❖ The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has begun the process of formulating a National Agriculture Code (NAC).

❖ This is same as the existing National Building Code and National Electrical Code.

❖ In agriculture, it has already set standards for machinery (tractors, harvesters, etc.) and various inputs (fertilisers, pesticides, etc.)

❖ But there is no standard for agriculture practices like preparation of fields, micro irrigation and water use.

❖ The new NAC will cover all agriculture processes and post-harvest operations, such as crop selection, land preparation, sowing/transplanting, irrigation /drainage, soil health management, plant health management, harvesting / threshing, primary processing, post-harvest, sustainability, and record the maintenance.

❖ It will also include the standards for input management, like use of chemical fertilisers, pesticides, and weedicides, as well as standards for crop storage and traceability.