What 12 parameters are tested on a Soil Health Card?

A Soil Health Card reports three macronutrients — Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K); one secondary nutrient — Sulphur (S); five micronutrients — Zinc (Zn), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn) and Boron (B); and three physical or chemical indicators — pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC) and Organic Carbon (OC). Together these 12 parameters describe the fertility, salinity and reaction status of the soil and form the basis of the crop-wise fertiliser recommendation printed on the card.

How often is a Soil Health Card reissued?

Under the Soil Health Card scheme, cards are typically reissued every 2–3 years for each landholding so that recommendations reflect changes in soil fertility, cropping pattern and management. State agriculture departments operate the testing cycles through the network of state, district and KVK soil-testing laboratories under the Soil Health & Fertility sub-scheme of RKVY (since 2022–23).

What pH range is considered normal for most crops?

For most field crops in India a soil pH of 6.5–7.5 is considered the normal or near-neutral range. Soils with pH below 6.5 are classified as acidic and may need lime application; soils with pH above 7.5 are alkaline and may need gypsum, sulphur or organic amendments depending on the cause (sodicity vs. simple alkalinity). Some crops have specific preferences — tea and potato tolerate acidic soils, while sugarcane and cotton tolerate slightly alkaline conditions.

How is a soil sample collected for testing?

Standard practice is composite sampling: collect sub-samples from 8–10 spots across a uniform 2.5-acre (about 1 hectare) grid, avoiding bunds, irrigation channels, manure pits and recently fertilised strips. For most field crops dig a V-shaped pit to 0–15 cm depth; for plantations and orchards sample at deeper sub-soil layers as advised. Mix the sub-samples thoroughly, quarter to about 500 g, label with farmer details and the GPS or survey-number reference, and submit to the state agriculture department, KVK or empanelled soil-testing laboratory for analysis as per ICAR / IISS Bhopal protocols.

Is the Soil Health Card test free for farmers?

Yes. Under the Soil Health Card scheme, soil testing and the issuance of the card are provided free of cost to farmers by state agriculture departments. The cost of sampling, analysis at a notified soil-testing laboratory and printing of the personalised card with crop-wise fertiliser recommendation is borne by the central and state governments under the Soil Health & Fertility sub-scheme (RKVY).

What does Organic Carbon (OC) tell me about my soil?

Organic Carbon is a proxy for soil organic matter — the decomposed plant and animal residues that hold nutrients, improve structure, retain moisture and feed the soil microbial population. Indian soils are generally low in OC: less than 0.5% is considered low, 0.5–0.75% medium and above 0.75% high (IISS Bhopal classification). Improving OC through farmyard manure, compost, green manure crops (Dhaincha, Sunhemp), crop residue retention and reduced tillage is one of the most durable ways to lift productivity and resilience to drought.

Soil Health Card Guide — 12 Parameters, How to Read Results & Act on Recommendations

The Soil Health Card (SHC) is a printed report — issued free of cost to every landholding farmer in India — that captures the fertility status of a specific plot across 12 standard parameters and prints a crop-wise fertiliser recommendation on the back. Used well, it is the cheapest yield-improving and input-saving tool a farmer has. This guide explains what is on the card, how samples are taken, how to read the numbers, and how to translate the recommendation into a season-by-season action plan. For the broader scheme context — eligibility, headline benefits and where it sits among other farmer-welfare programmes — see our government schemes for farmers reference.

What is the Soil Health Card scheme?

The Soil Health Card scheme was launched on 14 February 2015 from Suratgarh, Rajasthanby the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. It was conceived to give every farmer a personalised soil-test based fertiliser recommendation, replacing the “blanket” urea-DAP-MOP application patterns that had become widespread, and to slow the decline in soil organic carbon and micronutrient status across Indian arable land.

