Know Every Scheme You're Entitled To

• e-KYC not completed
  e-KYC is now mandatory for every installment. Complete it at pmkisan.gov.in (OTP-based) or visit a nearby CSC for biometric authentication. Without e-KYC, no installment is transferred.
• Aadhaar not linked to bank account
  Visit your bank branch and request Aadhaar seeding. Bring your Aadhaar card and passbook. This is required for DBT to reach your account.
• Land records mismatch
  Your land records in the state system must match what you registered. Discrepancies in name spelling, survey number, or landholding size cause rejections. Contact your local patwari or revenue officer to update records.
• Incorrect bank account details
  If your account number or IFSC is wrong, update it at pmkisan.gov.in under "Updation of Self Registered Farmer" or visit your CSC. Then visit your bank to ensure DBT linkage is correct.
• Name on beneficiary list — how to check
  Go to pmkisan.gov.in → "Farmers Corner" → "Know Your Status". Enter Aadhaar number or registered mobile number. You can see installment history and current status.

PM-KISAN also has an AI chatbot called Kisan e-Mitra available on the official portal in Telugu, Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Marathi and 6 other languages — useful for quick queries about your registration status.

Landless farm workers are not covered under the main Rythu Bharosa scheme. They are covered under a separate sub-scheme, Indiramma Atmiya Bharosa, which provides ₹12,000/year.

• ✓
  Eligibility: at least one family member must have worked 20+ days under MGNREGS in the 2023–24 financial year
• ✓
  Apply at your local Rythu Vedika centre with your MGNREGS job card

• Payment not received?
  Usually a Bhu Bharati land record verification delay, or an Aadhaar–bank linking mismatch. Visit your nearest Rythu Vedika or MRO office to check and correct it.
• I'm a tenant farmer — how do I get a CCRC?
  Apply at your Gram Sabha. You will need the landowner's consent and the lease deed. The Gram Sabha validates and issues the Crop Cultivator Rights Card (CCRC).
• What happened to Rythu Bandhu?
  Rythu Bharosa replaced Rythu Bandhu on 26 January 2025 — with a higher amount (₹12,000 vs ₹10,000/acre) and, for the first time, tenant farmer inclusion.

Check your status by entering your Aadhaar or Pattadar passbook number on the portal. Helpline: 1800-599-5959 (Telangana Agriculture).

• ✓
  Annadata Sukhibhava replaces the previous YSR Rythu Bharosa scheme
• ✓
  If you were receiving YSR Rythu Bharosa, you must re-register under the new scheme at your RBK
• ✓
  The new scheme is ₹20,000 per family (flat) — not per acre
• ✓
  PM-KISAN ₹6,000/year is separate and stacks on top — total possible: ₹26,000/year

• I was getting YSR Rythu Bharosa — do I need to do anything?
  Yes. Re-register at your local RBK under Annadata Sukhibhava. Your old registration does not carry over automatically.
• Can I get both Annadata Sukhibhava and PM-KISAN?
  Yes. They are independent schemes. Annadata Sukhibhava is from the AP state government; PM-KISAN is from the central government. Both will credit to your bank account.

Apply at your nearest Rythu Bharosa Kendra (RBK). AP Agriculture helpline: 1800-425-0025. Check your land records at Mee Bhoomi (meebhoomi.ap.gov.in).

• ✓
  Localised calamities — hailstorm, landslide, inundation, cloudburst, or natural fire affecting your farm specifically. Assessment is done on your field by an insurance surveyor.
• ✓
  Post-harvest losses — your harvested crop is drying in the field ("cut and spread" condition) and gets damaged by cyclone, unseasonal rain, or hailstorm within 14 days of harvest.
• ✓
  Wild animal attack (new from Kharif 2026) — crop damage by elephants, wild boar, nilgai, or monkeys. Individually assessed.

