Balaghat District Chosen for Pilot of India’s Largest Cooperative Grain Storage Plan

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Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh has been selected as the first district to implement the World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan for the Cooperative Sector (WLGSP). As part of this pilot, a 500-metric-tonne storage facility has been constructed at the Bahudeshiya Prathamik Krishi Saakh Sahakari Society Maryadit in Parswada. The Prime Minister officially inaugurated the godown on 24 February 2024, and it is now managed by the Madhya Pradesh Warehousing and Logistics Corporation (MPWLC).

This initiative aims to bring grain storage closer to farmers by strengthening infrastructure at the Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS) level.

Coordinated Implementation Through Government Schemes

The project leverages multiple existing schemes to support storage development, including:

• Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) – providing PACS with subsidised loans and extended repayment terms of 2+8 years.

• Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure (AMI) Scheme – offering grants for storage construction.

• Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) and PM Formalization of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme – supporting modernisation and processing infrastructure.

Revised Financial Support for PACS

To encourage greater participation, several financial terms have been updated:

• Margin money requirement lowered from 20% to 10%.

• Construction costs eligible for assistance revised to ?7,000 per MT in plains and ?8,000 per MT in northeastern states.

• Subsidy rates increased from 25% to 33.33%, equating to ?2,333 per MT in plains and ?2,666 per MT in the northeast.

• PACS can receive an extra one-third subsidy for related facilities such as internal roads, weighbridges, and boundary walls.

Benefits for Farmers and Food Security

By enabling local storage of grains, farmers can avoid distress sales and sell their produce under favourable market conditions. Keeping storage closer to villages also reduces post-harvest losses and limits the need for repeated long-distance transport.

This system helps improve income for small and marginal farmers, strengthens the agricultural supply chain, and contributes to food security in the region.

Strengthening Cooperative-Led Storage

The pilot in Balaghat is designed to modernise rural storage infrastructure through financial support, cooperative participation, and infrastructure development. Success here will guide the nationwide rollout of the WLGSP, reinforcing the role of cooperatives in India’s agricultural system and making the supply chain more resilient.

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