Parliamentary Panel Recommends Increased Agriculture Budget and Expansion of Digital Food Coupons

A Parliamentary panel has recommended increasing the agriculture department's budget to address challenges like climate change and market volatility, noting a decline in its share of the central plan outlay. The panel also suggested subsidies for electric tractors and integrating AI in farming. Separately, the committee urged expanding the pilot of CBDC-based digital food coupons in the Public Distribution System nationwide, recommending dedicated funding for technological infrastructure and wider decentralised foodgrain procurement to support farmers.