Parliament Question: Gaps in Agriculture Data Collection System

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3720 TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 11TH AUGUST, 2026 GAPS IN AGRICULTURE DATA COLLECTION SYSTEM

3720. COM. SELVARAJ V:

SHRI SUBBARAYAN K:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ(cid:874)ष एवं (cid:873)कसान क(cid:227)याण मं(cid:287)ी

be pleased to state:

(a) whether it is a fact that the latest report by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has revealed severe gaps in the agriculture data collection system tracking crops acreage and food production affecting the Food security decisions like exports curbs, buffer stock releases; and

(b) if so, the details thereof and the Government's reaction thereto? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ(cid:874)ष एवं (cid:873)कसान क(cid:227)याण रा(cid:207)य म(cid:287)ं ी (SHRI RAMNATH THAKUR)

(a) & (b): The primary work of data collection for generation of crop statistics, i.e. area sown and average yield, is undertaken by the State Governments. The estimates of area and yield are compiled by the State Agricultural Statistics Authorities (SASAs) and transmitted to the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare for compilation of production estimates at the All-India level. It is based on sound statistical techniques providing accurate, reliable and robust estimates of area, production and yield.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation in its report ‘Review of Crop Statistics System in India through the scheme of Improvement of Crop Statistics 2023- 24’ has examined the agricultural data collection system in the country and has identified some gaps viz. non-coverage of entire area, high average workload per worker, non- reporting of minor crops, response for sample check, non-completion of Girdawari on time, non-availability of updated maps, lack of training for workers, error in recording ancillary information, lack of supply of equipment for conducting CCEs etc. These shortcomings were during the period when data collection used to be in manual mode.However, the Government has undertaken initiatives to improve the existing system of agriculture data collection and make it more efficient to generate accurate and reliable estimates. This would bring in more transparency to the system. The Cabinet has approved the Digital Agriculture Mission (DAM) for the creation of a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for Agriculture and other IT initiatives undertaken by the Central Government/ State Governments to enable a robust digital agriculture ecosystem in the country. Among them, the AgriStack DPI consists of three foundational registries or databases associated with the agriculture sector. One of them being the Crop Sown Registry, created and maintained by the State Governments/ Union Territories undertaken as the Digital Crop Survey (DCS).

Digital Crop Survey (DCS) System has been established to collect crop-sown details via a mobile interface, ensuring data is captured directly from the field. This data provides accurate, real-time crop area information for every agricultural plot, which will help to arrive at improved production estimates. During the Rabi Season 2025-26, DCS was conducted in 24 States across 648 Districts covering more than 31.3 crore plots across the country.

Further, the Digital General Crop Estimation Survey (DGCES), a key initiative under the Digital Agriculture Mission (DAM), was launched by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (DA&FW). DGCES is a programme used for crop yield estimation by conducting crop cutting experiments (CCEs). This was earlier a manual process. DGCES is a digitized platform designed to streamline the entire crop yield generation process. It enables real-time CCE data collection and monitoring. The system comprises of a web- based portal and a mobile application—the portal enables centralized monitoring and yield estimation, while the mobile application facilitates field-level data collection with geo-tagged photographs, time-stamping and location capture, ensuring authenticity and transparency.

The DGCES is now being implemented across 23 States/ UTs. Expansion is being undertaken progressively in consultation with the State Governments based on their preparedness, availability of digital infrastructure and capacity building of the field functionaries.

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