Agriculture stakeholders from various sectors aired mixed opinions on the Union Budget 2026-27. While the edible oil sector felt there was no measure to reduce India’s import dependence, the rice sector welcomed MSME and technology initiatives. While some stakeholders welcomed the thrust on high-value crops, farmers’ organisations expressed concerns about issues affecting small farmers.

The Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) has said that the Union Budget 2026-27 did not address measures to reduce India’s dependence on edible oil imports.

Sanjeev Asthana, President of SEA, said the Union Budget 2026-27 was a critical opportunity to support India’s agriculture, particularly the edible oil sector. SEA has consistently represented to the Government that our edible oil imports are skyrocketing and are seriously compromising the nation’s edible oil security, requiring urgent policy intervention. The Budget did not include measures to reduce our dependence on the import of edible oil, in line with our Prime Minister’s Vision for Atmanirbharta in edible oil.

In the case of import duty on edible oils, the current duty structure, with the duty differential, is comfortable for consumers and farmers, and, rightly, the Finance Minister did not find reason to change it.

Rice sector lauds Bharat VISTAR

Meanwhile, the Indian Rice Exporters Federation (IREF) welcomed the budget, particularly noting measures that strengthen MSMEs, logistics infrastructure, and technology-enabled agriculture.

A media statement by IREF commended the announcement directing Central government procurement agencies to meet their requirements through the TReDS framework for MSMEs. This move is expected to improve payment discipline, enable faster receivable realisation, and facilitate access to lower-cost finance for small enterprises, a significant development for the rice sector, where a majority of traders, processors, and exporters fall within the MSME category.

Technology-driven interventions under Bharat Vistar can support yield improvements and strengthen the competitiveness of Indian rice globally. The Federation looks forward to operationalising these announcements, enhancing the rice value chain, and supporting farmers, MSMEs, and exporters in consolidating India’s leadership in global agri-exports, it said.

Labour-intensive moves

Vinay N Kotak, President of the Cotton Association of India (CAI), said this budget places strong emphasis on strengthening the labour-intensive textile sector. Integrated programme for the textile sector included in the budget aims to boost demand, enhance competitiveness and support overall development through skill development, ease of doing business and various other measures such as development of coastal infrastructure, mega textile parks, Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj initiative to strengthen khadi, handloom and handicraft, Technical Textiles, etc. These measures will help create global market linkages and branding, bolster demand, and enhance our export competitiveness.

“One of the important changes in the Customs Schedule, which is aimed at providing relief to enable manufacturing is to move Long Staple Cotton to First Schedule (zero Customs Duty). This will boost exports of our finished textile products and increase India’s share in the world textile markets. Also commission earned from a foreign party for facilitating import of goods into India will be treated as an export of services, and no GST will be charged on the same,” Kotak said.

Rajeev Gupta, Joint Managing Director, RSWM Ltd, said the Union Budget 2026-27 presents a decisive, and reform-led roadmap for the textile sector, firmly positioning it within India’s strategy to scale manufacturing, reduce import dependencies and generate employment. The National Fibre Scheme is particularly significant in strengthening self-reliance across natural, man-made and new-age fibres, while mitigating supply-chain vulnerabilities amid global disruptions.

The consolidation of handloom and handicraft interventions, along with the Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj Initiative, reinforces inclusive growth by strengthening artisans, weavers and rural enterprises through market access, branding and skilling.

High-value crops

Parshram Patil, an agricultural economist, said the budget announced dedicated programmes for plantation crops such as cashew and cocoa. These programmes focus on productivity, processing, and value addition, not on fertiliser or pesticide subsidies. This aligns with natural farming, which relies on biological inputs and ecosystem management rather than chemicals. Unlike cereals, plantation crops do not receive heavy chemical fertiliser subsidies.

Stating that cashew and cocoa are perennial tree crops, he said the budget support to these crops reduces repeated land preparation, improves soil organic matter naturally, and enables mulching, intercropping, and on-farm biomass recycling. Tree-based systems are explicitly recommended under natural farming frameworks.

Budget emphasis on coastal and humid-tropical crops. These regions already rely on rain-fed farming, mixed cropping systems, and traditional organic practices. Budget, therefore, supports region-specific, ecology-based agriculture rather than one-size-fits-all chemical farming. Budget links plantation crops with climate resilience and income stability. Plantation crops tolerate climate variability better than annual crops and require fewer chemical interventions, he said. By allocating dedicated programmes to plantation crops like cashew and cocoa — low-input, perennial and coastal-suitable crops — the Budget indirectly promotes natural farming systems, Patil said.

Rajesh Aggarwal, Managing Director, Insecticides (India) Ltd and Vice-Chairman, Crop Care Federation of India, said the Finance Minister’s announcement of a coconut productivity enhancement scheme is a timely intervention to strengthen farm incomes by replacing non-productive trees with high-yielding varieties in major coconut-growing states.

Srinivas Kuchibhotla, Partner, Deloitte India, said there’s special emphasis on coconut, cashew, and cocoa to build strong value chains and compete worldwide by 2030, thereby positively impacting 10 million-plus small and marginal farmers. The outlays provided in animal husbandry and dairying, and in inland and marine fisheries, target integrated, inclusive, and holistic diversification with export competitiveness, reflecting one-health, rising protein demand, and blue-economy potential.

Rana George, MD of Kelachandra Coffee, said that while the Union Budget’s push for agri productivity, resilience, and exports is directionally positive, the coffee value chain has been left without a clear, dedicated thrust at a time when growers are battling climate volatility and cost pressures. “The lapse of the customs duty exemption on key coffee processing equipment from February 2, 2026, will only raise the cost of upgrading quality and capacity; we were hoping for targeted support for coffee replanting, climate-resilient agronomy, research and development, and affordable credit to help Indian coffee compete harder in global markets,” George said.

Farmers’ organisations

Reacting to the budget proposals, Mohini Mohan Mishra, All-India General Secretary of the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, said the problems of small farmers, the high GST on agricultural machinery, the lack of promotion of schemes like Kisan Samman Nidhi, the failure to implement the announced increase in the KCC card limit to ₹5 lakh, and the lack of incentives for farmers practicing natural farming to produce their own organic fertilizers through DBT, despite the declared goal of promoting natural farming are matters of concern.

There is no provision in the budget to monitor and control chemical residue levels across all crops nationwide to support natural farming. Overall, the government’s statements are not reflected in the budget.

Rampal Jat, National President, Kisan Mahapanchayat, said the agricultural sector, which provides livelihoods to 52 per cent of the population, has been neglected in the Budget, and 75 per cent of the country’s population engaged in agriculture and allied activities is bewildered. Instead of focusing on those who contribute most to the country’s prosperity, there is more discussion of sectors with negligible contributions and of the market, which is adept at exploitation.

Published on February 2, 2026