SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has had two food processing projects approved under the Union Government’s Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana (PMKSY) during the last five years, but no grant-in-aid has been released for either project so far, according to data tabled in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
The two approved projects are located in Kathua and Pulwama, with one project sanctioned in each district. The annexure provided by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries shows the number of approved projects as two, while the grant-in-aid released is listed as nil.
The information was provided by Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Chirag Paswan in response to a Lok Sabha question seeking details of food processing projects, Agro Processing Clusters and Cold Chain projects approved during the past five years.
The Ministry said financial assistance is provided under the Central Sector umbrella scheme PMKSY for setting up food processing projects across the country. The scheme is demand-driven, and funds are not allocated or sanctioned to States and Union Territories through state-wise allocations.
According to the Ministry, applications are invited through Expressions of Interest from across the country, including Jammu and Kashmir. Eligible proposals are scrutinised and evaluated under the applicable scheme guidelines, with financial assistance provided to projects approved on merit and subject to availability of funds.
The Union Government has discontinued the Mega Food Park component of PMKSY with effect from April 1, 2021.
Nationally, 482 projects were approved under the three categories covered in the annexure during the last five years, with Rs 1,069.82 crore released as grant-in-aid. These included 364 food processing units under the Creation/Expansion of Food Processing and Preservation Capacities (CEFPPC) component, 29 Agro Processing Clusters and 89 Cold Chain projects.
The highest number of approved projects was recorded in Maharashtra, with 76 projects and Rs 194.62 crore in released grants, followed by Assam with 43 projects and Rs 140.39 crore, and Telangana with 33 projects and Rs 82.94 crore.
The Ministry said PMKSY’s component schemes provide grants-in-aid or subsidies for modern food processing and preservation infrastructure aimed at increasing value addition, reducing post-harvest losses, improving processing and preservation of agricultural produce, strengthening supply chains and creating employment opportunities.
As of June 30, 2026, a total of 1,256 projects under PMKSY were operational across the country, generating 9.16 lakh employment opportunities and creating 294.21 lakh metric tonnes per annum of processing and preservation capacity, the Ministry said.
It added that the infrastructure created under the scheme has contributed to strengthening the food processing ecosystem, improving supply chain efficiency, reducing post-harvest losses and promoting value addition and exports of processed food products.
The Ministry also clarified that it does not have any pending proposal from the Telangana Government for approval. It said eligible proposals from Bihar, including the Kosi-Seemanchal region, and Telangana could be considered under the demand-driven PMKSY framework through the prescribed process.
