Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has recently emphasized the critical need to significantly increase the contribution of the agriculture sector to India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), setting a target of at least 26% to achieve true self-reliance. Speaking at an annual general meeting of the Crop Care Federation of India, Gadkari, who also serves as the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister, highlighted that the farm sector is the backbone of the country.
Currently, the agriculture sector's contribution to India's GDP hovers between 12% and 18%. This is disproportionately low considering that a significant portion of the population, around 46% to 65%, is engaged in agricultural activities. Gadkari pointed out this disparity, stressing that such a large workforce contributing so little to the GDP poses a major challenge to India's aspirations of becoming a developed and self-reliant nation.
Gadkari has been a vocal advocate for increasing the share of the farm sector in GDP. Earlier in April 2025, he argued for increasing agriculture's GDP contribution to 22% to prevent the migration of rural youth to cities. He has consistently emphasized the importance of agriculture and allied sectors like fishing and dairy, identifying opportunities for growth through advanced farming technologies, such as AI-based crop monitoring.
To achieve this ambitious goal of raising the agriculture sector's contribution to 26% of the GDP, Gadkari outlined several key strategies. A major focus is on reducing the cost of production to make agriculture more economically viable. He urged farm equipment manufacturers to develop electric and flex-engine tractors to cut input costs. He also called upon the agro-chemicals industry to invest in research and development to introduce affordable bio-pesticides and bio-insecticides, while simultaneously reducing the import dependency by producing basic raw materials within India.
Water management is another crucial aspect of Gadkari's vision. He has emphasized the need for efficient water use through river-linking projects and drip irrigation to boost agricultural growth. Diversification of agriculture towards the energy sector is also a key element. Gadkari has been a proponent of producing bio-fuels and green hydrogen to reduce the import of fossil fuels, which currently costs India ₹22 lakh crore annually. He noted that farmers have already earned an additional ₹45,000 crore by producing ethanol from corn, demonstrating the potential of this approach.
Furthermore, Gadkari has stressed the importance of supporting farmers and ensuring they receive fair prices for their produce, which are often determined by global factors. He has also highlighted the need for soil testing to increase productivity and diversification of agriculture towards energy. The government needs to support the agriculture sector to protect the rural and tribal economy.
The Economic Survey of 2025 also acknowledges the resilience of the agriculture sector, noting an average annual growth of 5% from 2016-17 to 2022-23. It also highlighted the significance of high-value sectors like horticulture, livestock, and fisheries in driving agricultural growth, with the fisheries sector showing the highest compound annual growth rate.
