To create effective backward linkages and empower the farmers, the Haryana Government is implementing a scheme for grant-in-aid for the setting up of Primary Processing Centres (PPCs) and Collection Centres (CCs) for farmers’ produce in the rural areas of the State.
A notification to this effect has been issued by the Industries and Commerce Department.
The scheme aims to create effective backward linkages and empower farmers. This could be achieved by value addition of produce, provision of processing and preservation facilities at village level to help the farmers to enhance shelf life of perishable produce, resulting in better remunerative prices for their agricultural produce, said an official spokesman.
A piece of land measuring one to two acres would be required for setting up of these PPCs and CCs. Under this, processing facilities would be provided at the farm level, which may include facilities for weighing, cleaning, sorting, grading, packing, pre-cooling, Controlled Atmosphere (CA) or Modified Atmosphere (MA), cold storage, dry warehouses and IQF. Facility of mobile pre-cooling trucks or vans and reefer vans which may be suitable for transportation of perishable agricultural and horticultural produce, dairy, meat, poultry and fish would also be provided as per requirement. Value addition and processing of fruits and vegetables, using local produce as raw material, would also be carried out.
The grant-in-aid would be granted to the units set up in 'B', 'C' and 'D' category blocks. Only the units engaged in value addition and processing of fruits and vegetables would not be eligible for grant-in-aid available for the PPCs. However, such units would be eligible for interest subsidy of 6 per cent on term loan for a period of five years, subject to a maximum of Rs10 lakh per annum in 'B', 'C' and 'D' category blocks, available to micro, small and medium enterprises, said the spokesman.
Under this scheme, the maximum amount of grant-in-aid admissible under the scheme is Rs1.75 crore, which would be provided at the rate of 50 per cent of the eligible project cost. This includes the cost of technical civil works and plant and machinery. Besides, 35 per cent of the grant-in-aid, if available from the Union Ministry of Agriculture, would be deducted from the maximum eligible grant of Rs1.75 crore.
This scheme is applicable to both horticultural and non-horticultural produce, such as fruits, vegetables, grains and pulses, dairy products, meat, poultry and fish.
Those eligible for assistance for developing these facilities under this scheme include individual entrepreneurs, farmers, groups of entrepreneurs or farmers, associations or organisations, co-operative societies, self-help groups and non-Government organisations.
The applicant should have a good financial background to implement the project. The proposals for the project should be duly appraised by the bank or financial institutions. The appraisal report should contain the project components for which grant are sought under the scheme. The date of commercial operations should not be prior to the date of submission of application. No second proposal from the same applicant or organisation would be accepted. The applicants seeking financial assistance are required to submit their applications in prescribed format to the Director General, Industries and Commerce, within a period of six months from the sanction of term loan by the banks or financial institutions. Grant will be sanctioned by a State Committee headed by Principal Secretary, Industries and Commerce. It will meet twice a year.