Agriculture Infrastructure Marketing Scheme

The Directorate of Marketing & Inspection, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, has introduced the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure (AMI) scheme as a sub-scheme of the Integrated Scheme for Agricultural Marketing (ISAM) scheme for the creation of agricultural marketing infrastructure. The main goals of the program include establishing a scientific storage capacity in rural areas with auxiliary facilities to accommodate a variety of storage needs for farm products, processed farm products, agricultural inputs, etc., as well as preventing distressed sales by establishing the pledge loan and marketing credit facilities. We shall examine the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure Scheme in-depth in this article.

Goals of the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure Program

The following is a list of the main goals of the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure (AMI) Scheme:

To manage the marketable excess of agriculture, including horticulture, and related industries, such as poultry, fishing, dairy, livestock, and minor forest products, to improve the agricultural marketing infrastructure.
For marketing agriculture using the newest technologies
To raise awareness of many areas of agricultural marketing, such as grading, standardization, and quality certification, among other stakeholders, including business owners, farmers, market workers, and others.
Encouraging investments from the commercial and cooperative sectors to support innovative, competitive agricultural marketing infrastructure
Boosting farmers' income by promoting direct marketing and increasing market efficiency through the elimination of middlemen and handling channels.
To encourage the development of scientific storage facilities for agricultural inputs manufactured from farm products as well as to store farm products themselves, as well as to lessen handling and post-harvest losses.
To increase farmers' income, infrastructure facilities for agricultural product standardization, grading, and quality certification should be made available. These infrastructure facilities should also support pledge financing and marketing credit, negotiable warehousing receipt systems, and forward and futures markets.

Subsidy

For projects in the North-Eastern States, hilly areas, and those owned by SC/ST entrepreneurs and their self-help groups/cooperatives, 33.33 percent of the project's capital cost will be allocated to such areas.
All kinds of farmers will get 25% of the project's capital cost (Other than Women Farmers),
For cooperative storage refurbishment projects financed by NCDC and Cooperative Banks, the maximum amount of the subsidy is Rs 187.50 per MT of storage capacity, with a cap of 25% of the project cost as determined by FI or the actual cost, whichever is lower.

For the scheme's subsidy, the project's capital cost shall be determined as follows:

For godowns up to 1000 tonnes in capacity

In the mountainous regions of the North-Eastern States, the rate per tonne of storage capacity is Rs. 1333.20; the maximum ceiling is Rs. 400 lakhs.
For Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) beneficiaries who are Registered FPOs, Panchayats, Women, or members of their cooperatives or self-help groups, the rate is Rs. 1166.55 per tonne of storage capacity, with a maximum limit of Rs. 300 lakhs.
The maximum ceiling is Rs 225 lakhs for all other categories of recipients, who would receive Rs 875 per tonne of storage capacity.

For godowns with a storage capacity of more than 1000 tonnes and up to 30000 MT

In the North-Eastern States and mountainous terrain, the rate is Rs. 1333.20 per tonne, with a cap of Rs. 400 lakhs.
For Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) beneficiaries who are Registered FPOs, Panchayats, Women, or members of their cooperatives or self-help groups, the maximum ceiling is Rs. 1000 per tonne of storage capacity.
The maximum ceiling for all other beneficiary categories is Rs 225 lakhs or Rs 750 per tonne of storage capacity.

Eligibility Requirements

The following beneficiaries are eligible for assistance under the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure Scheme:

Individuals
Groups of growers, partnerships, sole-proprietorships, businesses, and corporations.
Farmer producer organizations that are registered (FPOs).
Groups for self-help (SHGs)
Governmental Alternatives (NGOs)
Local bodies cooperatives, federations of cooperative marketing organizations, and autonomous bodies of the government.
Companies for infrastructure projects involving storage.
State organizations, including autonomous and State Government Departments.
A group of state-owned businesses, like agricultural produce marketing committees and boards, state warehousing corporations, state civil supplies corporations, etc.

Contribution from the promoter and term loan

The promoter should contribute at least 20% of the project's total cost.
The minimum term loan, including the subsidy that the financial institution (FI) must approve, should equal 50% of the project's cost.
Promoter contributions to State Government and State Government agencies' storage infrastructure projects that are funded by the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) or Warehouse Infrastructure Fund (WIF) of NABARD will be waived under the rules of each fund.
When a State agency funds a project on its own, the promoter will contribute 75 percent or 66.67 percent of the project's total cost.

Schedule for When Projects Will Be Completed

Financial Institution shall submit a brief project profile-cum claim form for advance subsidy in the specified form to RO, NABARD, through its controlling office, within 90 days after the disbursement of the first installment of the loan, together with the supporting documentation listed on the checklist. Additionally, a copy of the claim application form and any supporting paperwork should be sent to the DMI regional office or sub-office. The financial institution will also let the promoter know that the proposal has been sent to RO, NABARD, and DMI.

Every quarter, NABARD will prepare a list of all proposals that haven't been submitted on time and send it to DMI, RO/SO.

RO, the State Level Banker's Committee will be consulted on the topic by NABARD.

Documents Necessary

The following is a list of the documentation needed for the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure Scheme:

Sending a letter from the nodal or controlling office of the finance branch
The full address of the controlling or nodal office, as well as the finance branch's phone or fax numbers
The financing branch's application form for advance subsidy claims
A duplicate of the claim form and any necessary paperwork
Application for advance subsidy claims
A copy of the project report, which includes item-by-item information on expenses, loans, total outlay, and margin, was provided by the promoter along with the financial institution's technical and financial appraisal report.
The civil drawings and approved design that show the infrastructure project's size and capabilities, certification by the Competent Authority, in the case of SC/ST beneficiaries and Cooperative
Documentation about the land on which the project will be built a financial institution certificate stating the promoter's category.
A copy of the partnership firm's registered partnership deed if one exists.
Memorandum and Articles of Association (MOA), and certificate of incorporation, in the case of the Company.

Application Process for the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure Scheme

Below is a detailed explanation of the Agriculture Marketing Infrastructure Scheme application process:

Step 1: Using the appropriate application form, the promoter must submit to the financial institution the project proposal for a term loan with subsidies.

Step 2: The Financial Institution will issue a sanction letter and all additional instructions following the approval of the term loan.

Step 3: As a sign of their acknowledgment, the financial institution will obtain a copy of the instructions that have been properly signed by the promoter.

Step 4: The financial institution will react within 90 days of the first loan installment being disbursed by sending RO, NABARD, through its controlling office, a brief project profile-cum-claim form for advance subsidy in the required form.

Step 5: The Regional Office or Sub-Office of DMI should also get a copy of the claim form and other pertinent documentation.

Step 6: The financial institution would also advise the promoter that the proposal has been submitted to DMI and NABARD.

Releasing advance Subsidy

NABARD will release an advance subsidy to the financial institution to hold in the applicant's Subsidy Reserve Fund (SRF) account, pending the availability of funds.

The Regional Office or Sub-Office of DMI will also receive a copy of the sanction and release letters from NABARD for each project.

The Disbursement of the Last Subsidy

After the project is finished, the promoter must notify the financial institution of its completion and submit all necessary paperwork, including a completion certificate signed by an authorized engineer or registered architect and a chartered accountant's itemized breakdown of actual expenses, both of which must be countersigned by the branch manager and the promoter.

The FI must submit the final subsidy claim and all essential documentation to the RO, NABARD, and regional office of DMI within 60 days of receiving the supporting paperwork from the promoter. They must also request a joint inspection of the project.

Also Read: https://tractornews.in/articles/top-10-government-agriculture-schemes-for-farmers/