To reduce the cultivation area of water-intensive paddy and encourage cash crops, particularly maize, the Punjab government has allocated Rs. 115 crore for crop diversification in the financial year 2025-26. Three districts—Bathinda, Kapurthala, and Gurdaspur—have been identified for the promotion of summer maize cultivation.
During the budget presentation on Wednesday, Finance Minister Harpal Singh stated that the state government aims to promote summer maize for ethanol production in alignment with the central government’s goal of increasing the ethanol blend to 20% by 2025. To achieve this, the government plans to cover 21,000 hectares, offering a subsidy of ₹17,500 per hectare, with a target of benefiting 30,000 farmers. Additionally, certain private ethanol promoters have expressed interest in supporting farmers to transition to maize cultivation.
Punjab Congress MLA Rana Gurjit Singh recently toured various parts of the Malwa region, including Bathinda and Muktsar, encouraging farmers to switch to maize with an assurance of purchasing the crop at the minimum support price (MSP).
While the state government has been pushing for crop diversification, many farmers continue to prefer paddy due to its higher profitability. They have urged both state and central governments to guarantee MSP for other cash crops and ensure earnings comparable to paddy if they genuinely want to promote diversification.
