Lok Sabha Question No. 4275 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-19
Subject: Implementation of ACABC Scheme
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Smt. Bharti Pardhi, Shri Bhausaheb Rajaram Wakchaure, Shri Shrirang Appa Chandu Barne

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4275

TO BE ANSWERED ON 19 TH  AUGUST, 2025

## IMPLEMENTATION OF ACABC SCHEME

4275. SHRI SHRIRANG APPA CHANDU BARNE: SMT. BHARTI PARDHI: SHRI BHAUSAHEB RAJARAM WAKCHAURE

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

- (a) the total number of persons trained under the Agri-Clinic and Agri-business Centre (AC&ABC) Scheme since its inception and the number of persons who have successfully set up agri-clinics and agri-business centres out of them, year and State-wise, particularly in Maharashtra; (b) the Government's definition of a 'successful' agri-clinic or agri-business centre and the current success rate based on this definition; (c) whether any specific target has been fixed to increase this success rate and if so, the details thereof; (d) whether the success rate of established entrepreneurs is lower than that of trained candidates; and if  so,  the  specific  reasons  identified  for  this  discrepancy  including  the  corrective measures being taken to improve the conversion rate of trained agripreneurs into functional

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ͪष एवं ͩकसान कãयाण राÏय मंğी (SHRI RAMNATH THAKUR)

(a): The total number of persons trained under the Agri-Clinic and Agri-business Centre (AC&ABC) Scheme since its inception and the number of persons who have successfully set  up  agri-clinics  and  agri-business  centres  out  of  them,  year  and  State-wise  including Maharashtra, from 2002-03 to 2024-25 are attached at Annexures I, II & III).

(b): A  successful  Agri-Clinic  or  Agri-Business  Centre  (AC&ABC)  venture  is  a  venture established  after  completion  of  the  AC&ABC  training  program  with  self  finance  or  with financial  assistance  through  a  loan  and  availing  the  applicable  subsidy  under  AC&ABC programme  or  convergence  scheme  with  the  AC&ABC  Scheme,  duly  certified  by  Project

- (e) businesses?

Director,  ATMA,  Programme  Coordinator  of  Krishi  Vigyan  Kendra  (KVK)  or  Head  of  nearest Research Station of State Agriculture University/ICAR Institute.

(c): The targets for Success rate prescribed from 2025 onwards is 35% of total trained candidates.

(d) & (e): Yes, the success rate of established entrepreneurs is lower than that of the trained candidates due to reasons such as:

- i. Difficulties in getting credit facilities from banks.
- ii. Some of the candidates are opting for higher studies after undergoing training.
- iii. Some of the trained candidates are opting for other jobs.

The corrective measures being taken to improve the conversion rate of trained agripreneurs into functional businesses include:

(i) Credit facilities from Commercial Banks, Regional Rural Banks, State Cooperative Banks,  State  Cooperative  Agriculture,  Rural  Development  Banks  and  other  NABARDrefinance-eligible institutions. In addition, National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation (NSFDC), National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation (NBCFDC)  and  National Safai Karamcharis Finance  and  Development Corporation (NSKFDC) are also extending credit facilities to Agri-preneurs.

(ii)  Loans  up  to  ₹10  lakh  are  extended  under  the  Prime  Minister  Micro  Units Development & Refinance Agency Ltd. (PMMUDRA) Yojana, as per eligibility.

(iii) As per Reserve Bank of India's security norms for tiny industries, loans up to ₹10 lakh are secured through hypothecation of assets created, without the need for additional collateral.

(iv) Most of the activities are covered under the Credit Guarantee Scheme of Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Small Industries (CGTSI), ensuring enhanced credit access and reduced risk for entrepreneurs.

(v)  Activities  listed  under  the  AC&ABC  programme  fall  under  the  Priority  Sector Lending  norms  of  the  RBI  Master  Direction,  for  Agricultural  Sector  ensuring  favorable lending terms.

(vi) NABARD's District Development Managers (DDMs) facilitate timely sanction and disbursement  of  loans  and  subsidies  to  Agri-preneurs  under  the  AC&ABC  Scheme  by coordinating with Nodal Training Institutes (NTIs), financing banks, and other stakeholders. NTIs are required to submit a monthly statement on the status of Detailed Project Report (DPR) to the concerned DDMs, Extension Education Institutes (EEIs) and National Institute of  Agricultural  Extension  Management  (MANAGE).  The  DDMs  review  the  status  of  loan sanctions on the DPRs during Block Level Bankers Committee (BLBC) and District Level Consultative Committee (DLCC) meetings.

## Annexure-I

State wise details of number of persons trained and who have successfully set up agri-clinics and agri-business centres (AC&ABC):

