Haryana to have loan scheme for Societies of vegetable growers

Haryana Government has decided to implement a scheme to provide loan to the Societies of vegetable and fruit growers so as to increase production, storage, processing and marketing of quality vegetables and fruits.
It has also been decided to implement scheme for provision of loan to Women Cooperative Societies with a twin objective to ensure the welfare of women and generate a feeling of jointly moving ahead, an official spokesman said here today.
He said a proposal to this effect has been approved by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
He said the scheme for provision of loan to vegetable and fruit grower societies has been devised so that the farmers in the State could take benefits of well organised cooperative structure and hence avail various incentives offered by the Government and other related agencies from time to time in the form of subsidies and grants.

The spokesman said that the objective of the scheme is to evolve a system where growers and consumers both are benefited besides financing for value addition activities where the fruits and vegetables are processed that fetches higher remunerative prices of the produce.
The other objectives of the scheme included providing financial assistance for creating infrastructure for marketing, processing and storage of horticulture produce in the cooperative sector and finance for proper post harvest operations of the agriculture produce which add the growers share in the present marketing arrangements.

The spokesman said that the loan under the scheme would be available for all activities involved in production of fruits and vegetables, post harvest management activities, establishment of primary processing unit and technology upgradation and purchase of all types of machinery and equipment involved in crop production.

He said the loan would be medium term for the duration of three to seven years and would be recoverable on half yearly basis.
The state government would contribute a subsidy of Rs one lakh for the purpose for loan amounting to Rs five lakh and above and where loan is sanctioned below Rs five lakh, the eligible amount of subsidy is 20 per cent of the total loan sanctioned after receiving the subsidy claim from bank through Registrar Cooperative Societies.
Loan amount would be disbursed by District Central Co-operative Banks (DCCBs) and subsidy component would be contributed by the State Government, he said.