India’s seed sector urges end to state-level approvals, price controls

New Delhi: The Centre is exploring means to boost the seed industry growth and is working on integrating acts like the Seed Act of 1966 and the PPVFRA Act (The Protection of Plant Variety and Farmers Right Act, 2001) into a single framework, said Union Agriculture Ministry Joint Secretary (Seeds) Ajeet K Sahu has said.

He was speaking at the 'Lab to Land' conference here on Friday, "The government is making proactive efforts and private and public sector players need to work collaboratively to address issues, including intellectual property," ICAR Assistant Director General (Seed) Dr D K Yadava said.

In the event, seed industry body the Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) unveiled its 'Ease of Doing Business' report, outlining short-term reforms that could save the sector Rs 382-708 crore by eliminating duplicative state-level procedures and delays.

India's seed industry has sought urgent government intervention to address regulatory bottlenecks that cost the sector over Rs 800 crore annually, with the Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) pushing for a unified national licensing system and removal of price controls to unlock growth.

The 106-page study, based on a survey of 55 companies representing about a third of the Rs 30,000-crore domestic market, highlights fragmented licensing, prolonged delays and redundant variety testing as key bottlenecks affecting the world's fifth-largest seed sector.

Regulatory friction alone accounts for over Rs 300 crore in annual costs from licensing and registration delays that cause companies to miss testing and launch windows, according to the report.

"Our survey shows that regulatory bottlenecks cost over Rs 800 crore every year. More than 54 per cent of Indian seed companies are MSMEs, for whom compliance costs average nearly Rs 64 lakh annually," FSII Chairman and Savannah Seeds CEO and MD Ajai Rana said.

The federation's immediate priorities include regulatory harmonisation under a 'One Nation, One Licence' framework to eliminate separate approvals across India's 28 states and eight Union Territories.

It has also called for launching a single-window digital platform for licensing applications to reduce paperwork that leads to delays of up to 180 days, often causing firms to miss planting seasons.

To boost research and development, FSII recommends restoring 200 per cent income tax deduction for in-house R&D expenses and scrapping existing seed price controls.