{"id":56333,"date":"2025-07-23T11:33:30","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T06:03:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=56333"},"modified":"2025-07-23T11:33:30","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T06:03:30","slug":"biostimulants-in-india-benefits-market-growth-new-government-regulations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/biostimulants-in-india-benefits-market-growth-new-government-regulations\/","title":{"rendered":"Biostimulants in India: Benefits, Market Growth &#038; New Government Regulations"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Biostimulants Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has asked state Chief Ministers to stop the forced sale of nano-fertilisers or biostimulants with subsidised fertilisers like urea and DAP.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many farmers complained that shopkeepers were not giving them subsidised fertilisers unless they also bought biostimulants. Farmers also said these biostimulants were not working well.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Minister said a full review is needed. If biostimulants do not help farmers, their sale will not be allowed.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>About Biostimulants<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants are substances or microorganisms that help improve plant growth and productivity.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They work by stimulating natural processes in plants, such as nutrient absorption, stress tolerance, and overall yield.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These substances are sometimes made from <\/span><b>plant waste or seaweed<\/b> <b>extracts.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to the Fertiliser Control Order of 1985, biostimulants are used on plants, seeds, or soil (rhizosphere) to support growth and <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">do not include pesticides or plant growth regulators, which are governed by separate laws<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Benefits of Biostimulants<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Stress Tolerance Enhancement<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Improve plant response to environmental stress (drought, heat); Boost germination, root growth, and nutrient uptake.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Better Grain &amp; Fruit Quality<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Enhance grain fill in crops like corn; Support fruit coloring and postharvest quality; Improve <\/span><b>drought resilience<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> during critical growth phases.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Growth Promotion<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Contain growth-promoting microbes; Increase leaf area, seedling height, and overall crop yield.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Key Differences Between Biostimulants and Fertilizers<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Function<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fertilizers: Supply essential nutrients (NPK) directly.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants: Enhance nutrient uptake and internal plant processes.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Plant Health Approach<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fertilizers: Focus on basic growth through nutrition.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants: Improve stress tolerance and overall resilience.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Soil Impact<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fertilizers: May degrade soil and harm microbes with overuse.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants: Boost soil microbes and improve long-term fertility.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Regulation<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fertilizers: Tightly regulated based on nutrient content.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants: Less regulated; defined by function, not content.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Environmental Effect<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fertilizers: Risk of runoff and pollution.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants: Eco-friendly; reduce need for excess fertilizer.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b style=\"font-family: inherit; font-size: 35px; font-style: inherit;\">India\u2019s Growing Biostimulant Market<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s biostimulant market was valued at USD 355.53 million in 2024 and is expected to grow to USD 1,135.96 million by 2032, with a CAGR of 15.64%.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, the market has faced issues with unregulated products.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan stated that nearly 30,000 biostimulant products were sold without checks for years.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even in the past four years, around 8,000 such products remained in use.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Due to stricter regulations now enforced, the number has dropped to about 650 as of July 15.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"3\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In May 2025, the Agriculture Ministry issued new specifications for biostimulants for various crops, signalling a more stringent and standardised regulatory approach going forward.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Why the Government Began Regulating Biostimulants<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants were long sold without government approval because they did not fall under the categories of fertilisers or pesticides regulated by the <\/span><b>Fertiliser Control Order (FCO), 1985<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, or <\/span><b>the Insecticides Act, 1968<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2011, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ruled that any product claiming to act like a fertiliser or insecticide but not covered under existing laws must be examined by state authorities before being sold.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As biostimulant use grew, the Centre took notice. By <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2017, NITI Aayog and the Agriculture Ministry began drafting a regulatory framework<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This led to an amendment of the FCO in February 2021, officially bringing biostimulants under regulation for production, sale, and import.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>FCO Guidelines on Biostimulants<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The inclusion of biostimulants under the Fertiliser Control Order (FCO) empowers the Central government to set specifications.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The FCO classifies biostimulants into <\/span><b>eight categories<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> such as botanical extracts, seaweed extracts, bio-chemicals, vitamins, and antioxidants.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Manufacturers or importers must apply to the Controller of Fertilisers, submitting details about the product\u2019s chemistry, source, shelf-life, bio-efficacy trial results, and toxicity data.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Toxicity testing involves <\/span><b>five acute toxicity tests<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on rats and rabbits, and <\/span><b>four eco-toxicity tests<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> assessing impact on birds, fish, honeybees, and earthworms.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biostimulants must not contain pesticide residues beyond 0.01 ppm.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Efficacy trials must be conducted at three doses across three agro-ecological zones for one season through recognised agricultural institutions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Additionally, a <\/span><b>Central Biostimulant Committee<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> was formed in April 2021, chaired by the Agriculture Commissioner.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This committee advises the government on new biostimulant inclusion, setting standards, testing protocols, lab requirements, and other regulatory matters.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-economics\/biostimulants-meaning-agri-fertiliser-shivraj-farmers-10138567\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IE<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> | <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vlsci.com\/blog\/benefits-of-biostimulants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">VLSCI<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Explore how biostimulants boost plant health, their key differences from fertilizers, India\u2019s market growth, and new government regulations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":56380,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[1748,60,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-56333","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-biostimulants","9":"tag-mains-articles","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}