SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has received 79 projects sanctioned for agri-entrepreneurs under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), involving loans of Rs 589.47 crore and a total project cost of Rs 885.45 crore, according to the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
The figures, as of July 15, 2026, were provided by Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ram Nath Thakur in a written reply to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1585 on Tuesday. Ladakh had one AIF project sanctioned for an agri-entrepreneur, with a loan of Rs 0.35 crore and a project cost of Rs 0.46 crore.
Jammu and Kashmir’s 79 projects account for around 0.11 per cent of the 71,208 AIF projects sanctioned to agri-entrepreneurs across the country. In terms of project numbers, J&K is among the lower-count Union Territories and States, while Ladakh has the lowest number among the listed regions with a project sanctioned to an agri-entrepreneur.
Nationally, 2,08,828 projects had been sanctioned under the AIF across beneficiary categories by July 15, including 71,208 projects specifically for agri-entrepreneurs. The loans sanctioned to agri-entrepreneurs nationally totalled Rs 62,533.07 crore, against a total project cost of Rs 1,16,139.02 crore.
The Ministry’s State and UT-wise data show that Jammu and Kashmir’s 79 projects are considerably below the national average of about 2,293 projects per State/UT among the 31 listed regions. Ladakh’s single project is also well below that average. Madhya Pradesh recorded the highest number of projects for agri-entrepreneurs at 12,328, followed by Punjab with 9,864 and Maharashtra with 7,255.
The Ministry did not provide a separate J&K-wise or Ladakh-wise breakup of beneficiaries such as Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), cooperatives, start-ups and individual agripreneurs in the reply.
For comparison, Maharashtra had 7,255 projects sanctioned specifically to agri-entrepreneurs, with loans of Rs 6,581.24 crore and project costs of Rs 11,571.03 crore. Overall, 17,646 AIF projects involving loans of Rs 10,603.78 crore were sanctioned in Maharashtra for post-harvest management infrastructure and viable farming assets.
The Ministry said 681 FPOs, 200 cooperatives, 541 start-ups and 6,922 individual agripreneurs from Maharashtra had benefited under the AIF as of July 15.
Across Maharashtra, 9,212 projects covering warehouses, cold storage and cold-chain facilities, sorting, grading and packaging units and primary processing centres were sanctioned. Of these, 166 were in Akola district, comprising 61 warehouses, five cold storage and cold-chain projects, 30 sorting, grading and packaging units and 70 primary processing centres.
The Union Government said an impact assessment conducted by the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, in 2025 found that each AIF unit supported, on average, a minimum of 12-13 direct jobs during the peak season, six direct jobs during lean months and 19 indirect jobs through backward and forward linkages.
The assessment also found that AIF interventions reduced post-harvest losses by an average of 5-15 per cent through improved storage, processing and mechanisation systems, according to the Ministry.
The Government said the AIF’s scope has been expanded to cover integrated primary and secondary processing projects and viable farming assets such as polyhouses, mushroom cultivation and hydroponics. It has also enabled convergence with PM-KUSUM Component-A and extended credit guarantee support to eligible FPOs, while the credit guarantee coverage period for PACS warehouse and godown projects has been extended from 2+5 years to 2+8 years.
The Ministry said awareness, outreach and capacity-building activities are also being undertaken under the scheme to promote value addition, reduce post-harvest losses and improve farmers’ incomes.
