CHANDIGARH, Oct 6 — Punjab Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian on Monday reviewed the status of maize cultivation and procurement across the state, calling crop diversification “a crucial step” toward easing pressure on groundwater and improving farm incomes.
Chairing a high-level meeting with senior officials from the Agriculture Department, Punjab Mandi Board, and Markfed, Khudian said the state government was committed to ensuring a smooth procurement process for kharif maize and continued support to farmers making the transition away from paddy.
“Under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, the state is working to make diversification a people’s movement,” Khudian said. “The government’s role is to provide both financial and technical support so that farmers can shift confidently toward crops like maize.”
The minister informed that Punjab has launched a pilot project across six districts — Bathinda, Sangrur, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Gurdaspur, and Pathankot — to convert 12,000 hectares of land from paddy to maize. Farmers participating in the project are being offered ₹17,500 per hectare in incentives, along with guidance from 185 Kisan Mitras deployed to assist during the transition. About 30,000 farmers are expected to benefit from the initiative.
According to provisional data from the Agriculture Department, kharif maize was sown on around 7,000 hectares, or nearly 19,500 acres, under the current subsidy scheme. Pathankot recorded the highest cultivation area at 4,100 acres, followed by Sangrur (3,700), Bathinda (3,200), Jalandhar (3,100), Kapurthala (2,800), and Gurdaspur (2,600). Across the state, maize cultivation remained steady at about 80,000 hectares, roughly 1.98 lakh acres.
Khudian directed officials to ensure that farmers bringing maize to mandis do so only after drying their produce to avoid marketing issues. “We want farmers to get the best possible rates for their crops,” he said, urging district committees to coordinate with procurement agencies and market boards.
Administrative Secretary (Agriculture) Dr. Basant Garg said field officers had been instructed to educate farmers about quality standards. “Moisture content should not exceed 14% to qualify for optimal pricing,” he said. Senior officials including Ramvir (Secretary, Punjab Mandi Board), Kumar Amit (MD, Markfed), and Jaswant Singh (Director, Agriculture) attended the meeting.
Officials said Punjab’s diversification effort is gaining traction, with the total maize area showing a 16.27% increase this season — from 86,000 hectares in 2024 to 1,00,000 hectares in 2025. They noted that while the state’s overall maize acreage remains modest compared to paddy, the upward trend reflects growing farmer interest in less water-intensive crops.
Experts said the shift toward maize could help slow groundwater depletion if supported by assured procurement and timely payments. “Diversification is both an environmental and economic necessity,” one senior agriculture officer said. “Farmers are willing to adapt, provided they see stability and returns.”
Khudian said the department will continue to monitor the pilot’s progress before expanding the program to other districts. “Our focus is on making diversification practical and profitable,” he noted. “The goal is not just policy change, but sustainable farming for the next generation.”
