The Top 10 Colleges For UG Courses In Agriculture And Allied Sectors In North India: NIRF 2023

As India is historically an agrarian country, hence, it is truly significant that in 2023, the Ministry of Education has introduced "Agriculture and Allied Sectors" as a subject domain under National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) for the first time. NIRF ranks colleges, institutes and universities on the basis of teaching and learning facilities, and extracurricular activities. Graduation, salary, and placement outcomes are also considered while ranking all the academic institutions.

A total of 152 agricultural sector institutions established across India, participated in NIRF for 2023. Out of them, the top 40 were ranked under the “Agriculture and Allied Sectors" category.

From these 40 colleges, there are 11 agricultural colleges that are from the northern states of India. Northern States include Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan and union territories of Delhi, Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir. Punjab and Haryana dominate the list with six colleges, while none of the colleges in Rajasthan and Ladakh were ranked in the NIRF of 2023.

For the benefit of our readers, in this report, we have considered colleges that offer the four years undergraduate programme. Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Delhi which ranks at number one position, offers only a postgraduate programme in agriculture and allied sectors. So, it is not included in the table for comparison. Please see the table below to know which 10 colleges have been compared in this article.

Percentage Of Graduated Students

ICAR - National Dairy Research Institute in Haryana is in the second position as per the NIRF ranking with a considerable rise of 16.18 percentage point more students graduating in 2019-20 to students graduating in 2021-22.

It is followed by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Punjab with third rank. PAU had a significant rise in the number of students graduating in the year 2021-22 compared to 2019-20. Similarly, at Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Punjab recorded an increase of around 20 percentage points graduating students in the year 2021-22 from 2019-20.

Most agricultural colleges had exceeded the percentage of students graduating in 2021-22 compared to previous years. But a significant decline was seen in: Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University and Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences. A decline of more than 15 percentage points was noted.

Graduates (In %)

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NIRF: Agriculture and Allied Sector: Placements

Despite LPU's significant number of students graduating within the minimum stipulated time, the university had placed less than 15 per cent of their students.

Lala lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences on the other hand showed a remarkable increase in its placement in the academic year 2021-22.

Placed Students (In %)

Gradual Increase In Salary Package

Students of LPU and ICAR - National Dairy Research Institute were offered the highest median package of Rs 6,00,000 during the placement year 2021-22. LPU is the only college with the most promising increase in median salary, from Rs 3.6 lakhs in 2019-20 to Rs six lakhs in 2021-22.

Salary Details

Less Students Opting For Higher Studies

ICAR - National Dairy Research Institute and Punjab Agricultural University are the only two agricultural colleges of the north zone which have seen an increase in the number of graduates who pursue higher education from the year 2019-20 to 2021-22. Punjab Agricultural University, Punjab despite a NIRF ranking of three has the least percentage of students opting for higher studies.

Students Opted For Higher Studies (In %)

Students who want to explore a career in agriculture can pursue agronomy, agricultural engineering, or animal husbandry from any of top-ranked colleges. Our country needs a workforce that is attuned to our intrinsic agricultural economy to strengthen the agrarian landscape of India. Agriculture being the pulse of the Indian economy not only opens gates for an aatmanirbhar (self-reliant) generation but also provides a base for optional mains examination for UPSC aspirants.

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