Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday, 25 June 2026 visited Acharya Narendra Dev Agriculture and Technology University in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, where he observed an integrated farming demonstration that combines fish rearing, duck farming, and multiple crops within a single campus.

Sharing his impressions on X, the minister described the model as 'ek prerak model' — an inspiring model — and urged farmers across the country to adopt such integrated approaches. 'In a single campus, fish farming, duck rearing, and crops such as turmeric, ginger, elephant foot yam, and drumstick have been successfully coordinated,' he noted, adding that this creates multiple income streams and makes better earnings possible even on small landholdings.

Context

Acharya Narendra Dev Agriculture and Technology University is a state agricultural university based in Ayodhya with a mandate covering education, research, and extension in farming technologies. The integrated farming plot the minister visited brings together aquaculture, poultry, horticulture, and spice crops in a compact, coordinated system — a format designed to be replicable by small and marginal farmers who typically operate on landholdings of less than two hectares.

Chouhan's visit comes as the Ministry of Agriculture continues to push diversification as the primary lever for raising farm incomes, a goal that has been central to national agricultural policy for over a decade.

Policy Backdrop

Integrated farming systems have been supported under two major central schemes. The Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), launched in 2007, has channelled funds to diversified farming projects across states. The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture, initiated in 2014, specifically promotes integrated systems to address climate risks and productivity gaps on small plots.

The combination of fish ponds with duck rearing is a well-documented synergy: duck droppings fertilise pond water, boosting fish growth, while the pond surface area is used productively — a model that has shown measurable income gains in pilot districts. Adding high-value crops such as turmeric, ginger, and drumstick to the same farm unit further diversifies cash flows across seasons.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries of such demonstrations are small and marginal farmers, who constitute the majority of India's agricultural households. For this segment, dependence on a single crop exposes families to severe income shocks from price volatility or weather events; integrated models spread that risk across several outputs simultaneously.

Agricultural universities serve a critical extension role: by running live demonstration plots, they provide visiting farmers, students, and state extension workers with a tangible, locally adapted template rather than a textbook prescription. The Ayodhya university's model, endorsed publicly by the Union minister, is likely to receive increased footfall from farmer groups and state government delegations seeking to replicate it.

What's Next

The minister's public appeal for farmers to adopt integrated farming models signals that the Ministry may push for wider dissemination of such university-based demonstrations through its extension network. Expansion to other Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and state agricultural universities could follow, potentially backed by RKVY or mission-mode funding.

Whether this visit translates into a formal policy directive or a scaled demonstration programme will be a key indicator of how seriously the Centre intends to mainstream integrated farming beyond showcase plots.