27 Integrated Cold Chain Development Projects

/ Current Affairs
  • Government gave its nod to 27 projects today under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana for development of integrated cold chains and value addition infrastructure in the country.
  • The new integrated cold chain projects will generate direct and indirect employment for over 16,000 people and benefit nearly 2,57,000 farmers.
  • Union Minister of Food Processing Industries said, saving the perishable produce, by provisioning adequate infrastructure, will help in augmenting farmers’ incomes and will also act towards making India self-reliant in the fruits and vegetables sector.
  • The projects will help in streamlining the agricultural supply chain and generate direct and indirect employment opportunities in rural areas.
  • These 27 new projects will leverage a total investment of Rs 743 crore for the creation of modern, innovative infrastructure and effective cold chain facilities for
  • the food processing sector across various states including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
  • 85 Cold Chain Projects have also been considered for financial assistance under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana.

       Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana

  • The Central Sector Scheme – SAMPADA (Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters) was approved by the cabinet in May 2017 for the period of 2016-20 coterminous with the 14th Finance Commission cycle.
  • The scheme has now been renamed as the “Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY)”.
  • It is an umbrella scheme incorporating ongoing schemes of the Ministry like Mega Food Parks, Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure, Food Safety and Quality Assurance Infrastructure, etc. and also new schemes like Infrastructure for Agro-processing Clusters, Creation of Backward and Forward Linkages, Creation / Expansion of Food Processing & Preservation Capacities.

       Objective

  • The objective of PMKSY is to supplement agriculture, modernize processing and decrease Agri-Waste.