Government launches programme to develop 53 horticulture clusters

The Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on May 31, 2021, launched the Horticulture Cluster Development Programme (CDP) for the integrated and market-led development of 53 horticulture clusters, which have the potential of helping 10 lakh farmers and attract investment of Rs. 10,000 crores.

The Agriculture Ministry has identified 53 horticulture clusters, of which 12 have been selected on a pilot basis. The program has been designed to leverage geographical specialization and to promote the integrated and market-led development of the horticulture clusters.

During the virtual launch, the Union Minister stated that doubling the farmer's income is one of the biggest priorities of the Central Government and that the program will benefit around 10 lakh farmers and the related stakeholders of the values chain.

बागवानी क्षेत्र में व्‍यापक वृद्धि सुनिश्चित करने व किसानों को ज्यादा लाभ पहुंचाने की दृष्टि से आज वीडियो कॉन्फ़्रेंसिंग के माध्यम से 11 राज्‍यों/केंद्र शासित क्षेत्रों में स्थित 12 कलस्टरों में बागवानी कलस्‍टर विकास कार्यक्रम (सी.डी.पी.) का शुभारंभ किया।https://t.co/SKmV0uDuKi pic.twitter.com/MSggR71p5X

— Narendra Singh Tomar (@nstomar) May 31, 2021

Objective:

• The Horticulture Cluster Development Program will address all the major issues that are related to the Indian Horticulture Sector including production, pre-production, logistics, post-harvest management, branding, and marketing.

• With this program, the Central Government aims at improving the exports of the targeted crops by about 20%.

• The program is also expected to attract an investment of Rs. 10,000 crores when implemented in all the 53 clusters.

Why developing such clusters is significant?

The Minister of State for Agriculture stated that there is a need to develop such clusters throughout India which will be helping the farmers with the small size of holdings through the formation of FPO’s.

The program will not only help in achieving the economies of scale but will also create cluster-specific brands to entrench them into the global and national value chains bringing higher remuneration to the farmers.

Horticulture Cluster Development Program: Key details

• The horticulture clusters of the pilot phase include Shopian (Jammu & Kashmir) and Kinnaur (Himachal Pradesh) for apple.

• Kutch (Gujarat), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Mahbubnagar (Telangana) for mango; Theni (TN) and Anantpur (AP); Siphahijala (Tripura) for Pineapple; Nasik (Maharashtra) for grapes; Chitradurga (Karnataka) and Solapur (Maharashtra) for pomegranate; West Jaintia Hills (Meghalaya) for turmeric.

• The appointment of Cluster Development Agencies (CDAs) in the selected clusters has also been announced by Agriculture Secretary Sanjay Aggarwal.