The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare (MoAFW) is an apex institution of the Government of India responsible for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations, and laws related to agriculture, food processing, and co-operation in the country. Its primary objective is to ensure agricultural development, national food security, and the welfare of farmers. The Ministry's origins trace back to the establishment of the Department of Revenue and Agriculture and Commerce in June 1871. Post-independence, the Department of Agriculture was redesignated as the Ministry of Agriculture in 1947.
The Ministry was renamed the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare on August 15, 2015, specifically to emphasize a renewed focus on farmer-centric programs and the needs of the farming community. This change reflects the problem it seeks to solve: moving beyond mere agricultural production to holistic farmer welfare and income enhancement.
The Ministry operates through two main departments: the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) and the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE). The DA&FW is responsible for implementing farmer-centric policies and schemes, such as the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), a crop insurance scheme launched in 2016, and the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN), a direct income support scheme. DARE facilitates research and technological advancements through the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), which coordinates agricultural research and education across the country.
The Ministry connects to the constitutional provision of Article 48 (Directive Principles of State Policy) and operates in a sector where agriculture is a State Subject as per the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. A significant recent change was the carving out of the Ministry of Co-operation from the MoAFW in 2021. Key mechanisms include the e-NAM (National Agriculture Market), a pan-India electronic trading portal for agricultural commodities, and the promotion of Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs).