CABINET-HORTICULTURE MISSION-EXPANSION

Gurdip Singh

CCEA approves new interventions in National Horticulture MissionNew

Delhi, Jan 21 (UNI) The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs(CCEA) today approved new interventions in the Centrally Sponsored Scheme on National Horticulture Mission (NHM) to include items like High Density Plantation. Besides, the cost norms of some of the activities like setting up of nurseries, area expansion, rejuvenation programmes and protected cultivation have been revisited and revised to provide better incentives to the farmers for adopting improved technologies and cultivars. Apart from this, the cost norms and pattern of assistance for post harvest management (PHM) have been enhanced to encourage private sector participation in building PHM infrastructure. The mission was launched during the Tenth Five Year Plan and the expansion of the Mission is valid for the Eleventh Plan period. An outlay of Rs 10,363.46 crore, with Government of India's share of Rs 8,809 crore (85 per cent) has been proposed for implementing the Scheme during the Eleventh Five Year Plan.The focus of the Mission, in its revised form, will be on creating forward linkages in terms of PHM and marketing infrastructure, both in the public and private sectors,involving pack houses/on farm collection centres, cold storage units and Controlled Atmosphere (CA) storages. The major outcome of the NHM will be as under:-- Infrastructure facilities for primary processing and marketing of horticultural produce will be set up to meet and handle increased production and about 600 markets, including wholesale and rural markets, will be set up during the Plan period. Besides, about 6,200 PHM infrastructure facilities will also be created.-- About 15.83 lakh hectares of land will be brought under horticulture crops through area expansion and 5.20 lakh hectares of old and senile orchards will be rejuvenated.--About 2,500 new nurseries will be established in addition to revitalising existing ones for making available good quality planting material;-- Organic farming along with certification will be taken up in 2.21 lakh hectare area. Besides, Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) will be taken up in 15 lakh hectares. About 8,235 water harvesting structures, both community and individual, will be constructed to augment ground water sources and provide irrigation to horticulture crops.-- Approximately, 475 million man days of employment is expected to be generated during the Plan period though the interventions of the scale envisaged. This implies additional employment to about 16 lakh people on regular basis. The NHM envisages holistic development of the horticulture sector by ensuring horizontal and vertical linkages with the active participation of all thestakeholders. All the States and Union Territories are covered under the Mission except the eight North Eastern States including Sikkim and the States of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal which have been covered under the Technology Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture in the North Eastern States (TMNE). Under the Scheme, a cluster-based approach was adopted for covering potential horticultural crops in 344 districts out of 476 districts in 18 States and two Union Territories. Since the inception of the Scheme, Rs 3,503.12 crore was released up to 2008-09 against which an expenditure of Rs 3,072.92 crore has been incurred. The implementation of the Scheme has brought an area of 12.61 lakh hectares under horticultural crops with development of 1,217 PHM units, 59 markets and 294 scientific infrastructural facilities.