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The Uttar Pradesh (UP) government is set to launch a World Bank-funded Rs 4,000 crore agriculture business and entrepreneurship project to help rural income. The project will benefit farmers, farm groups, and agro micro, small & medium enterprises (MSMEs) in 28 districts in eastern UP and Bundelkhand region.
The project is estimated to benefit a million farmers, including 30 per cent of the rural women associated with agri self help groups (SHGs), according to UP government Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh.
Under the project, 100,000 fisherfolk will be given financial assistance. Additionally, 500 farmers will be taken on foreign tours for training in advanced farming.
The project is likely to boost the per capita income in districts and improve the credit deposit (CD) ratio.
The government also plans to invest in high-yielding varieties of seeds and farm infrastructure in addition to developing a digital platform for the agricultural sector, and facilitate farmers to leverage the carbon credit market for income.
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The project also seeks to develop dedicated clusters of groundnut, chilli, and peas crops to augment farm output, food processing, and exports.
Recently, a World Bank delegation called upon Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to brief him on the proposed farm value chain project.
Yogi said UP has nearly 1.88 billion hectares of agricultural land, which corresponds to 76 per cent of the state’s total land mass.
“Whether it is the availability of manpower, portable water or diverse climatic zones, UP has the potential to become the agricultural powerhouse of the country,” he said.
In the next 3-4 years, UP aims to increase the value of farm exports from Rs 20,000 crore to Rs 50,000 crore by boosting productivity, food processing, and reinvigorating the agro value chain.
The state is looking to constitute horticultural commodity boards on lines of the Spices Board of India to boost shipments. The Spices Board functions under the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry to promote indigenous spices.
In UP, horticultural crops spanning fruits, vegetables, flowers, medicinal plants, and spices are grown over an estimated 2.1 million hectares.
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