Opium poppy licences: Govt raises minimum morphine yield requirement for farmers

New Delhi: The government has raised the minimum morphine yield required for farmers to qualify for opium poppy cultivation licences for the 2026-27 crop year, while setting a higher target for those seeking to continue cultivation in the following year.

Farmers growing poppy for opium gum must have achieved a minimum morphine yield of 4.4 kg per hectare in the 2025-26 crop year to qualify under the main eligibility category, up from 4.2 kg under the previous year's policy. They will need to achieve 5.9 kg per hectare in 2026-27 to qualify for a licence in 2027-28.

The finance ministry announced the annual licensing policy through three notifications issued on October 23, covering eligibility conditions and permitted cultivation areas for the crop year beginning October 1, 2026.


Opium poppy cultivation is tightly regulated, with licences issued for production on behalf of the Centre. The crop supplies opium and alkaloids used in medicines, including pain-relief drugs. The policy determines who can cultivate it, how much land they can use and the production levels required to remain eligible in subsequent years.

For farmers growing poppy for un-lanced straw, the qualifying yield for the current year remains 800 kg per hectare, based on production in 2025-26.