With horticulture push, Cheema tries to take farmers away from wheat-paddy

Punjab currently has around 41 lakh hectares under crops, including both agriculture and horticulture. Of this, over 36 lakh hectares are dominated by wheat and paddy.

Under the government’s plan, if 17.34 lakh hectares eventually come under horticulture crops, the area available for traditional agricultural crops would shrink to roughly 23 lakh hectares. That shift could significantly alter the state’s crop pattern.

Even if farmers continue to cultivate wheat and paddy across all remaining agricultural land, the total area under rice and wheat could decline substantially — potentially by around one million hectares in paddy and over 1.2 million hectares in wheat over time.

Such a shift could help Punjab address long-standing concerns about groundwater depletion and monocropping.

According to the budget speech, the horticulture programme will focus not only on expanding acreage but also on strengthening the supporting ecosystem.

The project proposes investments in improved seeds, nurseries, research, mandi infrastructure, cold storage facilities and processing units, along with farmer training and extension services.

“While strengthening sustainable practices such as efficient irrigation, integrated pest management and organic cultivation, the project will bring in much-needed capital into the sector and invest in latest seeds, nurseries, research, state-of-the-art mandi infrastructure, cold storage and processing infrastructure, and farmer training and extension,” Cheema said.

The government has also highlighted emerging crops such as dragon fruit as examples of high-value horticulture gaining traction among farmers. Agriculture experts say the success of the horticulture expansion will depend heavily on the creation of robust marketing and processing infrastructure.

“Expanding horticulture on such a scale is a positive idea, but the challenge will be building the entire ecosystem around it,” said an agricultural expert and farmer Paramjit Singh Sooch from Hoshiarpur. He played a major role in setting up the citrus estate in Hosjoarpur’s Hariana Bhunga. He added, “You need cold chains, grading facilities, food processing units and strong market linkages. Without these, farmers will struggle to sustain large-scale horticulture.”

Dr Sutantra Airy, former director of Punjab Agriculture Department, said that if implemented successfully, the plan could reshape Punjab’s agricultural scenario, reduce its dependence on water-intensive crops and an automatic diversification.