Business EconomyPosted at: Dec 8 2025 6:11PM


India must boost farm R&D to stay competitive in agriculture: RG Agarwal

By Sourav Shekhar
New Delhi, Dec 8 (UNI) RG Agarwal, Group Chairman, Dhanuka Agritech, on Monday said that India's agriculture sector needs a decisive shift towards technology, innovation and stronger research support.
In an exclusive interview with UNI, he advocates incentives to push agriculural science developmentsm and felt removal of a tax exemption on research and development spending was
"The withdrawal of the earlier 2 per cent tax exemption on Research and Development (R&D) spending has come at a difficult time," Aggarwal said, adding that the industry was "already struggling to invest in research due to high costs and limited institutional support. Without incentives, companies find it harder to push scientific development."
Agarwal who is also the Chair, Agribusiness Committee, PHDCCI highlighted that India's R&D expenditure remains among the lowest in the world.
The country spends only 0.7 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on research, while nations like Israel invest more than 4 per cent. This wide gap directly affects the ability of Indian agriculture to innovate at the pace required.
One of the biggest consequences of low R&D investment is India's dependence on imported pesticide technology. Agarwal said almost all modern pesticide molecules and formulations are developed abroad because India lacks the research ecosystem needed to build them.
He pointed out that setting up even one pesticide research centre demands an investment of Rs2,500–3,000 crore. This makes it extremely challenging for domestic companies to create new technologies without significant government support.
Indian laboratories continue to struggle with basic equipment shortages. Modern chemical research needs advanced tools like HPLC and GLC, but many labs do not have these facilities.
As a result, India falls behind in developing safer and more efficient crop protection products.
High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Gas Liquid Chromatography (GLC) are crucial analytical tools in agriculture which are used to separate, identify and quantify compounds in complex samples like pesticides, nutrients, toxins and natural products.
Agarwal also drew attention to the misconception around pesticide use in India. He said Indian farmers actually use far less pesticide compared to other major agricultural nations. India uses around 360 grams per hectare, while Brazil uses nearly 20 times more and China about five times more.
Despite this, Indian agriculture faces criticism over alleged high pesticide use. Aggarwal stressed that better technology and appropriate training, not blanket restrictions, are the real solutions for safe and balanced crop protection.
He also highlighted the need to improve credit access for farmers. According to him, formal credit is now a necessity for modern farming, not an option. The Kisan Credit Card (KCC), he said, can play a major role in strengthening farmers' financial security if used widely.
The Kisan Credit Credit (KCC) scheme was introduced in 1998 for issue of Kisan Credit Cards to farmers on the basis of their holdings for uniform adoption by the banks so that farmers may use them to readily purchase agricultural inputs like seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc.
Aggarwal believes that better credit availability would help farmers invest in machinery, quality seeds, fertilisers and new technologies. When farmers have access to organised credit, they become more resilient and better equipped to manage risks.
He warned that rising input costs, changing climate patterns and global competition make it urgent for India to accelerate technology adoption. Countries that invest in precision farming, scientific research and advanced crop protection are rapidly pulling ahead.
Aggarwal said India cannot depend only on traditional practices if it wants to remain competitive in global markets. Future growth, he argued, will come from innovation, not from expanding agricultural land.
He emphasised that strengthening laboratories, encouraging companies to invest in research, building indigenous pesticide technologies and creating a strong credit framework for farmers must become immediate national priorities.
According to him, a technology-driven approach will not only raise productivity but also increase incomes, reduce crop losses and ensure long-term sustainability.
Aggarwal's message to policymakers is straightforward: India must act now. A stronger push for agricultural R&D, along with better infrastructure and financial support, can help the country build a self-reliant, globally competitive farm economy.
He said the next decade offers India a chance to transform its agriculture sector—if the right investments are made today.
UNI SAS
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