Cycle I (2015–2017) and Cycle II (2017–2019) of the original Centrally Sponsored Scheme covered the entire country in two passes of every 2.5-acre / 1-hectare grid. From 2022–23 the scheme was merged into the umbrella Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) as a sub-scheme called Soil Health & Fertility (SH&F), which now also funds micronutrient promotion, mobile soil-testing vans and the new GIS-enabled portal (SHC v3) at soilhealth.dac.gov.in. Government press releases (PIB) report that over 23 crore Soil Health Cards have been distributedacross the two cycles and the ongoing SH&F phase.

The 12 parameters on a Soil Health Card

Every card prints values for the same 12 standard parameters, grouped as follows. The lab method (typically Subbiah & Asija for available N, Olsen or Bray-1 for available P, Neutral Normal Ammonium Acetate for K, DTPA extract for micronutrients, Walkley-Black for OC, 1:2.5 soil-water for pH and EC) is laid down by ICAR-IISS Bhopal protocols.

Macronutrients (3): Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K) — the headline nutrients that drive vegetative growth, root and grain development, and overall yield.
Secondary nutrient (1): Sulphur (S) — increasingly limiting in oilseed and pulse belts, and central to oil and protein quality.
Micronutrients (5): Zinc (Zn), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn) and Boron (B) — required in small amounts but commonly deficient in Indian soils, with Zn the single most widespread deficiency across the rice-wheat belt.
Physical / chemical indicators (3): pH (acidity or alkalinity), Electrical Conductivity / EC (a proxy for soluble-salt content and salinity), and Organic Carbon / OC (a proxy for soil organic matter and biological health).

How soil samples are collected

The reliability of the card is set by the quality of the sample. Standard procedure under the Soil Health Card scheme is composite sampling:

One composite sample represents a uniform 2.5-acre (≈1 hectare) grid in irrigated areas, or a 10-hectare grid in rainfed areas.
Within the grid, collect 8–10 sub-samples by walking a zig-zag path, avoiding field bunds, irrigation channels, manure pits, tree shade and recently fertilised strips.
Use a V-shaped cut to 0–15 cm depth for most field crops, and deeper sub-soil sampling (15–30 cm and 30–60 cm) for plantations, orchards and deep-rooted crops as advised by the KVK or state-AU.
Mix the sub-samples on a clean sheet, quarter the heap until about 500 g remains, air-dry in shade, label with farmer name, survey number, GPS location, previous crop and date, and submit to the state soil-testing laboratory or KVK lab.

Best time to sample is after harvest and before the next sowing, when residual moisture is uniform and there is no recent fertiliser application. Analysis is reported in standard units — kg/ha for available N, P and K; ppm for micronutrients; % for OC; dS/m for EC; and a unitless number for pH.

How to read your card

Most state cards print the test value alongside a low / medium / high band so farmers can interpret the result at a glance. The standard ICAR / IISS Bhopal interpretation ranges are:

Available Nitrogen (N):low < 280 kg/ha, medium 280–560 kg/ha, high > 560 kg/ha.
Available Phosphorus (P):low < 10 kg/ha, medium 10–25 kg/ha, high > 25 kg/ha (Olsen P, alkaline soils).
Available Potassium (K):low < 108 kg/ha, medium 108–280 kg/ha, high > 280 kg/ha.
Organic Carbon (OC):low < 0.5%, medium 0.5–0.75%, high > 0.75%.
pH:< 6.5 acidic, 6.5–7.5 normal / near-neutral, > 7.5 alkaline.
EC (salinity):< 1 dS/m normal, 1–2 dS/m critical for salt-sensitive crops, > 2 dS/m injurious to most crops.
Zinc (Zn, DTPA):< 0.6 ppm deficient — zinc-sulphate application is generally indicated.

A “low” band signals that the nutrient is yield-limiting and that the crop will respond well to applied fertiliser; “high” signals that the soil already has enough and applying more is wasted spend (and in the case of P or K, may build up imbalances over time).

