 "Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry")
The government launched an online digital platform named "e-Upaja Kisaan Nidhi" to empower farmers with access to pledge finance against harvested commodities. This initiative enables farmers to store their agricultural produce with the Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) and secure post-harvest loans from banks. The announcement was made by Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Minister Piyush Goyal during the launch ceremony of "e-Kisan Upaj Nidhi" (Digital Gateway) of the WDRA in New Delhi on Monday.
Food Minister Piyush Goyal stated that the user-friendly digital gateway, developed collaboratively by the Department of Food and Public Distribution, the Department of Financial Services, and Nabard, simplifies the process for farmers to store their produce at any WDRA-registered warehouse for six months, with an interest rate of seven per cent per annum.
The post-harvest season typically witnesses a decline in commodity prices. During this time, farmers can deposit their produce at any of the approximately 5600 WDRA-registered warehouses and obtain electronic negotiable warehousing receipts (e-NWRs) to access bank credit for the subsequent crop.
The digital gateway verifies farmers' details through an integrated database comprising the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the Central Board of Direct Taxes, repositories, and CIBIL scores. Moreover, the platform furnishes information regarding loans offered by various banks.
Goyal emphasised that the policy of no collateral and an extra security deposit can mitigate distress sales by farmers, who often face the compulsion to sell their entire harvest at reduced rates due to inadequate post-harvest storage facilities.
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The food minister has also urged the WDRA to waive the security fee for small farmers storing agricultural produce, enabling them to access credit from banks easily.
Earlier, WDRA had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Punjab & Sind Bank (PSB) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) to facilitate loans to farmers and traders to promote awareness about finance against e-NWRs with features such as no additional collateral and attractive interest rates.
Through the digital gateway of WDRA and e-NAM, farmers can now sell their commodities above the minimum support price (MSP), added Goyal.
Previously, WDRA had also waived the application fee for the registration of warehouses storing agricultural commodities for farmers until October 25, 2025.
