Discuss the need to replace the Seeds Act, 1966 in the context of contemporary agricultural practices. Assess whether the draft Seeds Bill, 2025 adequately safeguards farmers' rights.

Enacted when Indian agriculture was still entering the Green Revolution, the Seeds Act, 1966 governs a seed market transformed by private breeding, hybrids and digital supply chains. The draft Seeds Bill, 2025, released for public comments to replace it and the Seeds (Control) Order, 1983 [3], is a necessary but conditionally adequate answer to farmers' rights concerns.

Why the 1966 framework is obsolete

• Coverage gap: nearly 70% of seeds used by Indian farmers fall outside the present Act's purview, leaving most transactions unregulated [2].
• No deterrence: a maximum penalty of ₹500 cannot check the spurious-seed trade that causes crop failure and indebtedness [2].
• No traceability: the Act predates tools that can verify a seed packet's origin, making accountability in the supply chain difficult [2].
• Changed market structure: private and imported varieties dominate, which a certification law built for public seed corporations cannot adequately supervise [3].

How the draft protects farmers

• Traditional rights preserved: farmers may sow, save, re-sow, exchange and share their own seed; regulation applies only to seed sold under a brand name [2].
• Traceability: a mandatory QR code on every packet lets farmers trace origin and quality [2].
• Stronger deterrence: fines up to ₹30 lakh, with punishment for deliberate offences [2].
• Stated objective of safeguarding farmer rights and ensuring transparency and accountability in seed supply chains [3][1].
• Consultative process: pre-legislative comments from stakeholders and farmer organisations [1].

Residual concerns

• Agriculture is a State subject (Entry 14); farm bodies question Centre-heavy committee design, though the government affirms State rights remain intact with the Centre only coordinating [2].
• The farmer exemption's reach depends on how "branded sale" is defined in subordinate rules, and must sit consistently with the PPV&FR Act, 2001.
• Liberalised seed access raises affordability and seed-sovereignty questions for smallholders.

The Bill correctly shifts regulation from paper certification to traceable accountability. Its promise will be realised if the farmer-exemption clause is drafted unambiguously, States are given genuine voice in implementation, and enforcement capacity is strengthened — converting consultation into consensus, in keeping with cooperative federalism.