Acting on the recommendation

The back of the card prints a crop-wise fertiliser dose(typically for the two or three crops most commonly grown by the farmer in that agro-climatic zone), already adjusted for the test values on the front. Two principles govern how to act on it:

Balanced, soil-test based application.Use the recommended N-P-K dose as the starting point for the upcoming crop rather than the household's habitual urea-and-DAP routine. If the card shows zinc, sulphur or boron in the deficient band, add the corrective dose (e.g. zinc sulphate heptahydrate at 25 kg/ha as a one-time soil application) — these small-quantity inputs often deliver the largest yield response per rupee.
Integrated Nutrient Management (INM). Combine inorganic fertiliser with organic and biological sources: farmyard manure or compost (5–10 t/ha) to lift OC; green-manure crops such as Dhaincha (Sesbania aculeata) or Sunhemp (Crotalaria juncea) grown and incorporated 6–8 weeks before sowing; biofertilisers — Rhizobium for pulses, Azotobacter / Azospirillum for cereals and Phosphate Solubilising Bacteria (PSB) for all crops — applied as seed treatment or in furrow at sowing. INM both lifts current-season yield and rebuilds OC over successive cycles.

If the field is acidic, schedule a lime application (typically 2–4 quintals/acre based on the lime requirement test) before the monsoon, ahead of the basal fertiliser. If alkaline or sodic, schedule gypsum based on the Gypsum Requirement test, and water it in. These corrections take one season to act and pay back over several crops.

How to apply for or get a Soil Health Card

Cards are issued by state agriculture departments through their network of soil-testing laboratories, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and state agricultural universities. Practical routes for a farmer are:

Approach the block-level Agriculture Officer / Krishi Adhikari or the nearest KVK with a survey-number reference to the land; they will arrange sampling either on-site or via a mobile testing van.
Drop a sample directly at a state soil-testing laboratory or empanelled district lab, following the composite sampling steps above.
Track the card and download a soft copy on the central portal at soilhealth.dac.gov.in (SHC portal v3) — the portal also shows the location of registered soil-testing labs.

The Soil Health & Fertility (SH&F) sub-scheme under RKVY

From 2022–23, soil-health-related funding has been consolidated under the RKVY-SH&F sub-scheme, which supports four work-streams:

Strengthening of soil-testing infrastructure — district and mobile labs, mini-labs at KVKs and entrepreneur-run village-level labs.
Micronutrient promotion — subsidised distribution of zinc, sulphur and boron inputs in chronically deficient blocks, identified from the national soil database.
GIS-enabled mapping — district and block-level fertility maps generated from the SHC portal database, used by state extension services to target nutrient campaigns.
Farmer awareness — village camps, demonstrations and distribution of cards, often run jointly with KVKs.

Related programmes that build on soil health data

Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) — cluster-based organic farming under the PGS-India framework. Soil Health Card data is the baseline against which OC build-up under organic management is tracked.
Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) component of PMKSY — micro-irrigation (drip and sprinkler) subsidies. EC and pH from the SHC inform fertigation schedules and warn of salinity build-up under drip.
National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) — the mission under which the Soil Health Card Scheme itself was launched on 19 February 2015; supports rainfed-area development (RAD), INM and soil-and-moisture conservation, drawing on SHC fertility maps to prioritise blocks. From 1 October 2024 NMSA's components are operated under the PM-RKVY umbrella.

How this connects to other planning on this site

Pair the recommendations on your card with sowing and input timing from our India crop calendar: the basal dose from the card should go down at the sowing window for the crop, with top-dressing splits aligned to the critical-growth stages flagged month by month. Lift soil organic carbon over the next 4–6 years by retaining residue in-situ instead of burning it — see our crop residue management guide for the Happy Seeder / Super Seeder / Pusa Bio-Decomposer routes. For credit, the Kisan Credit Cardcan finance the additional micronutrient or organic inputs the card recommends, and PMFBY insures the season's investment against yield loss. The 1:10,000 soil profile map that the card readings sit on is itself being built out under the Digital Agriculture Mission (AgriStack, Krishi DSS and Soil Profile Map).

