India's First Soil Carbon Payments Disbursed to Farmers
The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare announced India's first agricultural carbon market payments, with ₹2.9 crore being disbursed to more than 2,500 smallholder farmers in Punjab and Haryana through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). The payments were initiated by Dr. M. L. Jat, Secretary of the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) and Director General of ICAR, at a program organized at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana.
Programme Details and Implementation
The payments are part of the 'Aadi' Grow Indigo farmer carbon programme launched in 2019 with technical guidance from ICAR. Farmers adopted regenerative practices including Direct Seeded Rice (DSR), reduced tillage, and crop residue management between 2019 and 2022. The resulting greenhouse gas reductions and soil carbon increases were measured and independently verified under the Verra VM0042 methodology before carbon credits were issued. The programme covers more than two million acres and over 100,000 farmers across seven states.
Environmental and Economic Impact
For enrolled fields during 2019-2022, the programme achieved significant environmental benefits: savings of 45 billion litres of water, more than two lakh tonnes of crop residue kept out of fires, and avoidance of an estimated 1,000 tonnes of PM2.5 emissions. The first issuance covered around 30,000 acres and generated more than 50,000 carbon credits. Participating farmers received payments ranging from ₹3,000 to ₹15,000 based on their share of carbon credits generated from their fields.
Payment Mechanism and Timeline
Grow Indigo released payments digitally from its own funds before the credits were fully sold, offering farmers a choice between an assured upfront payment and 75% of the net carbon revenue after credit sales. Farmers who joined the programme after 2022 are part of the next monitoring cycle and will receive payments as their carbon credits are issued.
Broader Agricultural Transformation
The initiative supports Punjab and Haryana's transition toward regenerative agriculture, including crop residue management, water conservation, and farming systems aimed at improving soil health and climate resilience. ICAR institutions contributed scientific and field expertise in greenhouse-gas accounting, crop-simulation modelling, soil-sampling protocols, device validation, and satellite/remote-sensing approaches.
Significant Reduction in Farm Fires
Punjab has recorded a substantial decline in farm-fire incidents, with only 5,114 incidents during the 2025 paddy harvesting season - the lowest number since monitoring began under the present framework. This represents a 93% reduction compared with 2021 and a 90% reduction compared with 2022. The Ransinh Kalan model in Moga maintained a 100% residue-burning-free status across 1,310 acres for six consecutive years.
International Cooperation
The 16th BRICS Agriculture Ministers' Meeting in Indore (June 2026) agreed to establish a BRICS Network of Centres of Excellence on Agroecology and Regenerative Agriculture for Climate Resilience and Productivity, with initial coordination by ICAR–Indian Institute of Farming System Research (IIFSR), Modipuram. The BRICS New Delhi Declaration (September 2026) subsequently welcomed strengthened cooperation through this network.