The government has been considering a policy shift to transfer the fertilizer subsidy amount to the bank accounts of farmers rather than fertilizer companies. In our pan-India study with farmers we found that only one-third of the farmers knew that they purchase fertilizers at a subsidized rate. With such low awareness levels, this policy shift may evoke shock and displeasure since this would require farmers to first purchase fertilizers at the market price.

This paper examines the use of existing cash transfer programs and the payment infrastructure used for the timely delivery of PMGKY benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Additionally, the paper draws insights from PMGKY beneficiaries’ cash withdrawal/access preferences and experiences during the pandemic.

This publication discusses key findings from the assessment of unconditional cash transfers in the three union territories of Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, and Puducherry and offers recommendations for the food subsidy program in India.

India, with its millions of farmers who provide food security for the country’s vast population, is primed to reform its fertilizer subsidy program. This blog lists the challenges of subsidizing fertilizer use in India and provides solutions to connect subsidies directly to farmers.

This publication discusses two alternative models to Direct Cash Transfer (DCT) of fertilizer subsidy in India. It further looks at the potential issues that beneficiary farmers could face under each of the proposed models.

This publication discusses the importance of soil nutrients, particularly micronutrients, and the factors that affect their availability in Indian soils. It also explores the reasons for the low use of micronutrients and provides recommendations to optimize their use to increase yields.

This publication discusses the initiatives of the Government of India to increase transparency in the fertilizer distribution system. It also highlights some challenges that persist in the implementation of direct cash transfers in fertilizer and a three-step approach to resolve these challenges.

NITI Aayog engaged MSC in a nationally representative study on DBT in fertilizer. This report provides details of the on-the-ground realities of DBT-F implementation and makes actionable recommendations to improve the DBT-F system further.