The Ministry of Cooperation recently shed light on the world’s largest grain storage plan in the cooperative sector. The goal of this initiative is to tackle the perpetual problem of food grain storage capacity deficits in India.
The Grain Storage Plan in a Nutshell
The project rests on two pillars— comprehensive infrastructure creation and scheme convergence. It intends to establish various agricultural infrastructures at the grassroots, particularly at Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) levels. These structures include warehouses, custom hiring centers, processing units, Fair Price Shops, and more.
Scheme convergence involves the integration of several pre-existing Government of India schemes— 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), Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY), and Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH).
Implementation Progress and Partners
With the backing of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Food Corporation of India (FCI), and others, the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) manages the pilot project across different states and Union Territories (UTs). Construction has begun in 13 PACS across 13 states/UTs with a vision to envelop 1,711 PACS eventually.
Oversight Through Committees
An Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC), established by the Ministry of Cooperation, has been given the responsibility to accept guidelines and methodologies for scheme convergence. A National Level Coordination Committee (NLCC) comprising members from relevant ministries and departments is charged with driving the plan execution and monitoring progress. State and District Cooperative Development Committees (SCDC and DCDC) ensure coordination and implementation at the state and district levels.
Advantages for Farmers
The plan’s execution will establish godowns at PACS level, enabling farmers to store their produce and secure finance for future crop cycles. It will also offer farmers the choice to sell their produce at their convenience or sell the whole crop to PACS at Minimum Support Price (MSP). This storage capacity can prevent distress sales and reduce post-harvest losses, ensuring better earnings for farmers through quality preservation.
PACS Role and Contribution
As grassroots-level arms of the short-term cooperative credit structure, PACS deal directly with rural borrowers, extending loans, collecting repayments, and undertaking distribution and marketing functions. The PACS’ operations as procurement centers and Fair Price Shops contribute significantly to cost savings in food grains transportation.
Initiatives Addressing Food Grain Shortage
The Ministry of Agriculture has undertaken several initiatives to deal with food grain shortage. These include the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA), Price Support Scheme (PSS), Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS), Private Procurement and Stockist Scheme (PPSS), Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), and Bhartiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL).
All these initiatives work in synergy to improve food security, enhance agricultural productivity, and increase farmers’ income. They further contribute to national food security by expanding storage capacity and minimizing wastage, resulting in a more reliable food supply chain.