Features : Central Sector Scheme for Strengthening of Agri. Marketing Infrastructure, Grading and Standardization

The main objectives of the Scheme are:

1. To provide additional agricultural marketing infrastructure to cope up with the large expected marketable surpluses of agricultural and allied commodities including dairy, poultry, fishery, livestock and minor forest produce.
2. To promote competitive alternative agricultural marketing infrastructure by inducement of private and cooperative sector investments that sustain incentives for quality and enhanced productivity thereby improving farmers’ income.
3. To strengthen existing agricultural marketing infrastructure to enhance efficiency.
4. To promote direct marketing so as to increase market efficiency through reduction in intermediaries and handling channels thus enhancing farmers’ income.
5. To provide infrastructure facilities for grading, standardization and quality certification of agricultural produce so as to ensure priceto the farmers commensurate with the quality of the produce.
6. To promote grading, standardization and quality certification system for giving a major thrust for promotion of pledge financing andmarketing ,credit, introduction of negotiable warehousing receipt system and promotion of forward and future markets so as to stabilize market system and increase farmers’ income.
7. To promote direct integration of processing units with producers.
8. To create general awareness and provide education and training to farmers, entrepreneurs and market functionaries on agricultural marketing including grading, standardization and quality certification.

Eligibility: The assistance will be available to individuals, Group of farmers/ growers/ consumers, Partnership/ Proprietary firms, Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), Self Help Groups (SHGs), Companies, Corporations, Autonomous Bodies of the Government, Cooperatives, Cooperative Marketing Federations, Local Bodies, Agricultural Produce Market Committees &Marketing Boards in the entire country.

Credit Linked Assistance: Assistance under the scheme would be credit linked and subject to sanction of the infrastructure project by Commercial/ Cooperative/ Regional Rural Banks based on economic viability and commercial considerations. However, the stipulation of credit linkage and sanction of the infrastructure project by the Commercial/ Cooperative/ Regional Rural Banks will be optional for the infrastructure project taken up by the State Marketing Boards, APMCs & other agencies.

Assistance under the scheme shall be available on capital cost of the project only. Banks / National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) will, however, be free to finance other activities/working capital requirement to meet various requirements of the farmers/entrepreneurs.