• "I paid premium last year but got nothing — the village yield was fine even though my crop failed."
  This happens when the area-based assessment doesn't capture farm-level variation. For future seasons: if your specific farm is hit by a localised event (hailstorm, waterlogging, wild animal attack), report it within 72 hours — these are assessed individually. For widespread drought, the mid-season adversity provision can trigger a 25% advance payment if expected yield drops below 50% of normal.
• "How do I report crop loss within 72 hours?"
  Four channels: (1) call 14447 (toll-free helpline), (2) use the Farmitra app — select "Intimate Claim" and upload crop damage photos, (3) visit your nearest CSC, (4) inform your bank branch. Keep your policy number ready. The 72-hour window starts from the date of the damage event, not from when you noticed it.
• "I have KCC — am I automatically enrolled?"
  No, not since Kharif 2020. Enrollment is voluntary for all farmers, including KCC / crop loan holders. Your bank needs your written consent before deducting premium. Check your passbook — if premium was deducted without consent, contact your bank's Lead District Manager.
• "I missed the Kharif enrollment — what can I do now?"
  Kharif 2026 enrollment closed on July 31, 2026, and there are no exceptions — this Kharif season cannot be covered now, even if you are willing to pay the premium. Your next opportunity is Rabi 2026–27. Enrollment usually opens a few weeks before Rabi sowing and closes around the end of December, but the exact dates are set state by state. Confirm yours on pmfby.gov.in or with your District Agriculture Officer, and enroll through your bank or a CSC well before the cutoff.
• "My claim was rejected / I got less than expected — what can I do?"
  File a grievance on pmfby.gov.in → "Grievance" section. You can also escalate to the State Crop Insurance Cell or the District Agriculture Officer. Insurance companies must respond to grievances within 15 days. If payment is delayed beyond the stipulated time, the insurer owes you 12% annual interest on the delayed amount.
• "The insurance company surveyor never came to assess my field."
  Follow up via the PMFBY portal with your intimation reference number. If the insurer doesn't respond, escalate to the District Agriculture Officer or State Crop Insurance Cell. Drone / satellite-based assessments (YES-TECH) may supplement or replace physical surveys for some claims.

Download the Farmitra app (the official Crop Insurance app) to enrol, report crop losses, and track claim status from your phone — available on Android and iOS. For insurer-side tracking, use the National Crop Insurance Portal (NCIP). To find your season's empaneled insurer and its local helpline, open pmfby.gov.in → your state → district.

• Overdue loan at another bank blocking application
  Banks check CIBIL / credit bureau records. Any overdue crop loan at any bank — including old cooperative society dues — will result in rejection. Clear dues first, get a No Dues Certificate, then apply. Approach your Lead District Manager (LDM) if you believe the record is incorrect.
• KCC limit too low for actual input costs
  The credit limit is based on the District Level Technical Committee's Scale of Finance — which may be outdated. Ask your bank to apply the latest DLTC Scale of Finance for your crop and district. If still insufficient, ask for a term loan component alongside the KCC for investment needs like drip irrigation or equipment.
• KCC account lapsed — can't withdraw
  KCC requires annual renewal even within the 5-year validity. If you missed renewal, visit your bank branch immediately with your latest land records and request renewal. A lapsed account does not mean you need to reapply from scratch — ask the bank to reactivate with annual review.
• Interest subvention (4% rate) not applied to account
  Aadhaar must be seeded with your bank account. Also, your bank must submit your loan data to the Kisan Rin Portal (fasalrin.gov.in) for MISS claim settlement. If you repaid on time but are being charged more than 4%, first check how much you borrowed — subvention only covers the first ₹3 lakh, and ₹2 lakh of that for allied activities. If you are inside those limits, show your repayment record and ask the bank to verify MISS claim submission on KRP. Escalate to the bank's grievance officer if unresolved.
• Tenant farmer — bank refusing to issue KCC without land records
  RBI guidelines allow KCC issuance to tenant farmers via Joint Liability Groups (JLGs) or with alternative proof. Approach your nearest PACS or cooperative bank rather than a nationalised bank — they are generally more flexible. You can also form a JLG with 4–10 tenant farmers and apply collectively; this reduces the documentation barrier significantly.

KCC applications can also be submitted online through your bank's internet banking portal (e.g., SBI's YONO, Bank of Baroda's bob World). The Kisan Rin Portal (fasalrin.gov.in) — launched September 2023 — lets farmers and banks track interest subvention claim status digitally. As of December 2024, ₹1.08 lakh crore in MISS claims have been processed through KRP for 5.9 crore farmers. Contact your bank's Lead District Manager (LDM) or nearest NABARD district office for escalations.

• District target exhausted — application deferred to next year
  Each district gets an annual area target (in hectares). Once the target fills up, no new applications are accepted for that season. Apply in April–May for Kharif, not mid-season. If deferred, your application stays on the waitlist and should be processed in the next season's allocation.
• Installed system from a non-empanelled company
  This is the most common reason for outright rejection with no recourse. Always verify the company is on the current season's state empanelled list before signing any agreement. The list changes annually — last year's empanelled company may not be on this year's list.
• Subsidy not credited even after inspection
  Check that your Aadhaar is seeded with your bank account. Also confirm the Agriculture Department officer submitted the inspection report and geo-tagged photo to the state portal. Ask for the inspection report acknowledgement number and follow up at your Rythu Seva Kendra (RSK) / Agriculture Department district office.
• System dismantled or moved before inspection
  Subsidy requires a physical inspection of the installed system. If the system was moved or dismantled before inspection, the claim is void. Always inform the Agriculture Department immediately after installation and wait for their inspection visit before making any changes.
• Land records mismatch
  The survey number and area in your application must exactly match your Pahani / Pattadar passbook. Any discrepancy — different survey number, area mismatch, or name spelling difference — causes rejection. Verify your land records at the Revenue Department before applying.

