SRINAGAR: The Union Government on Monday said it is strengthening horticulture development across the country through the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), expanded research, education and extension services, but clarified that there is no proposal under consideration to establish a new horticulture college in Madhya Pradesh’s Khajuraho Lok Sabha constituency.
Replying to a starred question in the Lok Sabha, Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the Government is implementing MIDH as a centrally sponsored scheme covering all states and Union Territories to promote the holistic growth of the horticulture sector.
The scheme supports the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, spices, flowers, mushrooms, medicinal and aromatic plants, coconut, cashew, cocoa and bamboo through region-specific strategies that integrate research, technology promotion, post-harvest management, processing and marketing.
According to the Government, the mission seeks to enhance horticulture production, increase farmers’ incomes, improve nutritional security, promote quality planting material, encourage efficient water use through micro-irrigation, generate rural employment, particularly in the cold-chain sector, and reduce import dependence by increasing domestic production of high-value horticultural crops.
The Minister said the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is strengthening horticulture education and research through its network of research institutes, agricultural universities, coordinated research projects and capacity-building programmes. Agricultural extension is also being reinforced through initiatives such as the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA), mass media support for agricultural extension and Kisan Helpline Centres to improve the dissemination of modern farming practices.
Responding to a demand for establishing a horticulture college in the agriculture-dependent Bundelkhand region, the Government said no such proposal is currently under consideration.
However, it pointed out that ICAR-supported Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) functioning in Katni, Panna and Chhatarpur districts under the jurisdiction of Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya are already engaged in farmer training, horticulture research and the promotion of improved cultivation practices in the region.
The Government said horticulture-based income opportunities in Madhya Pradesh are being promoted through MIDH with financial assistance for producing quality planting material, establishing nurseries and tissue culture units, expanding cultivation under fruits, vegetables, spices, flowers and medicinal plants, rejuvenating ageing orchards, promoting protected cultivation, creating water harvesting structures and encouraging beekeeping for pollination support.
The scheme also supports horticulture mechanisation, farmer training, exposure visits, post-harvest infrastructure including pack houses, cold storages, ripening chambers, processing units and refrigerated transport, besides strengthening rural marketing infrastructure through direct markets, retail outlets and mobile vending platforms.
In addition, farmers benefit from extension services under the Sub-Mission on Agricultural Extension through demonstrations, farm schools, Kisan Melas and exposure visits aimed at promoting improved production technologies.
The Government also highlighted complementary central schemes supporting agricultural sustainability and farm incomes, including the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana for crop insurance, Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana for irrigation and micro-irrigation, the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme for agricultural credit, the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund for post-harvest and supply chain infrastructure, and the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, which provides financial assistance to states for agriculture and horticulture development projects.
The reply underlined that while no new horticulture college has been approved for the Khajuraho constituency, the Centre’s broader strategy continues to focus on strengthening horticulture production, research, extension services and value-chain infrastructure across the country.
