Lok Sabha Question No. 185 (STARRED), answered on 2022-03-15
Subject: New Scheme under PPP Mode
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Sangeeta Kumari Singh Deo, Sukanta Majumdar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 185

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 15 TH   MARCH, 2022

## NEW SCHEME UNDER PPP MODE

- *185.  SHRIMATI SANGEETA KUMARI SINGH DEO:

DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  proposing  to  launch  a  new  scheme  in  Public-Private Partnership(PPP)  mode  under  which  farmers  will  be  provided  with  digital  and  hi-tech services, if so, the details thereof; (b) whether  the  Government  is  proposing  a  Start-up  fund  with  blended  capital facilitated through NABARD for agriculture and rural enterprise, if so, the details thereof; (c) whether the Government has proposed to promote the use of 'Kisan Drones'; and the details of other steps being taken by the Government with an emphasis on the

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंी (SHRI NARENDRA SINGH TOMAR) (a) to (d):    A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

- (d) start-up ecosystem in agriculture?

## STATEMENT IN RESPECT OF PARTS (a) TO (d) OF THE LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION  NO.  185  FOR  15.03.2022  REGARDING  NEW  SCHEME  UNDER  PPP MODE.

- (a): Government has proposed following steps to provide digital and hi-tech services which will open up opportunities for Private Entrepreneurs:
- i. Digital Agriculture Mission has been proposed.
- ii. The  Department  has  constituted  a  high  level  Task  Force,  which  is  in  the process  of  finalizing  a  report  on  India  Digital  Ecosystem  of  Agriculture  (IDEA) which  would  lay  down  the  architecture  of  Digital  AgriStack  with  unique  ID  for farmers,  and  standards  for  interoperability  between  various  data  streams  in  the Agristack. This would open up possibilities for developing services and solutions by Private Entrepreneurs.
- iii. Provisions  are  being  made  under  Agriculture  Infrastructure  Fund  (AIF)  to fund private agritech players.
- (b):        Government  of  India  has  made  an  announcement  in  the  Union  Budget  2022 regarding the setting up of a fund routed through NABARD under a co-investment model to finance startups in the agritech space.
- (c):        Yes,  Government  is  providing  financial  assistance  through  Sub  Mission  on Agricultural (SMAM) to Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institutes (FMTTIs), Indian Council for agricultural Research (ICAR) Institutes, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Farmer Producer  Organizations  (FPOs)  and  State  Agricultural  Universities  (SAUs)  for  drone demonstrations and for establishment/upgrading the Custom Hiring Centres (CHCs)/ HiTech  Hub for  providing  agricultural  services  by  using  drone  technology.  Drone  service providers can also avail benefits of Agriculture Infrastructure Fund.
- (d):  A  component called 'Innovation and Agri-Entrepreneurship Development' has been launched  under  Rashtriya  Krishi  Vikas  Yojana  (RKVY-RAFTAAR)  in  2018-19  with  the objective of promoting innovation and agri-entrepreneurship by providing financial support and nurturing the incubation ecosystem. Under this programme, start-ups are encouraged to  use  innovative  technologies  to  resolve  challenges  faced  in  agriculture  and  allied

sectors. A total of 799 start-ups have been selected in various areas of agriculture and allied  sectors  under  this  programme  for  providing  financial  support  through  Knowledge Partners and Agri Business Incubators appointed by DA&FW for implementation of this programme.

The  Indian  Council  of  Agriculture  Research  (ICAR)  has  been  supporting  Agribased  startups  under  the  project  called  National  Agriculture  Innovation  Fund  (NAIF) initiated in year 2016-2017. It has two components viz. I. Innovation Fund; II. Incubation Fund and National Coordinating Unit (NCU):

- i. Component  I : 10 Zonal  Technology  Management  Units  and 89 Institute Technology Management Units (ITMUs) established in 99 ICAR institutes provide a single-window mechanism to manage innovations, showcase intellectual assets, and pursue matters related to intellectual property (IP)  management  and transfer/commercialization of technologies in these institutes.
- ii. Component II : Agri-business Incubator Centres (ABICs) are set up to speed up the  delivery  of  the  new  technologies  to  stake  holders.  The  ABICs  are  the  nodal point  to  provide  the  desired  link  for  Agriculture  Research  &Development  (R&D) Institutions for incubation/ commercialization of the validated technologies. So far, 50 Agri-Business Incubation Centers have been established and are operational in the ICAR network under the NAIF scheme.

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