Financial assistance of up to Rs. 2 crore for farmers to invest in community agricultural assets: Maninder Kaur Dwivedi

Chandigarh, January 2026 – Additional Director, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, Dr. Maninder Kaur Dwivedi said that under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), farmers are provided financial assistance of up to Rs. 2 crore for investment in post-harvest management infrastructure and community agricultural assets. Under this scheme, Farmer Producer Organisations, farmers, Self Help Groups and cooperative federations are provided long-term easy financing for more than 25 types of projects, including warehouses, cold storage units, sorting and grading units, processing facilities, and automation in farming and crop production.

Dr. Maninder Kaur Dwivedi was addressing the regional conference of Agriculture Infrastructure Fund and Farmer Producer Organisations of eight states, organised by the Haryana Agriculture Department in Chandigarh. Farmers, Farmer Producer Organisations, and bankers from 8 states including Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Ladakh, and Haryana participated in the conference.

The Additional Director said that the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) is a unique and ambitious scheme for farmers, through which better infrastructure has been developed across the country. This scheme has helped farmers become economically empowered, and its positive results are clearly visible. She said that the Central Government introduced the AI Fund to make farmers prosperous and happy. Under this scheme, support is provided from post-harvest crop management to safe storage and marketing, ensuring better returns for farmers. She added that the biggest advantage of this scheme is the creation of a value chain from villages to cities, so that even the smallest farmer at the grassroots level benefits.

She further said that through the AI Fund, loans are being provided to nearly 12–13 crore farmers across the country at interest rates of up to 9 percent. In addition, the Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (PMDDKY)  has been implemented for aspirational districts by the Central Government. One district from each state has been selected under this scheme, and it is being implemented in one district each of Haryana and Punjab, benefiting farmers. Praising Haryana and Punjab, she said that both states have utilised the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund as per the targets and have benefited the maximum number of farmers. She also congratulated the officers of the Agriculture Department for their efforts.

Addressing the conference, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, Sh. Anbalagan P. said that since the implementation of the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund five years ago, crops worth crores of rupees have been saved from post-harvest losses. He said that if crops are stored safely for a few days after harvesting, farmers can get several times higher prices. Therefore, farmers should definitely connect with this scheme to protect their produce.

State Project Coordinator, Haryana Agriculture Department, Sh. Chandra Mohan Dhiman said that under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, Rs.4,334 crore has been disbursed so far against the target of Rs. 4,850 crore, and 9,204 farmer projects have been approved. He said that special focus has been laid on crop diversification and the establishment of 3,095 Custom Hiring Centres in the state. He added that this scheme has opened new doors of prosperity for farmers in Haryana. He cited successful examples such as a potato seed plant in Bhodhi village of Kurukshetra, crop residue management projects in Nathusari of Sirsa, a solar plant at a mustard oil mill in Narnaul, and the Guru Drone plant at Taraori in Karnal.

During the regional conference, bankers and institutions were honoured with mementos for successful implementation of the AI Fund for farmers, best performance by states, and commendable work under the Outreach Programme. State Bank of India secured first position at the regional level by approving 11,250 projects and disbursing Rs. 2,420 crore. Punjab National Bank secured second position by approving 3,847 projects and disbursing Rs. 1,151 crore, while Bank of India secured third position by approving 4,559 projects and disbursing Rs. 1,014 crore.

In the category of Regional Rural Banks, Haryana Gramin Bank secured first position by approving 799 projects worth Rs. 168 crore, Punjab Gramin Bank secured second position by approving 1,589 projects worth Rs. 158 crore, and Uttar Pradesh Gramin Bank secured third position by approving 1,280 projects worth Rs. 155 crore. Private sector banks including HDFC Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, and IDBI Bank were also appreciated for their commendable work. Banks approving projects through geo-tagging were also honoured.

At the state level, Punjab secured first position by approving 17,117 projects and disbursing Rs. 3,114 crore, Uttar Pradesh secured second position by approving 7,683 projects and disbursing Rs. 2,563 crore, while Haryana secured third position by approving 5,694 projects and disbursing Rs. 1,648 crore under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund.

Director General, Directorate of Horticulture, Haryana, Sh. Ranbir Singh, Director, Horticulture Department, Punjab, Smt. Shailender Kaur along with several senior officers, also addressed the regional conference.