The promise and challenges of India’s Direct Benefit Transfer agricultural subsidies
- From
-
Published on
13.01.20
- Impact Area

Agriculture is the backbone of India’s rapidly-transforming economy, and one of the government’s major challenges is the increasing burden of agricultural subsidies. Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT)—paying subsidies straight into the bank accounts of beneficiaries—is seen as one of the most promising pathways to enhance the efficiency of subsidy programs, and the government has been introducing DBTs in the farm sector.
What has the experience of implementing DBT for millions of farmers been like? Do cash transfer programs improve farmers’ available choices and reduce transaction costs? Policy makers, academics, entrepreneurs, and representatives of farmer organizations gathered on Dec. 29 in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, to explore these issues at a panel organized by IFPRI South Asia at the 102nd Annual Conference of the Indian Economic Association.
Photo: IEA
Related news
-
Ensuring water security in Africa requires gender-transformative change at scale
Gender Equality and Inclusion Accelerator13.06.25-
Gender equality
-
Gender equality, youth & social inclusion
Water insecurity impacts agrifood systems across Africa— impacted by climate change, coloni…
Read more -
-
New special issue of Food Policy examines fertilizer and soil health policies in the wake of global crises
International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)12.06.25-
Food security
Press Release June 12, 2025 In the wake of overlapping global crises of the recent…
Read more -
-
Beyond Emergency Relief: Rethinking Humanitarian Response in Sudan
Ibukun Taiwo11.06.25-
Food security
This post is the second in a two-part series on Sudan’s overlapping food, water, and…
Read more -