The Union Agriculture Ministry released the Draft Seeds Bill (Nov 12, 2024) to amend the Seeds Act, 1966 and Seeds (Control) Order, 1983.

Background for the Draft Seeds Bill,2025

• Seed Requirement and Availability: India required 462.31 lakh quintals of seeds in 2023–24 but had 508.60 lakh quintals, resulting in a surplus, however quality remains a key concern.
• Industry Demand for Modernisation: The seed industry argues that the 1966 legislation is outdated and does not reflect new technologies or modern trade practices.
• Farmers’ Opposition: Farmer groups fear that the changes may compromise farmer autonomy, seed sovereignty, and affordability.

Key Provisions of the Draft Bill

• Farmers’ Rights: The Bill allows farmers to grow, sow, save, re-sow, exchange, or sell their farm-saved seeds, and imposes restrictions only when farmers sell seeds under a brand name.
• Registration and Accreditation: All seed processing units must register with the State government, and a Central Accreditation System may be established to simplify compliance for companies operating across multiple States.
• Regulatory Architecture: The Bill proposes the creation of a 27-member Central Seed Committee and 15-member State Seed Committees, which will recommend standards and guide governments on seed-related regulation.
• Seed Quality Standards: The Bill tightens norms related to germination, genetic purity, seed health, and trait performance, and mandates Value for Cultivation and Use (VCU) field trials before approval of new varieties.
• National Register of Seed Varieties: A Registrar will maintain a National Register of Seed Varieties, ensuring that all approved varieties are documented for transparency and oversight.
• Seed Testing and Enforcement: The Bill provides for Central and State Seed Testing Laboratories and grants Seed Inspectors the power to search and seize under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).
• Penalties: The Bill prescribes penalties ranging from ₹50,000 to ₹30 lakh and allows imprisonment up to three years for serious violations.

Changes from the 2019 Draft

• Stricter Punishments: The new draft imposes significantly higher fines and longer imprisonment compared to the 2019 version.
• Linkage to Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights Act (PPVFR Act): The Bill explicitly aligns farmer-related provisions with the PPVFR Act, 2001. Hence, it can be said as the “Magna Carta” of Rights.
• Stronger Quality Standards: Quality norms have been tightened to ensure better seed standards.
• Liberalised Seed Import Policy: The Bill adopts a more open stance toward importing seed varieties.

Farmers’ Concerns Regarding the Draft Bill

• Rising Cost of Cultivation: Farmers fear that corporations may engage in predatory pricing, raising cultivation costs.
• Corporatisation of Seed Sector: Farmer organisations argue that the Bill could centralise control with large seed companies, reducing farmer agency.
• Threat to Seed Sovereignty: They believe India’s seed sovereignty may be compromised in favour of multinational corporations.
• Conflict With Protective Laws: Farmers insist that the Bill must not undermine safeguards provided by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Right Act of 2001, and India’s international commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
• Impact on Biodiversity: They fear that centralised mechanisms may weaken biodiversity conservation and farmer-led protection systems.

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Conclusion

As M.S. Swaminathan observed, “If agriculture goes wrong, nothing else will have a chance to go right.” Modernising seed laws is vital, but regulation must not become strangulation; India must balance quality assurance with farmer seed sovereignty.

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