By TIOL News Service

NEW DELHI, FEB 17, 2021: THE government on Tuesday approved 11 proposals for creating food processing centres and nine projects for setting up agro-processing clusters bearing the cost of Rs. 363.40 crore.

Minister of Food Processing industries Mr Narendra Singh Tomar chaired two Inter-Ministerial Approval Committee (IMAC) meetings to consider the proposals received under the scheme for Creation for Infrastructure for Agro-Processing Cluster (APC) and the scheme for Creation and Expansion of Food Processing and Preservation Capacities (CEFPPC) under the PM Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY).

"The proposals for projects approved in the IMAC meetings are expected to increase the level of processing and value addition of horticultural and agricultural produce, which will result in increase in the income of the farmers and create employment at the local level," said an official statement.

Under the APC, the ministry approved nine proposals from entrepreneurs setting up food processing units based on a cluster approach in the States of Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Rajasthan.

The projects will cost Rs. 250.32 crore, including grants-in-aid of Rs. 66.61 crore and leveraging private investment of Rs. 183.71 crore. They are expected to generate employment for 8,260 persons and benefit 36,000 farmers, the ministry said.

Eleven projects to promote afro-food processing and preservation with capacity enhancement were also approved under the CEFPPC. The total project cost of Rs. 113.08 crore includes grants-in-aid of Rs. 36.30 crore and private investment of Rs. 76.78 crore.

These facilities will be set up in Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Karnataka, Mizoram and Gujarat, and are expected to generate employment to 3,700 persons and benefit 6,800 farmers.