Bhubaneswar: Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja on Thursday reviewed the progress of the ongoing Digital Crop Survey-2025 at a high-level meeting held at Lokaseva Bhawan. The meeting was attended by Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment Principal Secretary Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Agriculture Director Shubham Saxena, senior officials from the Agriculture Department and OCAC, while District Collectors joined through video conferencing.
Presenting the latest status, officials informed that of the 2.94 crore plots identified across 30 districts, surveys have been directed for 2.49 crore plots (85%), with 28,867 surveyors deployed. So far, surveys of 1.54 crore plots have been approved.
However, several discrepancies were detected in the fieldwork, including photographs not matching crops, photos taken before crop season, images wrongly uploaded to other plots, repetitive use of the same photo for multiple plots, and cases of paddy shown in fallow land. Taking serious note of these errors, the Chief Secretary directed rectification and warned of strict action against surveyors, supervisors, and officials responsible.
Ahuja instructed that the survey must be completed by September 30. Supervisors have been asked to verify 100% of surveys, and guidelines have been issued to block and district-level teams for cross-verification. Officials clarified that surveyors found guilty of submitting false data will forfeit their payments, and if payments have already been made, action will also be taken against supervisors and concerned officers.
Principal Secretary Padhee said qualitative data analysis is underway at the Directorate level. Any fraud identified, even in approved surveys, will invite punitive measures.
Reviewing district-wise progress with Collectors, Ahuja stressed regular monitoring and accountability. He underlined that the Digital Crop Survey will enable accurate farmer identification, targeted delivery of benefits like crop insurance, and effective utilization of land resources, playing a vital role in Odisha’s economic and social development.
He urged all surveyors, supervisors, and monitoring teams to ensure that the survey is 100% error-free through coordinated effort.
