Soil Health Card - How to Apply & Use for Better Yields

You do not normally "apply" for a Soil Health Card. Under the government scheme, soil samples are collected from your field by the agriculture department or its trained staff, tested in an approved lab, and the card is generated on the national Soil Health Card portal. So the practical steps are: make sure your field is sampled in the current cycle (by contacting your block agriculture office, Krishi Vigyan Kendra or village-level soil lab), then get your card by registered mobile number or sample ID. The cost of sampling and testing is borne by the scheme: the Centre gives ₹190 per sample to the state for collection, testing, card generation and distribution.

The card is useful only if you use it: it tells you the nutrient status of your field and suggests how much fertiliser, organic manure and soil treatment each crop needs. Used properly it can cut wasteful fertiliser use. See our scheme page and the fertilizers section for product details.

What is on the card

A card covers 12 parameters per land holding: three primary nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium), one secondary nutrient (sulphur), five micronutrients (zinc, iron, copper, manganese, boron) and three soil properties (pH, electrical conductivity, organic carbon). It then recommends doses of fertiliser, bio-fertiliser and organic inputs, and soil amendments. Cards are available in 22 languages and local units, according to the Press Information Bureau.

How samples are taken (so you can check it was done right)

• Samples are taken from a depth of about 15 to 20 cm using a V-shaped cut, from four corners and the centre of the field.
• Sampling is on a grid: one sample per 2.5 hectares (about 6 acres) in irrigated areas and per 10 hectares (about 25 acres) in rain-fed areas, located by GPS and revenue maps. A small farmer may therefore share a sample with neighbours; the card is issued for each holding.
• Samples should be taken after the harvest of rabi or kharif, or when no crop is standing. Do not fertilise just before sampling.
• Since April 2023, samples are collected through the Soil Health Card mobile app. The app fixes the location, gives each sample a QR code, and links it to the lab result. Ask the collector to record your survey number and mobile number.
• Labs are checked: 1% of samples are re-tested in referral laboratories.

Step by step: how to get your card

1. Find out whether sampling has happened in your village. Ask the block agriculture officer, agriculture supervisor or Krishi Vigyan Kendra. If you were not sampled in this cycle, ask to be added; you can also ask for sampling of a specific field.
2. Give your details: name, village, survey or khasra number, field area, Aadhaar (where asked) and mobile number. Ask for the sample ID.
3. Take the soil yourself only if asked. If you must submit a sample to a lab, take about half a kg from the 15 to 20 cm layer after mixing sub-samples from five spots, dry it in shade, and label it with your name and field.
4. Wait for the result. Labs upload the results to the national portal, and the card is generated from there.
5. Get the card. You can receive a printed card from the agriculture office, or check and print it on the portal soilhealth.dac.gov.in through the Farmer section or the Soil Health Card mobile app using your mobile number or sample ID. Menu names on the portal and app change, so follow the on-screen labels.
6. Where else to test: approved labs include static labs, mobile labs, mini-labs and village-level soil testing labs (8,272 in total as of February 2025, including 665 village-level labs). Village-level labs are run by rural youth, SHGs, FPOs and similar groups; they may charge a fee set by the state.

For help, the Kisan Call Centre (1800-180-1551) can tell you which office handles soil testing in your district. Government statements put the card cycle at two years, but a PIB factsheet also says a card is issued once in three years, so the real gap depends on your state's progress. Ask for a fresh test after two to three years.

Reading the numbers

Labs rate each nutrient as low, medium or high. Cut-offs differ a little between states and labs. TNAU's rating chart is a useful guide:

• pH: below 6.0 is acidic, 6.0 to 8.5 is normal to saline range, above 9.0 is alkaline (sodic). Acidic soils may need lime; alkaline soils need gypsum or organic matter as the card advises.
• Electrical conductivity (EC): below 1 dS/m is normal; 1 to 2 can hurt germination; 2 to 4 hurts sensitive crops; above 4 is injurious to most crops.
• Micronutrient ratings (zinc, iron, copper, manganese, boron) are shown on your card as sufficient or deficient. Do not apply a micronutrient that the card says is sufficient.

Turning the recommendation into a bag count

Cards give doses in kg per hectare or per acre for your crop. To convert: 1 hectare is 2.47 acres, so divide per-hectare doses by 2.47. Then convert nutrient to fertiliser using its nutrient content. Example (illustrative): if the card recommends 120 kg nitrogen per hectare for wheat, that is 48.6 kg per acre. Urea contains 46% nitrogen, so 48.6 / 0.46 is about 106 kg urea per acre (261 kg per hectare), usually split into two or three doses. If you plan to use part of the nitrogen through DAP, which contains 18% nitrogen and 46% P2O5, subtract the nitrogen it supplies. Always follow the crop and variety advice on the card, your state agricultural university and the label.

Common problems and fixes

• Card shows a different name or survey number: ask the block office to correct the sample record; the lab result is tied to the sample ID on the portal.
• Card not generated or not found: ask whether the lab has uploaded the result; try your sample ID or mobile number on the portal or app.
• Card seems unrealistic (all "high" or all "low"): the sample may have been taken from a heap, boundary or a recently fertilised strip. Ask for re-sampling.
• Old card: if your last test is older than three years, ask for re-testing; soil tests change with crops, manure and irrigation.

Soil testing is also the first step for other schemes such as drip irrigation subsidy, where some states ask for soil or water reports.

Sources

• PIB: Soil Health Card "Swasth Dharaa, Khet Haraa" (16 August 2025)
• TNAU Agritech Portal: Soil rating chart
• Soil Health Card portal, Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare