India has built one of the world’s largest soil testing databases through its Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme, covering over 20 crore samples and issuing recommendations plot by plot . Yet, experts warn that the country is missing the most critical component of soil fertility—its biological health.
The current SHC framework tests only 12 chemical parameters: macronutrients (N, P, K, S), micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn, B), and soil properties (pH, EC, OC) . It completely ignores the living organisms that make soil function: bacteria, fungi, earthworms, and other microbes that cycle nutrients, suppress diseases, and build soil structure .
“International bodies like the FAO’s GLOSOLAN recommend including physical and biological indicators for a holistic assessment of soil health,” said Amit Khurana, director of CSE’s food systems programme, at a national conclave in Rajasthan .
The hidden crisis beneath our feet
India’s agricultural success over the past four decades has come at a steep cost. The intensive use of chemical fertilizers, particularly urea, has caused soil organic carbon (SOC) to plummet from approximately 3 per cent in the 1980s to just 0.3 per cent today .
This decline is not just about chemistry. SOC is the food source for soil microorganisms. When it collapses, the entire soil food web collapses with it. The CSE assessment found that 64 per cent of soil samples tested were “low” in nitrogen and 48.5 per cent were “low” in organic carbon—indicating a system-wide biological deficit .
“A critical function of healthy soil is its capacity to store organic carbon, which makes it essential for climate change mitigation. Indian soils can sequester an estimated 6-7 teragram of carbon annually,” the CSE study noted .
The policy gap: No framework for biological inputs
The problem extends beyond testing. India lacks a dedicated regulatory framework for biological inputs—biofertilizers, biostimulants, and microbial solutions that can restore soil life.
At a brainstorming meeting convened by ICAR in August 2025, Dr. M.L. Jat, Director General of ICAR, called for a dedicated and unified legislation in the form of a ‘Biological Act’ to delink bioinputs from existing fertilizer and pesticide regulations .
Currently, biological products are governed by the same framework as chemical fertilizers, creating regulatory hurdles that slow innovation and adoption. The meeting, which brought together scientists from across ICAR divisions and industry representatives, also proposed an ICAR-led toxicological data platform to facilitate microbial registration .
What farmers actually do—and don’t—use
Despite 25.89 crore SHCs being generated since 2014-15, the cards are often treated as paperwork rather than decision tools .
A ground-level investigation across Uttar Pradesh found that most farmers have never heard of soil testing or rely entirely on dealer advice. In a village near Lakhimpur, tribal farmers said their soils had never been tested. In Sitapur, a farmer said, “Humne kabhi bhi aisa koi test suna nahi hai” (I have never heard of such a test) .
When farmers do follow SHC recommendations, fertiliser use becomes more balanced, input costs fall, and yields hold steady or improve. But the system does not reward this behaviour. Agri-input dealers push chemical products because they offer fast, visible results and high margins. They have no incentive to sell biological solutions that work slowly and invisibly .
“Demand, not data, drives sales,” a Shahjahanpur dealer with a ₹10 crore turnover admitted .
The technological frontier: Metagenomics and AI
While policy lags, science is racing ahead. A review published in the Proceedings of the Indian National Science Academy argues that soil metagenomics—decoding the genetic blueprint of soil microbial communities—could revolutionize soil health monitoring .
By integrating artificial intelligence for real-time analysis, metagenomics enables precise interventions for nutrient cycling, bioremediation, and disease suppression. The review recommends that India develop a National Soil Microbiome Strategy, strengthen AI-enabled infrastructure, and reform intellectual property regimes to position itself as a global leader in sustainable soil innovation .
Field research is already demonstrating what is possible. A study at ICAR-NIASM, Baramati, examined how microbial exopolysaccharides (EPS) can mitigate drought stress in semi-arid regions, while another ICAR-funded project is developing extremophilic bacterial formulations for pesticide degradation and mineral solubilization .
At NITK Surathkal, researchers have developed a biochar–microbe system capable of removing up to 96 per cent of pesticides and 92 per cent of heavy metals from soil while enhancing crop growth . The system improved soil water-holding capacity by up to 41.5 per cent—a finding with enormous implications for climate resilience .
The biological solution: What works
Biological crop nutrition products are emerging as a viable alternative to chemical inputs. They must meet several criteria to succeed in Indian conditions: compatibility with existing fertilizers, applicability across diverse crops and soil types, rapid visible feedback, long shelf life (ideally two years), and tolerance to temperatures above 35°C without special storage .
The most transformative biological input in recent years is mycorrhiza—a symbiotic fungus that extends its filamentous hyphae up to ten times beyond plant roots, dramatically expanding nutrient absorption. However, mycorrhiza production is highly specialized, taking nearly four months under controlled conditions .
For farmers, the economic case is compelling. Field trials by major agri-input companies show that biofertilizers can reduce synthetic input dependence by 20-30 per cent while maintaining or even increasing yields, particularly for high-value cash crops .
The way forward
Experts agree on the path ahead. The SHC programme must be transformed from a scheme output into a shared operating system for soils—what one analyst calls “open, living soil infrastructure” .
This requires:
- Aggregating key parameters into simple village and block-level indices and maps
- Aligning subsidies and incentives with soil health outcomes
- Making all advisory systems soil-aware by default
- Creating a dedicated regulatory framework for biological inputs
As one ICAR scientist put it, the goal is not just to count samples and cards, but to ensure that every bag of fertiliser and every bottle of pesticide has to answer to the soil first .
For India’s 1.4 billion people and 1.4 billion farmers, the stakes could not be higher. The soil that feeds the nation is losing its life. Restoring it will require not just technology, but a fundamental shift in how we see the ground beneath our feet—not as dirt, but as a living system that sustains us all.
