CM Majhi Pushes Farm Scheme to Lift Odisha's Lowest Incomes
Synopsis
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has announced the district-level rollout of the PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana, targeting farmer income growth and positioning the BJP government's approach in direct contrast to the preceding BJD administration's record on agricultural earnings.
Key Takeaways
Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi announced the rollout of the PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana across multiple regions of Odisha on 30 October 2026 .
Majhi directly blamed the previous BJD government for leaving Odisha among the lowest-ranking states in national agricultural income.
The BJP won the 2024 Odisha assembly elections , ending the BJD's more than two-decade rule; Majhi took office in June 2024 .
Odisha is a major paddy-producing state with a large rural population, making farmer income a politically and economically pivotal issue.
The new scheme complements existing central support such as PM-KISAN , which provides ₹6,000 per year in direct income support to farmer families.
Majhi pledged that financial upliftment and empowerment of farmers — whom he called 'Annadata' — is the government's primary resolve.
Odisha's farmers have long sat at the bottom of the national agricultural income table — and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi is now staking his government's reputation on changing that, announcing the rollout of the PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana across multiple districts of the state on Friday, 30 October 2026.
A Decade at the Bottom: Odisha Farmers' Income Crisis
In both Odia and English, Majhi's post was unambiguous in its diagnosis: 'ପୂର୍ବ ସରକାରଙ୍କ ଅମଳରେ ଆମ ରାଜ୍ୟର ଅନ୍ନଦାତାଙ୍କ ଆର୍ଥିକ ସ୍ଥିତି ଅତ୍ୟନ୍ତ ଦୟନୀୟ ଥିଲା' — 'Under the previous administration, our farmers' earnings remained distressingly low, leaving Odisha among the lowest-ranking states in agricultural income.' The reference is a direct broadside at the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government, which held power in the state for over two decades before the BJP's landmark 2024 assembly election victory.
Odisha is one of India's major paddy-producing states, with a predominantly rural and agrarian population. Despite that agricultural base, farmer households here have consistently ranked among the lowest in the country by income — a gap that became a central BJP campaign plank in 2024.
PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana: What the State Is Deploying
The scheme Majhi invokes — the PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana — is being implemented 'in various regions of the state', according to his post, with the explicit goal of expanding the agricultural sector and growing farmer earnings. The move positions it as the state government's primary policy vehicle for rural income growth, layered on top of existing central schemes like PM-KISAN, which has since 2019 provided direct income support of ₹6,000 per year to eligible farmer families nationally.
Majhi framed the effort in the language of moral commitment — calling farmers 'Annadata' (the givers of food) and declaring their 'financial upliftment and empowerment' as his government's 'primary resolve.' Strong words. The implementation details across specific districts will be the real test.
BJP's Agricultural Narrative Since 2024
Since assuming office in June 2024, the BJP-led Odisha government has consistently structured its public messaging around a before-and-after contrast with the preceding administration. Farmer welfare, infrastructure investment, and alignment with central government schemes form the core of that pitch. This post is squarely in that tradition — but it also signals a sharper urgency, suggesting the rollout is now at an active, district-level implementation stage rather than merely announced intent.
The broader national push to double — or meaningfully raise — rural incomes has been a declared priority of the Union government for years. Odisha, with its large farming population and historically low agricultural incomes, is one of the critical proving grounds for whether that ambition translates at the state level.
Progress on the ground, and Odisha's ranking in the next national agricultural income data release, will tell the real story.
Point of View
Where farm incomes are a genuine structural problem, the political risk is real — the promise of income growth will be benchmarked against verifiable data. The district-level implementation of the PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana is therefore both a policy move and a political wager: if agricultural incomes measurably improve before the next election cycle, the narrative sticks; if they do not, the contrast with the BJD becomes a liability rather than an asset.
NationPress
30 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana being implemented in Odisha?
The PM Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana is a central agricultural scheme that Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi announced is being implemented across various districts of Odisha, aimed at expanding the agricultural sector and increasing farmer incomes.
Why does CM Majhi say Odisha farmers have low income?
Majhi attributes Odisha's low agricultural income ranking to the policies of the previous BJD government, which held power for over two decades before the BJP's 2024 election victory. He has pledged to reverse this through focused farmer welfare schemes.
When did Mohan Charan Majhi become Chief Minister of Odisha?
Mohan Charan Majhi became Chief Minister of Odisha in June 2024 after the BJP won the 2024 Odisha state assembly elections, ending the long tenure of the Biju Janata Dal under Naveen Patnaik.
What is PM-KISAN and how does it help Odisha farmers?
PM-KISAN is a central government scheme launched in 2019 that provides direct income support of ₹6,000 per year to eligible farmer families across India, including in Odisha. It forms part of the broader support architecture for agricultural households.
What does 'Annadata' mean in the context of Indian farming?
'Annadata' is a respectful term in Indian languages meaning 'the giver of food', commonly used by leaders to refer to farmers, underscoring their central role in the nation's food security and economy.
