Agricultural subsidies
Agricultural subsidies · fertiliser, power, irrigation subsidies
Story hook
Union Budget 2024-25. Major subsidies in the Centre's accounts:
- Food subsidy: Rs.2.05 lakh crore (NFSA + PMGKAY).
- Fertiliser subsidy: Rs.1.64 lakh crore.
- Petroleum subsidy (LPG + kerosene): Rs.12,200 crore.
- Crop insurance (PMFBY): Rs.15,864 crore.
- PM-KISAN income support: Rs.60,000 crore.
Add the state-level power subsidy for agriculture — ~Rs.1.5 lakh crore across all states (~Rs.40,000 cr Punjab + Tamil Nadu + AP + Telangana + Karnataka share alone) — and Indian agriculture support easily crosses Rs.4-5 lakh crore annually. That's higher than the entire defence budget.
Outside Delhi, the WTO ministerial meet at Abu Dhabi (Feb 2024) stalled — again — on the G33 + India peace-clause demand: a permanent solution for public stockholding for food-security purposes. The US, Canada, Australia argue India's procurement exceeds the 10% de-minimis product-specific support limit (rice at 90%+ of value of production). India invokes Bali 2013 peace clause to shield procurement.
For UPSC, "subsidy" is not just a fiscal number — it is the fault line of agricultural policy.
Why this matters for UPSC
GS-III tests subsidy reform every cycle: DBT, Nutrient-Based Subsidy, power-tariff reform, WTO boxes. Prelims: 2-3 marks/year on schemes + WTO Amber/Green/Blue Box. Mains: one 10-15 mark question per cycle. Topics overlap with Indian Economy (subsidy and fiscal deficit) + External Sector (WTO).
Inside the full topic
Create a free account to continue reading — the deep dive, exam angles, mind map and revision card are waiting.
- Start here (zero knowledge)
- Flow diagram & mind map
- Deep dive
- Real-world connections
- Memory hooks & mnemonics
- The Prelims angle
- The Mains angle
- The Interview angle
- Common traps & misconceptions
- 5-minute revision card
- Related topics
Continue reading — free
Get the full topic with deep dive, Prelims/Mains/Interview angles, mind maps, revision cards, AI tutor and daily current affairs — in English and Hindi.
Create free account Already a member? Sign in