| Sl. No.   | State             |   Number of persons Trained |   Number of agri-clinics and business centres set up |
|-----------|-------------------|-----------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|
| 1.        | Andhra Pradesh    |                        1838 |                                                  538 |
| 2.        | Arunachal Pradesh |                          48 |                                                    3 |
| 3.        | Assam             |                         845 |                                                  281 |
| 4.        | Bihar             |                        4575 |                                                 1630 |
| 5.        | Chandigarh        |                           4 |                                                    2 |
| 6.        | Chhattisgarh      |                        1036 |                                                  425 |
| 7.        | Delhi             |                          44 |                                                    6 |
| 8.        | Goa               |                          19 |                                                   10 |
| 9.        | Gujarat           |                        2309 |                                                  916 |
| 10.       | Haryana           |                         755 |                                                  251 |
| 11.       | Himachal Pradesh  |                         431 |                                                  112 |
| 12.       | Jammu and Kashmir |                        1556 |                                                  191 |
| 13.       | Jharkhand         |                         835 |                                                  222 |
| 14.       | Karnataka         |                        4883 |                                                 1968 |
| 15.       | Kerala            |                         304 |                                                   87 |
| 16.       | Madhya Pradesh    |                        5844 |                                                 2686 |
| 17.       | Maharashtra       |                       26136 |                                                13238 |
| 18.       | Manipur           |                         522 |                                                  135 |
| 19.       | Meghalaya         |                          37 |                                                    4 |
| 20.       | Mizoram           |                          52 |                                                    0 |
| 21.       | Nagaland          |                         187 |                                                   22 |
| 22.       | Orissa            |                         643 |                                                  116 |
| 23.       | Pondicherry       |                         159 |                                                   92 |
| 24.       | Punjab            |                         671 |                                                  225 |
| 25.       | Rajasthan         |                        5150 |                                                 2042 |
| 26.       | Sikkim            |                           9 |                                                    1 |
| 27.       | Tamil Nadu        |                       10085 |                                                 5091 |
| 28.       | Telangana         |                        2430 |                                                  665 |
| 29.       | Tripura           |                           6 |                                                    2 |
| 30.       | Uttar Pradesh     |                       20961 |                                                10071 |
| 31.       | Uttaranchal       |                         626 |                                                  212 |
| 32.       | West Bengal       |                        1276 |                                                  343 |
| Total     | Total             |                       94276 |                                                41587 |

Annexure-II Year  wise  details  of  number  of  persons  trained  and  who  have  successfully established agri-clinics and agri-business centres (AC&ABC):

| Sl. No.   | Financial Year   |   Candidates Trained |   Candidates Established Ventures |
|-----------|------------------|----------------------|-----------------------------------|
| 1.        | 2002 - 2003      |                 2400 |                               416 |
| 2.        | 2003 - 2004      |                 1828 |                               457 |
| 3.        | 2004 - 2005      |                 2925 |                               784 |
| 4.        | 2005 - 2006      |                 2894 |                              1416 |
| 5.        | 2006 - 2007      |                 3149 |                              1081 |
| 6.        | 2007 - 2008      |                 2742 |                              1040 |
| 7.        | 2008 - 2009      |                 2504 |                              1011 |
| 8.        | 2009 - 2010      |                 2564 |                              1111 |
| 9.        | 2010 - 2011      |                 3224 |                              1292 |
| 10.       | 2011 - 2012      |                 4015 |                              2136 |
| 11.       | 2012 - 2013      |                 4424 |                              2250 |
| 12.       | 2013 - 2014      |                 4451 |                              2321 |
| 13.       | 2014 - 2015      |                 5437 |                              2545 |
| 14.       | 2015 - 2016      |                 5259 |                              2582 |
| 15.       | 2016 - 2017      |                 5728 |                              2807 |
| 16.       | 2017 - 2018      |                 5646 |                              2490 |
| 17.       | 2018 - 2019      |                 6600 |                              2392 |
| 18.       | 2019 - 2020      |                 7340 |                               626 |
| 19.       | 2020 - 2021      |                 1190 |                              2475 |
| 20.       | 2021 - 2022      |                 5669 |                              3411 |
| 21.       | 2022 - 2023      |                 4794 |                              2734 |
| 22.       | 2023 - 2024      |                 4964 |                              2511 |
| 23.       | 2024 - 2025      |                 4529 |                              1699 |
| Total     | Total            |                94276 |                             41587 |

Annexure-III Yearwise details of number of persons trained and who have successfully established agri-clinics and agri-business centres (AC&ABC) in Maharashtra State:

| Sl. No.   | Financial Year   |   Candidates Trained |   Candidates Established Ventures |
|-----------|------------------|----------------------|-----------------------------------|
| 1.        | 2002 - 2003      |                  348 |                                58 |
| 2.        | 2003 - 2004      |                  212 |                               119 |
| 3.        | 2004 - 2005      |                  482 |                               188 |
| 4.        | 2005 - 2006      |                  560 |                               292 |
| 5.        | 2006 - 2007      |                  524 |                               118 |
| 6.        | 2007 - 2008      |                  508 |                               171 |
| 7.        | 2008 - 2009      |                  361 |                               207 |
| 8.        | 2009 - 2010      |                  507 |                               162 |
| 9.        | 2010 - 2011      |                  920 |                               357 |
| 10.       | 2011 - 2012      |                 1244 |                               750 |
| 11.       | 2012 - 2013      |                 1102 |                               595 |
| 12.       | 2013 - 2014      |                 1157 |                               617 |
| 13.       | 2014 - 2015      |                 1588 |                               797 |
| 14.       | 2015 - 2016      |                 1488 |                               754 |
| 15.       | 2016 - 2017      |                 1443 |                               996 |
| 16.       | 2017 - 2018      |                 1610 |                               843 |
| 17.       | 2018 - 2019      |                 1875 |                               934 |
| 18.       | 2019 - 2020      |                 2425 |                               199 |
| 19.       | 2020 - 2021      |                  493 |                              1040 |
| 20.       | 2021 - 2022      |                 2092 |                              1355 |
| 21.       | 2022 - 2023      |                 1669 |                              1242 |
| 22.       | 2023 - 2024      |                 1725 |                               770 |
| 23.       | 2024 - 2025      |                 1803 |                               674 |
| Total     | Total            |                26136 |                             13238 |

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