More takers for Infra fund among primary farm co-ops than large players

Loan limit of Rs 2 crore under the scheme works better for small warehouse projects with godowns of 3,000 sq ft, but fails to enthuse corporations and FPOs with larger projects on the table

During the first wave of Covid-19, the Centre launched the much-talked about Rs 100,000 crore Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) with an aim to create tangible farm-gate storage and processing infrastructure.

Two years down the line, according to a reply filed in the Parliament in December, a total of 8,488 projects have been sanctioned under the scheme with a loan amount of Rs 6,098 crore. Of this, Rs 2,071 crore has been disbursed for 4,003 projects.

Of the 8,488 projects, an overwhelming 60 per cent or thereabouts has been awarded to Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies (PACS), followed by agriculture entrepreneurs (2,576), farmers (685),