Indian agricultural education is trapped in the Green Revolution period. ICAR reforms aim to overhaul curricula with experience in AI, climate technology, and global markets.

Satnam Singh was 28 when he joined the college for agricultural graduate degrees. Not willing to fall prey to unscientific farming practices and adhere to 'modern farming education', he had planned on carrying his family's farming legacy forward in Punjab's Ferozepur—and adding a 21st century spin to it.

But his BSc in agriculture and MSc in agronomy from Tiwari Agriculture Institute in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, had imbued in him something which was rooted in India's Green Revolution era days of scarcity-and-hunger.

And so when finally it was time to get his boots dirty, he realized how much farmers knew compared to what he had learned in his books.

"Whatever I have learned of today's agriculture, I have learned from working with farmers and not in classrooms," Singh supplemented.

His schooling had been confined to classrooms with outdated textbooks and no consideration of marketable skills—illustrating the need for Indian agriculture education reform.

Singh's experience is representative of the dismal state of India's agricultural education, in which the curriculum remains stuck in the dominant focus on increasing crop yields.

Though course reforms have been proposed previously, institutes ignore them as they are not mandatory.

Twenty-first-century farming is the big gaping hole in policy-making—and it starts with an antiquated educational system.

I have learned more about agriculture today than in schools

But over the last few years, it is these farmers who have been educating him—on the new machinery, artificial intelligence, new methods, export markets, new varieties of seeds, and adaptation to climate change.

Avinash Kishore, senior research fellow of the International Food Policy Research Institute, said Indian agricultural institutions are in an "incestuous trap" where professors merely teach what they learned years before.

These reforms, experts supplement, can help institutes gear up to address issues of the day like climate change, population explosion, erosion of the topsoil, technological upgradation, and the growing role of private players in the industry.

As it stands now, I would argue that an economics graduate from a quality university is learning more about social sciences, agriculture economics, and market systems than an agricultural sciences student," Kishore added.

He observed institutes have become better in terms of equipment but pedagogy remains to be desired.

"Agricultural institutes in India are largely educational and research institutions all in one, so they have huge potential for creating experiment-based systems. But that is not happening," he added.

The disparity is reflected in the latest National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) rankings. Under the 'quality of publication' parameter (worth 40 marks), IARI had recorded 38.69. It also got 10.50 out of 15 for granted patents.

Punjab Agricultural University, ranked number three, got only 29.87 on publication and 4.5 on granted patents.

Smaller institutes fare worse. West Bengal's Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya averaged a meager 5.87 in publications and zero in patents issued.

Statistics indicate that students are seeking education abroad more and more. Foreign Admits notes that since 2020, there has been a 30 percent year-on-year growth in enquires for agricultural courses in universities abroad, with a 75 percent growth in 2023 alone.

These are Canada, New Zealand, and Australia as sites for agribusiness, food safety, and sustainability programs.

Textbooks are a different story.

One of Singh's first-year textbooks, the 2015 'Principles and Applications of Agricultural Meteorology,' makes no mention of contemporary forecasting technology and fails to cover climate change. It talks about employing 'altostratus clouds' to forecast monsoons—despite the fact that, says the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the clouds have not been seen in the tropics in more than ten years.

ICAR reforms: modernise Indian farming

In the floodplains of the Yamuna, Dhruv Singh, a third-year IARI student reading BSc Agriculture with specialization in agricultural chemistry, soil science and entomology, swishes a metal rod across the ground. It's connected to a pager-sized small gadget his class created to analyze moisture and nutrient content.

"This device has the potential to allow farmers to analyze soil quality before they plant crops," said Singh. It is still in the testing stage but exactly the type of innovation the curricular reforms at ICAR aim to encourage.

Agriculture universities: adopt new approaches to cultivation

India's top institutions are at the forefront. 

IARI runs nearly 800 programs, ranging from microbiology and genetics to floriculture, bioinformatics, and agri-statistics.

"During course revision, we try to become a role model for small institutes and universities, which can take our models to improve their courses," stated AK Singh, director of IARI.

"It was like we were being asked to compete barefoot at the Olympics. But we have shoes now, and perhaps we can write a new chapter of history," he further added.

As India grapples with food security and sustainable development for its millions, agricultural education is seeing a renaissance—driven by the revolutionary power of fieldwork. The days when textbooks were the bible and class rooms were artificial are gone, fieldwork is the backbone of agriculture education in 2025, which offers students a ringside view to issues and innovations that are shaping modern agriculture.

In contrast to rote learning, field exposure makes students acquainted with real agricultural environments where they witness everything related to crop agriculture, pest management, and resource handling in situ. Not only does the field exposure enhance their scientific consciousness, but it also enhances very important life skills—problem-solving, adaptability, teamwork, and decision-making. Excellent teachers assert that these are the skills required to make young professionals ready to face uncertain challenges like climate change, resource degradation, and volatile markets.

Cooperation is an indicator of good fieldwork. Students interact with farmers, agronomists, and technical experts, mastering the shortcuts and people relationships that one cannot learn from books. 

Technology reigns supreme in the farm field training phase nowadays. Learners use cell phone apps, sensors, and remote-monitoring tools to gather and evaluate data, developing technical skill and readiness for a more digitalized agriculture sector. Teachers create holistic assessments—project reports, team projects, hands-on exercises—to make field experience worth it in the long term.

