Centre to set up 60 agri biz units in Maharashtra

The Central government, in association with the Asia Development Bank (ADB), is planning to open 60 agri business centres (ABCs) in Maharashtra, including 12 in Nashik, next year.

The government has selected Maharashtra and Bihar for the project. New Delhi-based Global Agri System (GASPL) is preparing a detailed project report in this regard. The report will be submitted by February 2008.

"Besides the 12 centres in Nashik, 48 other centres will be opened in Nagpur, Pune, Baramati, Jalgaon and Kolhapur," officials close to the development said.

The centres will have godowns and cold storage facilities. Farm goods from these centres will be sent to markets within the country. There is also a proposal to export goods from these centres.

The state governmnet will provide land for the ABCs. Fifty per cent of the total project cost will be made available by the Asian Development Bank on lower interest rate of 2.5-3 per cent, while farmers will contribute 10 per cent of the amount. The rest of the cost will be raised by the special purpose vehicle of the related centre.

Setting up of the centres in Nashik will help the local farmers a lot. The district is known across the country for producing large quantity of onion and grapes.

Nashik produces about 1.2 million tonnes of onions every year (including all three crops - Kharif, Rangada and Rabi). Besides, more than 600,000 tonnes of grapes are produced in the district.