Lok Sabha Question No. 339 (STARRED), answered on 2025-08-12
Subject: World's Largest Cooperative Foodgrain Storage Scheme
Ministry: COOPERATION
Asked by: Dr. Bhola Singh, Smt. Kamaljeet Sehrawat

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COOPERATION

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 339 TO BE ANSWERED ON 12 th  AUGUST, 2025

## World's Largest Cooperative Foodgrain Storage Scheme

*339. Smt. Kamaljeet Sehrawat:

Dr. Bhola Singh:

Will the Minister of COOPERATION ( सहकारिता मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

- (a) the likely impact of the world's largest cooperative foodgrain storage scheme launched by the Government on employment generation in rural areas along with the role of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) in the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP);
- (b) whether the Government is making special provisions under the said scheme to enhance the financial stability and operational capacity of PACS, if so, the details thereof;
- (c)  the  details  of  the  steps  being  taken  to  link/integrate  PACS,  State  Cooperative  Marketing Federations and other cooperative institutions with an integrated cooperative supply chain under the said scheme;
- (d)  the  manner  in  which  the  said  scheme  is  likely  to  help  in  achieving  national  goals  like 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' and 'Sahkar Se Samriddhi' particularly in areas like Bulandshahr district of Uttar Pradesh; and
- (e)  whether  the  Government is  planning for  cooperative foodgrain  storage scheme in Palghar district in Maharashtra and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF COOPERATION सहकारिता मंत्री (SHRI AMIT SHAH)

(a) to (e):

A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (A) TO (E) IN RESPECT OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 339 FOR REPLY ON 12 TH  AUGUST, 2025 ASKED BY SMT.  KAMALJEET  SEHRAWAT AND  DR.  BHOLA  SINGH  REGARDING  WORLD'S LARGEST COOPERATIVE FOODGRAIN STORAGE SCHEME.

(a) to (b): In order to address the shortage of storage capacity for food grains in the country, the Government, on 31st May, 2023, has approved the Plan for the 'World's Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector', which has been rolled out as a Pilot Project. The Plan is being implemented through  convergence  of  various  existing  schemes  of  the  Government  of  India  (GoI),  such  as, Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure Scheme (AMI), Sub Mission  on Agricultural  Mechanization  (SMAM),  Pradhan  Mantri  Formalization  of  Micro  Food Processing  Enterprises  Scheme  (PMFME),  etc.    Under  the AIF  Scheme  the  benefit  of  interest subvention is given to the PACS against the loan taken for construction of godowns and under AMI Scheme subsidy is given for the construction of foodgrain storage. The Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has also made the following amendments under the AMI scheme:

- Margin money requirement has been reduced from 20% to 10%.
- The construction cost has been revised from ₹3000-3500/MT to ₹7000/MT for plain areas and from ₹4000/MT to ₹8000/MT for northeastern states.
- The subsidy has been increased for PACS from 25% to 33.33% (from ₹875/MT to ₹2333/MT for plain areas and from ₹1333.33/MT to ₹2666/MT for northeastern states).
- For PACS, a provision has been made to provide an additional subsidy of 1/3 (one third) of the total admissible subsidy for ancillary infrastructure such as internal roads, weighbridges, boundary walls, etc., for PACS.

Additionally, NABARD has allocated separate fund for refinancing facility to PACS under this Plan.

Further,  some  States  such  as  Rajasthan  and  Gujarat  are  providing  financial  support  for  godown construction under the project through their own State level schemes.

The  Plan  entails  creation  of  various  agri  infrastructure  at  Primary Agricultural  Credit  Societies (PACS) level, including godowns, custom hiring centers, processing units, Fair Price Shops, etc. and therefore enhancing the operational capacity and income of PACS and transforming them into multiservice centres.

This enhanced role of PACS aims to empower rural economy, reduce post-harvest losses, improve supply chain efficiency, and contribute positively to agriculture-driven growth, where agriculture and allied sector has a significant impact on India's GDP.

The scheme is also expected to boost rural employment, both directly and indirectly by generating employment during the construction phase of godowns and by creating long-term jobs for operations, warehousing, and logistics services.

(c): Institutions like FCI, NAFED, NCCF, State Warehousing Corporations (SWCs) and State Marketing  Federations  (SMFs)  have  been  roped  in  for  identification  of  PACS,  constructions  of godowns, providing hiring assurance, and extending operational support under the plan. FCI plays a critical role in mapping storage gaps for construction of godowns at PACS level and issuing hiring assurances, especially in non-DCP States. NAFED and NCCF, being national-level procurement and marketing cooperatives, are responsible for identifying PACS in their procurement zones, issuing hiring  assurances,  guiding  proposal  development,  and  ensuring  full  operational  utilization  of constructed godowns.  Additionally, SWCs,  in coordination with the Central  Warehousing Corporation (CWC) and State Cooperation Departments, are tasked with facilitating timely hiring commitments.

The Plan minimizes long-distance transportation costs and losses by enabling local storage of grains at the PACS level. Additionally, by integrating PACS with food supply management chain including agri-marketing and procurement systems, direct access to storage facilities is ensured for farmers, reducing their dependence on intermediaries. Hence, the Plan aims to ensure better price realization for farmers, reduce transportation costs, and strengthen the rural economy as a whole.

(d): The World's Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector is directly aligned with the national vision of 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' and 'Sahkar se Samriddhi' by empowering grassroots-level cooperative institutions with storage, processing, and marketing infrastructure across the country including agriculture-dominated regions like Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh.

(e): The Pilot Project of the Plan is extended to more than 500 PACS across the country including Palghar District in Maharashtra. It aims to empower PACS, reduce post-harvest losses, and improve livelihood and food security in the region. FCI has also identified storage gap in Palghar district for identification of  sites  for  godown  construction.  Further,  District  Cooperative  Development Committee (DCDC) in every district have been entrusted with responsibility to examine and assess the  availability  of  existing  storage  facilities,  their  capacity  utilization,  storage  gap,  capacity  of proposed godowns, viability of the applicant PACS, location of the proposed project, connectivity, logistics, etc.