Apart from the individual, farm fieldwork is empowering rural people, encouraging cross-innovation, and building leadership among students. In overcoming the theory-practice divide, farm fieldwork is building a new generation of individuals as tough, well-educated professionals and will shape the future of India for sustainable agriculture.

Agriculture is an important branch of the Indian economy and society as it provides access to food production, agribusiness, biotechnology, rural development, and environmental sustainability. This has led to a situation where private universities in India are now associated with high quality programmes both at the undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral level in the field of agriculture and allied sciences. The following are the top private institutions and the best agriculture courses that they offer.

Leading Private Universities for Agriculture

Amity University: Known for industry ties, practical training, and cutting-edge labs.​

• B.Sc (Hons) Agriculture
• M.Sc Agronomy, M.Sc Genetics and Plant Breeding
• PhD Agriculture/Economics/Extension

Lovely Professional University (LPU): Offers ICAR-accredited courses and strong placement statistics.​

• B.Sc Agriculture
• M.Sc Agriculture (various specializations)
• PhD Agriculture

VIT Vellore:Popular for research, biotech overlap, and modern campus.​

• B.Sc Agriculture
• M.Sc Agriculture
• PhD Agriculture

Shoolini University: Known for research and innovation in agricultural biotechnology.​

• B.Sc Agriculture
• M.Sc (Agronomy, Plant Pathology, Soil Science)
• PhD in Agriculture Sciences

Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education: Focus on sustainable farming and high-tech training.​

• B.Sc Agriculture, M.Sc Agriculture, and PhD

SGT University: Specialized programs and ICAR approval.​

• B.Sc Agriculture
• M.Sc Agriculture
• PhD Agricultural Sciences

Mansarovar Global University (MGU): Offers diploma to postgraduate agriculture courses covering core and advanced subjects.​

What Are the Most Popular Agriculture Courses?

1. Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) in Agriculture: Four-year degree covering agronomy, soil science, entomology, crop protection, and extension.​ Practical study and regular internships are also offered.
2. Master of Science (M.Sc) in Agriculture: Advanced training in fields like genetics, plant breeding, horticulture, soil management, and agricultural economics.
3. Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Agriculture: Research programmes focusing on new tech, crop improvement, extension education, biotechnology, and rural development.
4. Specializations: Agronomy, Plant Breeding, Agri-Genomics, Biotechnology, Soil Science, Agricultural Economics, Extension Education, Plant Pathology.

Admission and Accreditation

ICAR-accreditated many private universities are guaranteed in the quality of the curriculum and recognition on the national level. Entrance tests (such as LPUNEST, AIACAT, university-specific tests or ICAR tests) are typically required to take up admissions, and M.Sc and PhD programmes usually require good academic background and research proposal.​

Why Select a Privatised University to study Agriculture?

1. State-of-the-art facilities
2. Good placement support and industry connections.
3. Technology and entrepreneurship in modern curriculum.
4. Cooperation with agro-companies, start-ups, and research laboratories.

In short, Amity, LPU, VIT Vellore, Shoolini, Kalasalingam, SGT University, and MGU are currently popular in India for offering agricultural courses. They offer all-inclusive education, cosmopolitan exposure and career based training, which equips future leaders in Indian agriculture.

The agriculture, India's backbone as profiled, continues to be somewhat under-represented in India's education system.

Agriculture, or the backbone of India as it is popularly referred to, is underrepresented even now in the educational system of the country. The wide variety of courses in Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Agriculture Economics and Farm Management, and Genetic Plant Breeding, can be a stepping stone to a bright future.

Agriculture And Its Role in Education

Prof. Madhushree Sekher, who teaches at TISS, Mumbai, is of the view that more students would become interested in the subject with increasing awareness for agricultural programs. She asserted, "Once the word about our skill education programs in the agriculture sector becomes widely known, I am sure there will be more student traffic for the agriculture programs."

Affecting the Indian Education System:

With the age of speedy technological growth, agricultural courses bring a new dimension. "This course contains information regarding how agricultural crops are cultivated and post-care treatment of fruits from primary earth to by-product. All process details are there in the syllabus," he added.

"Most of the students arrive in this stream with an eye on competitive exam preparation; none of them opt for the agricultural sector since there's no financially sound income in this stream," Hemant Jadhav said.

SNDT Women's University professor Mira K Desai observed the significance of agricultural education in transforming the mindset, which is an important part of education.

But there are some students who complain about unequal opportunities and greater recognition for agricultural engineering. B.Tech Agri Engg student Tushar Joshi highlighted the need for equal marking division, a distinct cadre for agricultural engineers in the irrigation departments, and foreign training fellowships.

He declared, "We want equal mark division for Agri Enggs Like BSc Agri students. There must be a post of Agri engg separate in the irrigation dept. Only agriculture students understand how much & what quantity of water is consumed by crops. It would be highly useful for farmers. We need a separate cadre for agri engineering in Maharashtra like MP & other states."

Indian agricultural education is on the rise because of changing attitudes and awareness of its ambit. As per a report released in 2018, the intake for seven 'technical' UG courses in agriculture has gone up from 51,822 in 2017 to 64,619 this year, a 25% rise.a

Subsequently, a recent report holds the view that the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) is likely to achieve its export target of $23.56 billion worth of exports of key agriculture and processed food during fiscal 2022-23. The recent estimates place exports at around $26 billion.