References

Soil Health Card portal (soilhealth.dac.gov.in) — DA&FW national portal: scheme guidelines, state-wise lab directory and farmer card download (SHC v3).
Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (agriwelfare.gov.in) — RKVY-Soil Health & Fertility sub-scheme guidelines and budget circulars.
ICAR-IISS Bhopal — Indian Institute of Soil Science: lab protocols, interpretation ranges and All-India Coordinated Research Project on Soil Test Crop Response (STCR).
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) — overall research mandate, package-of-practices and INM guidance.
Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) portal — locate your district KVK for sampling support and follow-up advisory.
Press Information Bureau (PIB) — official press releases on Soil Health Card distribution figures and SH&F updates.

Frequently asked questions

What 12 parameters are tested on a Soil Health Card?: A Soil Health Card reports three macronutrients — Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K); one secondary nutrient — Sulphur (S); five micronutrients — Zinc (Zn), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn) and Boron (B); and three physical or chemical indicators — pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC) and Organic Carbon (OC). Together these 12 parameters describe the fertility, salinity and reaction status of the soil and form the basis of the crop-wise fertiliser recommendation printed on the card.
How often is a Soil Health Card reissued?: Under the Soil Health Card scheme, cards are typically reissued every 2–3 years for each landholding so that recommendations reflect changes in soil fertility, cropping pattern and management. State agriculture departments operate the testing cycles through the network of state, district and KVK soil-testing laboratories under the Soil Health & Fertility sub-scheme of RKVY (since 2022–23).
What pH range is considered normal for most crops?: For most field crops in India a soil pH of 6.5–7.5 is considered the normal or near-neutral range. Soils with pH below 6.5 are classified as acidic and may need lime application; soils with pH above 7.5 are alkaline and may need gypsum, sulphur or organic amendments depending on the cause (sodicity vs. simple alkalinity). Some crops have specific preferences — tea and potato tolerate acidic soils, while sugarcane and cotton tolerate slightly alkaline conditions.
How is a soil sample collected for testing?: Standard practice is composite sampling: collect sub-samples from 8–10 spots across a uniform 2.5-acre (about 1 hectare) grid, avoiding bunds, irrigation channels, manure pits and recently fertilised strips. For most field crops dig a V-shaped pit to 0–15 cm depth; for plantations and orchards sample at deeper sub-soil layers as advised. Mix the sub-samples thoroughly, quarter to about 500 g, label with farmer details and the GPS or survey-number reference, and submit to the state agriculture department, KVK or empanelled soil-testing laboratory for analysis as per ICAR / IISS Bhopal protocols.
Is the Soil Health Card test free for farmers?: Yes. Under the Soil Health Card scheme, soil testing and the issuance of the card are provided free of cost to farmers by state agriculture departments. The cost of sampling, analysis at a notified soil-testing laboratory and printing of the personalised card with crop-wise fertiliser recommendation is borne by the central and state governments under the Soil Health & Fertility sub-scheme (RKVY).
What does Organic Carbon (OC) tell me about my soil?: Organic Carbon is a proxy for soil organic matter — the decomposed plant and animal residues that hold nutrients, improve structure, retain moisture and feed the soil microbial population. Indian soils are generally low in OC: less than 0.5% is considered low, 0.5–0.75% medium and above 0.75% high (IISS Bhopal classification). Improving OC through farmyard manure, compost, green manure crops (Dhaincha, Sunhemp), crop residue retention and reduced tillage is one of the most durable ways to lift productivity and resilience to drought.

Interpretation ranges and laboratory methods follow ICAR-IISS Bhopal and DA&FW Soil Health Card scheme guidelines. State-level cut-offs and recommended doses can vary; farmers should always read the recommendation printed on their own card and confirm with the local KVK or state agriculture department before purchasing inputs.