The Ministry of Food Processing industries (MoFPI) has been implementing Central Sector Umbrella Scheme – Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY) for overall growth and development of food processing sector across India including rural areas of Maharashtra. Under component schemes of PMKSY, MoFPI provides mostly credit linked financial assistance (capital subsidy) in the form of grants-in-aid to entrepreneurs for setting up of food processing and preservation industries. So far, Ministry has approved a total of three mega food parks, 62 cold chain projects, 12 agro processing clusters, 39 food processing units, 12 creation of backward & forward linkages projects along with 26 food test laboratories in Maharashtra for assistance under corresponding component schemes of PMKSY, Union Minister of State for Food Processing Industries, Prahlad Singh Patel said in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
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As part of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative, MoFPI is implementing a Centrally sponsored scheme-PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme (PMFME) for providing financial, technical and business support for setting up and or upgradation of two lakh MFP enterprises based on One District One Product (ODOP) approach through credit linked subsidy during five years from 2020-21 to 2024-25 with an outlay of Rs.10,000 crore. Out of this, a total of 20,130 units have been allocated to Maharashtra with an outlay of Rs 921.53 crore. Banana has been approved as ODOP for Dhule and Jalgaon districts of Maharashtra, Patel further said in the lower house of Indian parliament.
In the budget speech for 2021-2022, the Government of Indai has announced expansion of scope of “Operation Greens scheme” from Tomato, Onion and Potato (TOP) to 22 perishable products, so as to boost value addition in agriculture and allied products. Banana has been included in these perishables, the minister further informed the parliament.
