Reform Express at the Farm Gate: Why Food and Fertiliser Subsidies Are India’s Next Big Test

The real reform test

If “Reform Express” is to remain credible beyond FY26, agriculture cannot remain the exception to reform. Merging food and fertiliser subsidies into a streamlined, income-support framework would reduce distortions, empower farmers to respond to market signals and improve fiscal sustainability.

Such reforms are politically difficult precisely because they affect large constituencies. But that difficulty also makes them the clearest test of reform intent. High growth built on unresolved rural distress is neither durable nor inclusive. Whether the Reform Express accelerates or stalls will depend on how boldly India confronts this agricultural crossroads.