Chhattisgarh State Industrial Development Corporation limited (CSIDC) is inviting proposals from companies/promoters for setting up of Food Processing, Fruit & Vegetables Processing and Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) units to provide modern infrastructure facilities for food processing sector in the State
Special incentives packages has been notified for companies/promoters interested in setting up units in areas of Food Processing, Fruit & Vegetable Processing and Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) processing in State of Chhattisgarh having investment intent of Rs 500 Crore and more, officials informed.
Notably, the Chhattisgarh Government will establish Multi-Commodity Cold Storage chambers for Horticulture and other commodities in five districts of the State.
The cold storages will be established at Mandi/Sub Mandi Yard of Raipur (TUlSI), Durg, Rajnandgaon , Bilaspur and Raigarh.
State Agriculture Minister Brijmohan Agrawal in January this year had stated that a master plan had been prepared to provide subsidy for opening of cold storages also by farmers.
The Minister said that he considers himself lucky that he got an opportunity to serve the farmers and always makes efforts to improve their living conditions.
He was addressing the members of Progressive Farmers' Union at village Khapri (Kumhari) in Durg district.
The Minister called upon the farmers to grow crops like fruits and vegetables apart from paddy and augment their family income.
State Agriculture Department, Horticulture Department and Indira Gandhi Agriculture University had been working in close co-ordination to improve the lot of farmers, Agrawal said.
He had appreciated the efforts of Progressive Framers' Union in spreading awareness of improvised techniques in farming.
Notably, the cold chain capacity created by the Union Ministry of FoodProcessing Industries in Chhattisgarh stood at 8500 metric tonnes (MT) till April 2015, officials stated.
In a power point presentation on Prospects of Cold Chain Infrastructure in Eastern Region on April 6, 2015, the Ministry has spelled out its plans of taking up a total of 500 Integrated Cold Chain projects as per the modified pattern of the Central assistance during the next five years across the country to create capacity of 2.5 million tonnes. The core objective of the projects is to make the scheme of cold chain value addition nd preservation infrastructure open ended, it stated.
Incidentally, on August 31, 2016 , Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh had directed officials to draw an action plan for operating a State-level ‘Food Processing Mission’ in the State.
Chairing a meeting of the State Industry Department at the office in his residence in Raipur, the Chief Minister said that as per the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission, the State would run the ‘Food Processing Mission’ while using its own resources.
He said that the State government has made a provision of Rs 12 crore for launching the State-level ‘Food Processing Mission’.
Singh said that the launching of Mission would help farmers get better prices for their farm produce and also open new job avenues for youth in the FoodProcessing sector.
Officials attending the meeting said that Food Processing Sector in Chhattisgarh is being seen as a ‘focus sector’ to ensure industrial diversity.
Meanwhile, it may be recalled that the Chhattisgarh Government recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Agricultural andProcessed Food Products Export Development Authority ( APEDA) to develop clusters for providing a major push to Agri products exports from the State.
There is a plan to create a ‘cluster’ for horticultural crops in common geographical locations with a view to selecting the best produce for their packaging and their processing for the exports market, officials informed.
APEDA would assist the Government in finding exports markets to sell the produce.
For this, the Government has chosen three key horticulture producing locations in which papaya, bananas and vegetables are grown.
For papaya and bananas, Durg, Bemetara ,Raipur, Bilaspur and Rajnandgaon districts have been chosen whereas for vegetables, Durg, Bemetara, Raipur, Bilaspur, Rajnandgaon, Balod, Surguja, Bastar and Raigarh had been identified.
It may also be recalled that the Chhattisgarh Government has prepared a five-year master plan to provide a fillip to the cultivation of horticulture based crops in the State.
The master plan is for the period 2017-18 to 2021-22, officials informed.
Horticulture is a sunrise sector in the State. The Horticulture crops cover an acreage of 7.41 lakh hectares and production is about 85.95 lakh metric tonnes, officials informed.
The acreage under horticulture crops had increased several times since 2004-05.
According to the master plan, the target is to increase acerage of horticulture crops by about 4.52 lakh hectares. The increase in acerage will cover fruits, vegetables, masala (spices) crops and flowers.
Under the Central Government's Micro-Irrigation Mission Project about 75,000 hectares land had been brought under micro-irrigation in Chhattisgarh. The proposal is to bring in additional 2.34 lakh additional land under the micro-irrigation during the next five years.
An additional investment of Rs 1405 crore is likely to be incurred on the project. Farmers will be trained in the processing of horticulture crops.
Additional training centers in production of horticulture crops will be established under the Private Partnership Plan (PPP), officials informed.
Agriculture expert teams also will visit all the villages in the State and guide the farmers. About 30,000 farmers and 185 employees will be trained in the coming years and 100 farmers will be sent overseas on a study tour.
The Horticulture Department officials said that under the Post-Harvest Management, a network of cold storages and pack houses will be established to prevent the damage of perishable commodities like fruits, vegetables and flowers in the entire State.
About Rs 90.81 crore is likely to be invested in the project. Green Houses, shed net houses, mulching will be established at a cost of Rs 321 crore.
To encourage mechanization of Horticulture, 20 Horse Power tractors, rotavator, power spryer, light trap instruments will be supplied to the farmers at a cost of Rs 16.74 crore. Honey bee industry will be doubled in due course of time. There is a proposal to invest Rs 6.40 crore in the rearing of honey bees .
Chhattisgarh would be a key participant in the three-day mega international food event --"World Food India, 2017" summit of Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries to be held in from November 3 to 5 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, officials informed.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the event on November 3.
The Government of Chhattisgarh has received an invitation from the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on behalf of Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries, officials informed.
The State Government has agreed to participate with a grand presentation in the event.
Chief Minister Raman Singh is likely to be present in the event.
A global event to facilitate partnerships between Indian and international businesses and investors, World Food India (WFI) is a gateway to the Indian food economy and an opportunity to showcase, connect, and collaborate, officials informed.
Organized by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, the event will be the largest gathering of investors, manufacturers, producers, food processors, policy makers, and organizations from the global food ecosystem.
It aims to provide opportunities for both investment and trade in the food processing sector for leading Indian and international companies. Encompassing the entire food spectrum from production to consumption, WFI is looking at creating a better sourcing environment, thereby enabling higher returns for farmers, creating employment, and fostering entrepreneurship.
World Food India intends to establish global linkages and facilitate foreign investment in India’s US$ 915 billion farm-to-fork ecosystem that services the needs and rising aspirations of the country’s 1.3 billion consumers.
The World Food India delegation generated huge excitement among the business community of Chhattisgarh during the Roadshow organised here on August 4 this year .
The Roadshow was organised by the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) in collaboration with CII '.
The Roadshow was attended by Minister of Commerce & Industries, Government of Chhattisgarh, Amar Agrawal, the then Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Commerce and Industries, Government of Chhattisgarh, N Baijendra Kumar, and other senior officials from the State Government as well as Dr Vijaya Kumar Behera, Economic Advisor, Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries, a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) .
More than 200 business persons and industrialists attended the World Food India Roadshow.Notably, ‘World Food India 2017’ is a platform for showcasing the food processing strength of India and an opportunity to connect with international and Indian key players in food processing and allied sectors.
