India to create modern infrastructure for enhancing farm gate to retail outlet concept

NEW DELHI, 27 September 2018 : Indian Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Radha Mohan Singh has said that a developed agri food value chain in the country can not only enhance the farm income of farmers but also make available quality food to the consumers. It will also help in substantially reducing the harvest and post-harvest losses occurring at various stages of the agri food value chain.

He stated this while addressing the gathering at the inauguration ceremony of the ASSOCHAM’s 2-day Exhibitions, Conferences & Roundtables on Agri Food Value Chain Partnerships - End to End Approach.

The Minister said that Modi Government is committed to promoting Agri Food Value Chain related activities at local, regional, national and also International level. e-NAM was launched by the government to reduce the supply chain by integrating the value chain participants. So far, 585 mandis have already been added to the e-NAM portal and within the next two years, 415 additional mandis will be added.

He informed that in order to address the problem of fluctuations in the prices of tomatoes, onions and potatoes (TOP), "Operation Green" was launched with an outlay of Rs 500 crore in this year’s budget. Under this scheme, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), agricultural logistics, processing facilities and professional management will be promoted.

Singh also informed that under the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), the Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region was approved on January 2016 with a total outlay of Rs 400 crore.

Besides this, the government has approved a new Central Sector Scheme – Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana (Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters) for the period 2016-20 co-terminous with the 14th Finance Commission cycle. PM Kisan SAMPADA Yojana is a comprehensive package which will result in creation of modern infrastructure with efficient supply chain management from farm gate to retail outlet.