Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Thursday, June 11, 2026, marked twelve years of the Modi government's agricultural policy record, saying the Indian farmer has transformed from a mere food provider into 'an entrepreneur, innovator, and ambassador of India's growth story.'

Context

Posting on the occasion of the #12YearsOfKisanSamriddhi campaign, CM Khandu highlighted a suite of central schemes — PM-KISAN, Soil Health Cards, expanded irrigation, and the Namo Drone Didi initiative — as evidence of technology and empowerment reaching 'the last mile.' The post is part of a broader BJP effort to mark twelve years since the party came to power at the Centre in May 2014.

Khandu credited the transformation to the 'visionary leadership' of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, framing rural prosperity as inseparable from India's national growth narrative. The post pointed to record agricultural production and agricultural exports 'crossing $51 billion' as visible outcomes of this policy direction.

Policy Backdrop

PM-KISAN, launched in February 2019, provides an annual direct income support of ₹6,000 to landholding farmer families through direct benefit transfers, bypassing intermediaries. The scheme is widely cited by the government as a flagship example of technology-enabled welfare delivery at scale.

The Soil Health Card scheme, rolled out from 2015, issues cards detailing soil nutrient status and fertiliser recommendations, promoting scientific nutrient management. The Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana, also launched in 2015, aimed to expand irrigation coverage and improve water-use efficiency across farming districts.

The Namo Drone Didi initiative trains rural women as drone operators for crop monitoring, spraying, and precision agriculture tasks — positioning women as active agents in agricultural modernisation rather than passive beneficiaries.

Stakeholders and Impact

The direct beneficiaries of these programmes span hundreds of millions of Indian farmers and a growing cohort of rural women entering technology-linked livelihoods. Since 2014, the central government has consciously shifted from input-subsidy-heavy approaches toward direct benefit transfers and export orientation — a structural change that has reshaped how agricultural welfare is delivered and measured.

The framing of the farmer as an 'entrepreneur' and 'innovator' is also significant in political terms: it aligns the agricultural sector with the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, linking rural prosperity metrics directly to national development goals. For Arunachal Pradesh, a state with a substantial agrarian and horticulture economy, this national narrative carries particular resonance.

What's Next

Attention will now turn to upcoming commerce ministry data on agricultural exports and production statistics, which will either substantiate or complicate the government's claims of record performance. Further expansion of drone-based agricultural services — potentially through state-level rollout plans and budget allocations — is also being watched closely by farm-sector observers.

As the BJP continues its anniversary messaging cycle under #12YearsOfSeva, the degree to which rural voter sentiment tracks with these welfare narratives will be a key indicator heading into future electoral cycles. The success of farmer-centric branding in states like Arunachal Pradesh may well shape how regional leaders pitch central schemes to their own constituencies.