119 Cooperative Godowns Completed Under Decentralised Grain Storage Plan; Andhra Pradesh Tops List
New Delhi, Aug. 4 (TNT): A total of 168 projects have been approved under the decentralised grain storage plan in the cooperative sector, of which 119 godowns have been completed and five projects are under construction, Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
In a written reply, Shah said Andhra Pradesh leads the country with 117 approved projects, all of which have been completed.
Bihar has 36 approved projects, with five currently under construction, while Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have completed one project each against 14 and one approved project, respectively, he informed the House.
The Minister also shared details of infrastructure developed by Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) in the four States.
According to the data, Bihar has 5,828 PACS, 2,659 godowns, and 3,752 custom hiring centres. Madhya Pradesh has 2,032 PACS, 87 godowns, and 4,012 custom hiring centres, while Uttar Pradesh has 1,862 PACS, 169 godowns, and 212 custom hiring centres.
In Andhra Pradesh, there are 685 PACS, with six godowns and 71 custom hiring centres.
Shah informed the House that under the Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure (AMI) Scheme, Bihar has received an advance subsidy of ₹5.06 crore for 25 projects, Madhya Pradesh received ₹0.13 crore for one project, and Uttar Pradesh received ₹0.05 crore for one project.
He reiterated that no subsidy has been released to Andhra Pradesh under the AMI Scheme so far.
The Union Minister said the godowns constructed under the plan conform to Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) standards and are eligible to avail the electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipt (e-NWR) system.
He added that no structural safety issues have been reported from Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh or Madhya Pradesh.
TNT KM
