Digital agriculture platform links farmer, land and crop data to services including credit, crop insurance, MSP procurement and weather advisories

Key Highlights

• More than 10.31 crore Farmer IDs created across India as of August 3, 2026.
• Digital Crop Survey during Rabi 2025-26 covered 648 districts and more than 31.3 crore plots.
• AgriStack integrates farmer, land, crop, livestock and fisheries information for faster delivery of agricultural services.
• The platform supports integration with credit, crop insurance, weather advisories and MSP-based procurement systems.
• Farmer data is maintained by States and is designed around consent-based sharing and data privacy requirements.
• AI and Machine Learning are being explored for crop-yield estimation under the YES-TECH initiative.
• The Digital General Crop Estimation System (DGCES) has been developed to provide more timely crop-yield estimates.

India is expanding its digital agriculture infrastructure, with more than 10.31 crore Farmer IDs now created under AgriStack as the government works towards faster and more transparent delivery of agricultural services.

AgriStack is being developed as a farmer-centric Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) designed to bring farmer, land and crop information together and connect it with key agricultural schemes and services.

The information was provided by Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ramnath Thakur in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

10.31 crore Farmer IDs created

The Farmer Registry is a core component of AgriStack and is designed to create a digital profile of farmers by linking information such as farmer details and digitised land records.

As of August 3, 2026, more than 10.31 crore Farmer IDs had been created across the country.

The platform is intended to connect farmer information with services such as:

• agricultural credit;
• crop insurance;
• weather advisories;
• MSP-based procurement;
• agricultural schemes; and
• other farmer-focused digital services.

By connecting these services with a common farmer database, the government aims to reduce delays and make access to schemes more efficient.

Digital Crop Survey covers 31.3 crore plots

The government’s digitalisation programme also extends to crop-level information.

During Rabi 2025-26, the Digital Crop Survey (DCS) was conducted across 648 districts, covering more than 31.3 crore plots.

The survey is intended to generate more structured and timely information about crops being cultivated across the country.

Manipur has also initiated the process of the Digital Crop Survey and is participating in the creation of Farmer IDs.

Three foundations of AgriStack

AgriStack comprises three foundational registries associated with agriculture:

1. Farmer Registry
2. Geo-Referenced Village Maps
3. Crop Sown Registry

These registries are created and maintained by the respective State Governments and Union Territories.

The Farmer Registry is being developed as a foundational database for delivering agricultural services more efficiently.

Data remains with States

The State Farmer Registry follows a federated model, under which ownership of the data remains with the respective States.

The government says AgriStack has been developed in accordance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025.

The framework provides for consent-based collection and sharing of farmers’ data, with farmers retaining control over sharing information with authorised entities for specific purposes.

The government also states that AgriStack’s security features comply with cybersecurity guidelines issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and CERT-In.

Farmer information is maintained in encrypted form so that it can be accessed only by authorised systems.

AI enters crop-yield estimation

Digital agriculture is also being used to improve estimates of crop production.

Under the YES-TECH initiative of the crop insurance programme, technology-based yield estimation is being implemented for paddy, wheat and soybean.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning have been identified as approaches for crop-yield estimation under the initiative.

The government has also developed the Digital General Crop Estimation System (DGCES) to generate more accurate and timely crop-yield data.

Why better crop data matters to food businesses

The expansion of digital crop data has implications beyond government scheme delivery.

Accurate and timely information about what farmers are growing and expected yields can eventually improve visibility across agricultural supply chains.

For hotels, restaurants, food processors and institutional kitchens, better crop intelligence could support more informed procurement planning, particularly for commodities subject to seasonal availability and price fluctuations.

More reliable production estimates can potentially help businesses anticipate supply conditions for grains, pulses, oilseeds, vegetables and other agricultural commodities.

Potential impact on hospitality procurement

Hospitality businesses operate large and often complex food procurement networks.

Digital agriculture systems such as AgriStack could, over time, contribute to:

• improved visibility of agricultural production;
• more efficient procurement planning;
• better crop insurance access for producers;
• stronger links between farmers and markets;
• improved supply-chain resilience; and
• more predictable availability of agricultural commodities.

However, the hospitality sector’s direct use of AgriStack will depend on how the digital infrastructure develops and how authorised market participants are integrated with farmer-centric platforms.

Implications for food and tourism

For India’s food and beverage sector, better agricultural data could support the development of more traceable supply chains.

This is particularly relevant to hotels and restaurants promoting local sourcing, farm-to-table concepts and regional cuisine, where knowing the origin and availability of agricultural products can become part of both procurement and consumer storytelling.

The tourism sector could also benefit indirectly. Destinations that build stronger connections between local farmers, food businesses and tourism operators may be better positioned to develop agri-tourism and culinary tourism experiences based on local produce.

Digital agriculture moves from records to supply-chain intelligence

The creation of more than 10.31 crore Farmer IDs marks a significant expansion of India’s digital agricultural infrastructure.

The larger significance of AgriStack lies in bringing together farmer, land and crop information and connecting it with services ranging from insurance and credit to procurement and crop-yield estimation.

For the food and hospitality ecosystem, the long-term opportunity is greater visibility and resilience across the farm-to-food chain—provided digital systems translate agricultural data into better market connections, timely services and more predictable supply.