India sees corn as a new driver of agricultural growth

India’s agrarian transformation could gain new momentum from maize, which is increasingly being seen as a potential next step in the “green revolution.” While rice and wheat have traditionally been the backbone of the country’s food security, maize could now be a key source of productivity gains.

Over the past decade, maize production in India has grown dramatically, from 22.57 million tonnes in MY 2015/16 to 55.09 million tonnes in 2025/26. This corresponds to an average annual growth rate of about 9.3%, more than double the growth of rice and more than three times that of wheat.

According to Professor Ramesh Chand of ICRIER, this result is particularly significant because it was achieved without the classic price support system that has been in place for rice and wheat for decades. This suggests that growth in the maize segment is more about efficiency and technological change than government subsidies.

The expert also emphasizes that the development of maize has not only an economic but also an ecological dimension. The transition of part of the area from rice to maize, especially in northwestern India, can help reduce groundwater depletion, soil degradation and environmental pressure created by the rice-wheat system.

Thus, the future growth of Indian agriculture, according to analysts, will depend not so much on increasing resource use, but on crop diversification and the introduction of technology. In this context, maize can become a symbol of a new model of productive and more sustainable agricultural development of the country.

Tags: corn, India