Gandhinagar: Gujarat continues to strengthen its leadership in micro-irrigation, with 1.20 lakh hectares of cultivable land brought under micro irrigation in the last one year alone, the Gujarat government said in a press release.

As per the official data, over the past two decades, the state has witnessed a significant transformation in water-efficient farming. More than 16.28 lakh farmers have adopted micro irrigation systems across 25.05 lakh hectares, supported by incentive assistance of ₹9,224.27 crore under the Micro Irrigation Scheme. Of this, the Gujarat Government contributed ₹5,740.71 crore, while the Government of India contributed ₹3,483.56 crore.

Introduced in 2005 by the then Chief Minister and current Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Micro Irrigation Scheme was implemented through the Gujarat Green Revolution Company (GGRC) to promote advanced irrigation technologies such as drip, sprinkler, rain-gun, and porous pipe. With micro irrigation capable of expanding irrigated areas nearly threefold, Gujarat has maintained a strong lead in the sector nationally.

In 2023-24, about 1.30 lakh hectares were brought under micro irrigation. In 2024-25, the coverage stood at 1.20 lakh hectares, for which farmers received ₹605.42 crore in assistance, ₹329.42 crore from the state and ₹276 crore from the Centre.

Banaskantha tops the state in micro-irrigated area with 4.88 lakh hectares, followed by Junagadh (1.85 lakh ha) and Rajkot (1.35 lakh ha).

A major share of this expansion comes from the state’s middle-income farmers, who account for 8.92 lakh beneficiaries covering 16.42 lakh hectares. Additionally:

• 4.98 lakh small farmers have adopted micro irrigation over 5.90 lakh hectares
• 1.83 lakh marginal farmers across 1.23 lakh hectares
• 55,000 large farmers across 1.49 lakh hectares

Of the total 25.05 lakh hectares, 20.52 lakh hectares are under agricultural crops and 4.52 lakh hectares under horticulture.

Major crop coverage under micro irrigation:

• Groundnut: 11.02 lakh ha
• Cotton: 7.56 lakh ha
• Sugarcane: 0.16 lakh ha

Horticulture crops:

• Potato: 2.20 lakh ha
• Banana: 0.34 lakh ha
• Mango: 0.18 lakh ha
• Vegetables: 0.92 lakh ha

To simplify access, GGRC provides home-based pre-registration. Farmers can send an SMS in the format “Full Name – District – Taluka – Village” to 9763322211, or register online at khedut.ggrc.co.in. Once registered, GGRC-approved suppliers contact applicants for further process and guidance. DeshGujarat