- By Kamakshi Bishnoi
- Thu, 29 May 2025 05:30 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Uttar Pradesh’s agriculture sector has emerged as a major force behind the state’s economic growth, contributing significantly to its Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), according to the latest District Domestic Product Estimates released by the Economics and Statistics Division of the Planning Department for the financial year 2023–24.
As per the estimates, the state’s total GSDP reached Rs 25.63 lakh crore, with the primary sector—dominated by agriculture—accounting for Rs 6.35 lakh crore, which is 27 per cent of the total. Of this, the crop sector alone contributed Rs 3.96 lakh crore, amounting to 16.8 per cent of the state’s economy. The gross value added (GVA) by crops grew by 13.74 per cent over the previous year.
Lakhimpur Kheri led the contribution to crop GVA with Rs 15,500 crore, followed by Sitapur (Rs 14,100 crore), Barabanki (Rs 11,100 crore), Bijnor (Rs 10,000 crore), and Badaun (Rs 9,900 crore). Collectively, these districts accounted for 15.3 per cent of the state’s total crop GVA.
The districts with the highest year-on-year growth in crop GVA were Bhadohi (32.55 per cent), Jalaun (30.49 per cent), Kanpur Dehat (30.11 per cent), Rae Bareli (30.05 per cent), and Jhansi (28.65 per cent).
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In terms of food grain output, the state produced 6.68 crore tonnes in 2023–24, including 3.97 crore tonnes of wheat—representing 31.19 per cent of the country’s total wheat output—and 2.64 crore tonnes of paddy (11.6 per cent of national production). Sugarcane production reached a record 24.95 crore tonnes, accounting for 19.4 per cent of crop GVA.
Top districts in food grain production included Shahjahanpur (19.30 lakh tonnes), Hardoi (18.23 lakh tonnes), Badaun (16.84 lakh tonnes), Jaunpur (14.96 lakh tonnes), and Aligarh (14.62 lakh tonnes). Jalaun recorded the highest growth in food grain output at 35.14 per cent, followed by Balrampur (34.35 per cent), Kannauj (26.96 per cent), Jhansi (26.42 per cent), and Kanpur Dehat (24.80 per cent).
In sugarcane, Lakhimpur Kheri emerged as the top producer with 3.21 crore tonnes, followed by Bijnor (2.36 crore tonnes), Sitapur (1.89 crore tonnes), Muzaffarnagar (1.67 crore tonnes), and Meerut (1.45 crore tonnes). Azamgarh showed the highest production growth at 53.5 per cent, followed by Mau (49.6 per cent) and Jaunpur (33.7 per cent).
Mango exports from the state saw a 7.59 per cent rise compared to the previous year. Unnao and Lucknow led mango production with 6.53 lakh tonnes each, followed by Saharanpur (5.85 lakh tonnes), Meerut (3.17 lakh tonnes), and Sitapur (3.14 lakh tonnes). Districts with the highest growth in mango output included Chitrakoot (45.4 per cent), Hamirpur (45.1 per cent), Jalaun (42.6 per cent), Banda (28.8 per cent), and Lalitpur (28 per cent).
Officials said the consistent rise in agricultural output, combined with strategic government policies and farmer-focused initiatives, has significantly boosted the rural economy and placed Uttar Pradesh at the forefront of the nation’s agricultural landscape.