Chandigarh: Flagging a “systemic shift” in the governance of the seed sector if the Draft Seeds Bill, 2025, proceeds in its current form, the Punjab govt anticipates both “intended and unintended consequences” that may lead to resistance from the farming community, which is “highly sensitive to changes in seed policy and governance”. The state govt has recommended the re-examination of the proposed bill in its entirety, taking into account the protection of farmers’ interests and the state’s functional autonomy.An analysis of the proposed legislation by the state agriculture department highlighted the bill “leans towards centralisation and pro-privatisation” of the seed economy, thereby reducing the state’s regulatory mechanism and ability to ensure farmer-friendly seed policies. It added several provisions of the bill “directly impinge” upon the state’s established role and operational responsibilities in seed regulation, along with an attack on the autonomy of state agricultural research institutes.According to the agriculture department: “Punjab is of the considered opinion that the bill in its present form is not suitable for Punjab and strongly urges that the constitutional powers of the states in agricultural governance be fully upheld…. The major provisions of the draft bill that impinge upon Punjab’s agrarian economy.” The bill is scheduled to be tabled in the upcoming Budget session of Parliament. On Jan 17, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann met Union home minister Amit Shah in New Delhi to formally oppose the bill in its present form. Mann later said he was assured by the home minister that the concerns would be examined. The CM also wrote to the Centre to highlight Punjab’s objections to the proposed legislation.The Punjab govt objected to the proposal to establish the Centre and a central seed committee (CSC) as the supreme regulatory bodies, making the state’s role largely advisory or implementable, which undermined the state’s autonomy in a subject (agriculture) that is under the state list of the Constitution. “The draft bill provides for the establishment of accreditation agencies outside the state and even abroad. This could dilute the existing state-run accreditation system, which is familiar with local agro-climatic conditions and crop requirements. Punjab strongly believes that the state’s accreditation framework should not be undermined or bypassed, as it plays a crucial role in maintaining seed quality and safeguarding farmers’ interests,” said the agriculture department in its comments on the draft bill.The state govt is also critical of a clause in the bill that bypasses a state’s agro climatic conditions. It said foreign trials were not conducted under the specific conditions of Punjab (eg soil type, water availability, specific pest/disease pressures, and temperature extremes) and will not give a true evaluation of performance. Relying on Value for Cultivation and Use (VCU) data from outside the state’s control and environment may lead to the registration and distribution of seeds ill-suited for Punjab, thereby adversely affecting crop performance and farmer livelihoods, state govt said.Last year, the state govt introduced The Seeds (Punjab Amendment) Bill, 2025, to significantly toughen local enforcement against the sale of substandard seeds. This state-specific amendment inserts a new section (19-A) into the central act to make the sale of spurious seeds a cognisable and non-bailable offence within Punjab. MSID:: 126994484 413 |
