India Expands World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan with Major Policy Reforms

India’s Pilot Project under the “World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector” has prompted significant policy upgrades to strengthen food-grain storage at the Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS) level. The initiative aims to address national storage deficits by converging multiple central schemes to create modern agri-infrastructure.

Design of the Grain Storage Plan

The plan focuses on developing godowns, processing units, Fair Price Shops and Custom Hiring Centres through coordinated use of schemes such as AIF, AMI, SMAM and PMFME. State-wise implementation began after cabinet approval in May 2023, with progress monitored through designated field agencies.

Key Lessons from the Pilot Phase

The pilot highlighted several constraints, including outdated construction norms under AMI, limited financial capacity of PACS, lack of standardised documentation, and delays due to absent hiring assurances. It also underscored the need to align PACS selection with storage-deficit locations mapped by national procurement and warehousing bodies.

Major Policy Enhancements Introduced

In response, the government revised cost norms, expanded subsidies and eased financial conditions. Loan repayment under AIF was extended to 2+8 years. Construction cost ceilings were raised to ₹7,000/MT for plain areas and ₹8,000/MT for northeastern states. Subsidies for PACS were increased to 33.33%, with additional support for ancillary works such as weighbridges and internal roads. Detailed SOPs, model DPRs and unified documentation were issued to streamline execution.

Exam Oriented Facts

• World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan approved on 31 May 2023 for cooperative sector.
• AMI construction cost norms revised to ₹7,000/MT (plains) and ₹8,000/MT (NE).
• Subsidy for PACS raised to 33.33% with extra support for ancillary infrastructure.
• FCI granted a uniform 9-year hiring assurance for PACS godowns of 2,500 MT and above.

Transforming PACS into Multipurpose Centres

The pilot demonstrated the feasibility of PACS godowns operating as hubs for procurement, Fair Price Shops and hiring centres. To broaden impact, the plan has been widened to include all cooperative societies and federations, enabling scalable storage infrastructure capable of supporting national food-security objectives.