In a significant move to protect India's farming community, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has unveiled a comprehensive new Seeds Bill that promises to revolutionize seed regulation in the country. The proposed legislation, revealed on November 13, aims to replace the six-decade-old Seeds Act of 1966 with stronger provisions and stricter penalties.
Why India Needs a New Seeds Law
The existing Seeds Act, which has governed India's agricultural sector since 1966, has shown significant limitations in addressing contemporary challenges. The current law only regulates notified kinds and varieties, leaving research hybrid varieties and non-notified varieties outside its purview. Additionally, registration of seeds remains voluntary rather than mandatory under the present framework.
Critical gaps in the old legislation include the exclusion of green manure seeds, commercial crops, and plantation crops from regulation. Perhaps most importantly, penalties under the current law are insufficient to deter the sale of substandard and spurious seeds that have plagued farmers across the nation.
This isn't the first attempt to update seed regulations. A previous Bill introduced in Rajya Sabha on December 9, 2004, was referred to a Parliamentary committee but never became law, highlighting the long-standing need for reform that the current government aims to address.
The Scale of the Spurious Seeds Problem
The urgency for stronger regulation becomes clear when examining the extent of the spurious seeds issue. Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has repeatedly flagged concerns about substandard seeds in the market, and recent data confirms the severity of the problem.
In response to a parliamentary question from Congress member Randeep Singh Surjewala on August 8, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Ramnath Thakur revealed alarming statistics. 43,001 seed samples were found non-standard in the last three years (2022-25) out of 5,97,859 samples tested.
The geographical distribution of these violations shows West Bengal accounting for a staggering 62 percent (26,603 samples), followed by Tamil Nadu (4,448 samples) and Madhya Pradesh (3,517 samples). State authorities have taken strong action, issuing 12,287 warnings, 12,915 stop-sale orders, filing 1,914 FIRs/cases, and reporting 164 forfeitures over the same period.
Key Provisions of the Seeds Bill 2025
The draft Seeds Bill, 2025 introduces several groundbreaking changes designed to protect farmers and ensure seed quality. Mandatory registration of all seed varieties stands as the cornerstone of the new legislation, with limited exceptions for farmers' varieties and seeds produced exclusively for export.
Section 13 of the Bill clearly states: "On and from the date of commencement of this Act, no seed of any kind or variety except farmers' variety and kind or variety produced exclusively for export purpose shall be sold unless such kind or variety is registered." Existing varieties notified under the Seeds Act, 1966 will be deemed registered under the new law.
The ministry emphasizes that the Bill is "aligned with current agricultural and regulatory requirements" and will replace both the Seeds Act, 1966 and the Seeds (Control) Order, 1983. The comprehensive approach aims to regulate seed quality for both sale and import while ensuring farmers' access to high-quality seeds at affordable rates.
Strict Penalties for Major Offences
The proposed legislation categorizes offences into three levels: trivial, minor, and major. For the most serious violations, the Bill prescribes stringent punishments that mark a significant escalation from current penalties.
Major offences include supplying spurious seeds, supplying non-registered varieties, and operating without proper registration as a dealer, distributor, producer, seed processor, or plant nursery. These violations will attract a maximum penalty of Rs 30 lakh and up to three years' imprisonment.
The ministry has adopted a balanced approach, stating that the draft Bill proposes to "decriminalise minor offences while maintaining strong provisions to penalise serious violations effectively." This differentiation ensures that genuine errors don't face disproportionate punishment while maintaining zero tolerance for deliberate fraud.
India's Seed Requirements and Market
The significance of this legislation becomes even more apparent when considering the scale of India's seed market. According to Agriculture Ministry data, India's seeds market is valued at approximately Rs 40,000 crore, serving millions of farmers across the country.
Annual seed requirement for 2024-25 was estimated at 48.20 lakh tonnes against availability of 53.15 lakh tonnes. From May 2014 to August 2025, India released 3,053 varieties, with the public sector contributing 85 percent and the private sector accounting for 15 percent of these releases.
The new Bill aims to create a more robust framework that supports this massive ecosystem while protecting its most vulnerable participants - the farmers who depend on quality seeds for their livelihoods.
Next Steps and Implementation Timeline
The ministry has invited public comments on the draft Bill, with December 11, 2025, set as the deadline for feedback. After incorporating suggestions from stakeholders, the draft will proceed to the Union Cabinet for approval before being introduced in Parliament.
At an event on October 30, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan indicated that the government aims to introduce both the Seeds Bill and Pesticides Bill during the Budget Session early next year, signaling the administration's commitment to comprehensive agricultural reform.
This legislative push represents a crucial step toward modernizing India's agricultural regulatory framework, ensuring farmers receive quality seeds, and strengthening the foundation of the nation's food security system for generations to come.
