Over 2,500 farmers in Punjab and Haryana have collectively earned Rs 2.9 crore from selling soil carbon credits, marking a first for the region. The payout results from agricultural practices that improve soil health and sequester carbon, with credits verified and sold on a carbon market. Each farmer received roughly Rs 11,600 on average, a modest sum that highlights both the potential and the current scale of soil carbon initiatives in India. The program is part of broader efforts to monetize regenerative agriculture. For carbon markets, this is a notable pilot: it tests how smallholder farmers can access carbon finance, and whether verification costs can stay low enough for such projects to be viable. It also raises questions about long-term soil carbon permanence and the need for robust monitoring. As similar projects expand, the key will be whether buyers see these credits as credible and whether farmers can sustain the practices that generated them.
