Integrating Millets into India’s Food Programmes: A Narrative Review of Implementation Challenges and Suggestive Strategies

Millets are climate-resilient, nutrient-dense cereals that have gained renewed attention for their potential role in addressing food and nutrition insecurity, particularly in developing countries. In India, millets are closely associated with sustainable agriculture, rural livelihoods, and dietary diversification. This narrative review synthesizes existing evidence on millet production, nutritional significance, and their integration into national food and nutrition programmes. Relevant literature was identified through databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and official government sources, and was thematically analyzed to understand production trends, policy frameworks, and implementation challenges. The review highlights that despite India being a leading producer of millets, their inclusion in major food security programmes such as the Targeted Public Distribution System, PM POSHAN, and Integrated Child Development Services remains limited. Key constraints include inadequate procurement mechanisms, weak supply chains, limited consumer awareness, processing challenges, and policy-level inconsistencies. Additionally, structural barriers such as subsidy disparities and lack of institutional support restrict large-scale mainstreaming of millets. The findings suggest that integrating millets into public food systems requires a phased and coordinated approach involving policy reforms, investment in processing infrastructure, awareness generation, and strengthening of value chains. Promoting millets within national programmes has the potential to improve nutritional outcomes, enhance climate resilience, and support smallholder farmers. However, achieving this transition requires sustained commitment, inter-sectoral coordination, and context-specific implementation strategies.