The main objectives of the sub scheme are:
- To develop agricultural marketing infrastructure for effectively managing marketable surplus of agriculture including horticulture and of allied sectors including dairy, poultry, fishery, livestock and minor forest produce.
- To promote innovative and latest technologies in agricultural marketing infrastructure.
- To promote competitive alternative agricultural marketing infrastructure by encouraging private and cooperative sector investments.
- To promote direct marketing so as to increase market efficiency through reduction in intermediaries and handling channels thus enhancing farmers’ income.
- To promote creation of scientific storage capacity for storing farm produce, processed farm produce and agricultural inputs etc. to reduce post-harvest and handling losses.
- To provide infrastructure facilities for grading, standardization and quality certification of agricultural produce with the objective of (a) ensuring a price to the farmers commensurate with the quality of the produce and (b) promoting pledge financing and marketing credit, negotiable warehousing receipt system and promotion of forward and future markets to increase farmers’ income.
- To promote Integrated Value Chains (confined up to primary processing stage only) to provide vertical integration of farmers with primary processors. Primary processing means adding value to the produce without change in its form and may include washing, sorting, cleaning, grading, waxing, ripening, packaging, labelling etc.
- To create general awareness and provide training to farmers, entrepreneurs, market functionaries and other stakeholders on various aspects of agricultural marketing including grading, standardization and quality certification
Eligible Beneficiaries
Assistance under the sub scheme will be available to:
- Individuals, Group of farmers/growers, Registered Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs).
- Partnership/Proprietary firms, Companies, Corporations.
- Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), Self Help Groups (SHGs).
- Cooperatives, Cooperative Marketing Federations.
- Autonomous Bodies of the Government, Local Bodies (excluding Municipal Corporations for storage infrastructure projects), Panchayats.
- State agencies including State Government Departments and autonomous organization/State owned corporations such as Agricultural Produce Market Committees & Marketing Boards, State Warehousing Corporations, State Civil Supplies Corporations etc.
Subsidy Ceiling
The total subsidy which can be availed of by a promoter for all his/her projects in a District during XII plan period (2012-17) will be restricted to a maximum ceiling of `4 crores or `5 crores as the case may be.
For projects involving standalone mobile infrastructure such as reefer van, combine harvesters (wherever permissible) etc., the maximum amount of subsidy that can be availed of by a promoter in a State/UT during the XII plan period (2012–2017) is `4 crores or `5 crores as the case may be.