UP clears food processing proposals worth ₹10K cr to boost rural economy

The Uttar Pradesh (UP) government has cleared food processing proposals worth more than ₹10,000 crore to boost the agricultural sector and rural economy.

 

UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who also holds the food processing portfolio, has invited private sector investment to leverage the vast potential in the agricultural and allied domains. 

 

“The reduction in the goods and services tax (GST) rates on food products has stoked domestic demand. This will not only augment the farm income but also create new employment opportunities in the rural areas,” he said.

 

He added that the food processing value chain has become robust with the state’s Food Processing Industry Policy 2023, which focuses on projects between ₹1 crore and ₹50 crore.

 

The state has achieved a 98 per cent bank loan approval rate under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme, the highest in the country, with the national average being 80 per cent.

 

Under the scheme, 35 per cent of the project cost – up to ₹10 lakh – is offered as a grant.

 

“More than 400 projects with a total investment of over ₹10,000 crore have been approved so far, of which 60 projects have been completed. A subsidy of ₹250 crore has been disbursed in the state,” a senior official said.

 

UP’s agricultural economy has increased threefold in the last eight years to nearly ₹ 7 trillion.

 

The food grain contributes the maximum, more than 40 per cent, to the state’s farm sector gross state value added (GSVA), followed by horticulture and sugarcane crops at roughly 22.50 per cent and 19.5 per cent, respectively.