resilient farming through a set of targeted and integrated interventions. It provides a strong foundation for sustainable agricultural development by enhancing water-use efficiency, improving soil health, and strengthening climate resilient agriculture. This scheme also contributes to India’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) initiatives, specifically SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) supported by the promotion of Rainfed Area Development and Integrated Farming systems, SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) through the PDMC scheme, and SDG 13 (Climate Action) through climate resilient cropping systems supported by SHCs. 

Moreover, this helps in the creation of climate-smart agriculture and model villages in sustaining the dynamic global environmental changes. This scheme runs in parallel with many state-level schemes and missions such as  ‘Tamil Nadu Soil Fertility Mission’ to improve soil quality further than the existing standards. The state government has also implemented schemes promoting solar powered pumps for irrigation, and also the Irrigated Agriculture Modernisation Product in 2017 for conservation of water. Other schemes such as Mannuyir Kaathu Mannuyir Kaapom Scheme (MK MKS), Kalaignar’s All Village Integrated Agriculture Development Programme (KAVIADP), State Horticulture Development Mission, etc. provides  holistic development for farmers while also promoting resilient and regenerative agriculture. 

Therefore, it is evident that the mission plays a major role in providing stable agricultural outputs and income while also promoting sustainable agriculture in the state. It has impacted the lives of millions of farmers through scientific knowledge, financial assistance and also enhanced the Return on Investment (ROI) for all the various types of crops cultivated in different regions of the state. 

Emerging issues

Decline in implementation: As mentioned earlier, the mission has seen a stable decline in all the three sub-schemes under it. Though it is because of multiple reasons, the re-intervention has been slower since its implementation even under PMKVY compared to the earlier years of its inception. 

Ignorance to modern sustainable technologies: The mission largely focuses on  sustainable agriculture forms through soil health, water conservation and regenerative farming rather than adopting any modern technologies such as solar products to enhance the yield and income both for the farmers and the state even though there are multiple schemes supporting these technologies. 

Technical and digital knowledge gaps: Even though there are multiple avenues to express ideas and create new systems, the technical and digital knowledge often stays with the institution or organisation and becomes inaccessible for those who are in need of it. This also leads to fewer and fewer farmers coming forward and integrating their practices with the mission. 

Way Forward

Awareness campaigns and camps: Campaign drives should take place in the early years of the mission to regain its effective implementation and increase the number of hectares covered by the sub-schemes to promote farmer welfare as well as to meet the increasing food needs in the state. It is also necessary to reach farmers and enrol them in schemes such as the Soil Health Card through these camps. 

Convergence of the mission and schemes: As mentioned earlier, there are multiple schemes implemented by central and state governments in promoting sustainable agriculture. However, converging the most essential schemes such as the National Solar Mission would help in enhancing the mission to upgrade itself and technology-driven farming. State level schemes such as MK MKS and Drop by Drop Water Scheme run in parallel to the mission which could be integrated by sharing data, will eliminate duplication and improve efficiency. 

Efficient use of existing structures: The existing structures such as Uzhavar Sandhai (Farmer’s market) where the crops cultivated in these schemes could be given subsidies or priorities to encourage and acknowledge farmers in this regard. Also, the Uzhavar App can be used to disseminate real time information for effective monitoring as well as acknowledging the farmers on new trends or technologies and initiatives. 

Outreach activities: Technological outreach for farmers could be facilitated by the state government or through CSR initiatives by financing institutions involved in developing modern agricultural technologies.

References

Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India. National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture. NMSA

Government of Tamil Nadu, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department. (2022, November 25). Implementation of Tamil Nadu Mission on Sustainable Green Cover in Farm Lands (G.O. Ms. No. 284). Government Order

Press Information Bureau. (2026, August 23). Rebuilding farming systems: Regenerative agriculture for a resilient India. Government of India. PIB

Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. (2026, May 9). National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture. Press Information Bureau, Government of India. PIB

Lok Sabha Secretariat. (2025, August 6). Key features of Soil Health Card Scheme (Unstarred Question No. 295). Parliament of India. Lok Sabha 

Global Agriculture. (2025, August 7). Tamil Nadu achieves major milestone in Soil Health Mission, reaches over 15.2 million farmers with Soil Health Cards. Global Agriculture

About the Contributor  

Madhuritha D is a Research and Editorial Intern at IMPRI. She is currently pursuing her Master’s in Political Science at Madras Christian College, Chennai. Her internships across think tanks and research organisations involved contributing to strategic reports and policy research. Her academic interests include gender, international relations, and policy analysis.

Acknowledgements

I would like to extend my gratitude to IMPRI for this opportunity, constructive reviews and editorial support. 

Reviewers: Divya Natarajan and Sandra Menon

Disclaimer

All views expressed in the article belong solely to the author and not necessarily to the organisation. 

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