PMKSY has an overall outlay of ₹93,068 crore for 2022–2026 with ₹37,454 crore in central assistance. The Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) with NABARD — corpus doubled to ₹10,000 crore — lets states top up subsidies and cover innovative projects beyond central PDMC norms. AP has already accessed ₹616 crore from MIF covering over 1 lakh ha. Contact your local Rythu Seva Kendra (AP) or Agriculture Extension Officer (TG) for the current season's district targets and empanelled supplier list before applying.

• Bank rejected project on viability grounds
  The most common reason. AIF portal registration does not guarantee a loan — the bank independently assesses whether your project is commercially viable. A weak or absent Detailed Project Report (DPR) is the primary cause. Contact your district Agriculture Department's PMU for free DPR preparation support before reapplying.
• Interest subvention (3%) not being credited to loan account
  After loan disbursement, your bank must register the loan on the AIF portal MIS for subvention to flow. If the 3% is not appearing on your quarterly loan statement, ask your bank branch manager to confirm the loan is registered on the AIF portal. If unresolved, raise a grievance at agriinfra.dac.gov.in or email agriinfra-dac@gov.in.
• Bank asking for 30% collateral even for loans under ₹2 crore
  For loans up to ₹2 crore, CGTMSE credit guarantee covers the risk — government pays the fee — and collateral may not be needed. However, this requires MSME registration (Udyog Aadhaar). Register at udyamregistration.gov.in (free, online, instant) before applying, and then ask the bank to process under CGTMSE.
• The disbursement window closed before my loan came through
  The AIF disbursement window closed on 31 March 2026, so a loan disbursed after that date does not carry the 3% interest subvention. Your bank may still lend, at its normal rate. If your loan was disbursed before the window closed, your subvention is unaffected and runs for its full term. Ask the portal helpdesk or your District Agriculture Officer whether a new window has opened before planning around this scheme.
• FPO unsure if eligible or how to apply as a group
  FPOs are among the most important target beneficiaries under AIF. Register the FPO as a beneficiary on the portal, submit a group project (e.g., shared cold storage for all members), and present the FPO registration certificate and board resolution to the bank. FPOs can use NABSanrakshan credit guarantee (instead of CGTMSE) — inform the bank about this option. Up to 25 projects per FPO are allowed.

As of June 2025, ₹66,310 crore has been sanctioned for 1,13,419 projects under AIF — generating over 9 lakh rural jobs and 550 lakh MT of new storage capacity. AP is one of the top beneficiary states. The budgetary support for interest subvention and credit guarantee fee is ₹10,636 crore over 10 years. The loan disbursement window closed on 31 March 2026. For the current position, contact your district Agriculture Department PMU or the AIF portal helpdesk at agriinfra-dac@gov.in.

• A
  Component A: Install a grid-connected solar power plant (500 KW – 2 MW) on your farm land and sell surplus power to the DISCOM at a feed-in tariff. For large landholders or farmer groups.
• B
  Component B: A standalone off-grid solar pump (3–7.5 HP, up to 10 HP). This is what most individual farmers need — 60% subsidy, farmer pays 10% plus a 30% loan.
• C
  Component C: Solarise your existing grid-connected pump. The DISCOM handles installation; you pay a reduced tariff and the government bears the rest.

Most farmers want Component B — a standalone solar pump replacing their diesel pump.

• Which component should I choose?
  If you want a new standalone pump replacing diesel: Component B. If you want to solarise your existing electric pump: Component C. Component A is for large solar plants that sell power to the grid.
• The subsidy percentage I see online is different from what my state offers?
  The 30% central assistance (CFA) is fixed everywhere. The state's 30% contribution varies — some states add more, some less. Always verify with your state DISCOM.
• Can I sell surplus power?
  Under Component A and Component C, yes — you can sell excess solar power to the grid at a tariff set by your State Electricity Regulatory Commission. Component B (standalone pumps) is off-grid and does not sell power.

National portal: pmkusum.mnre.gov.in · MNRE helpline: 011-2436-0707. Remember — the state-specific DISCOM portals are the actual application channel, not the national portal.

You contribute a small fixed amount every month between the ages of 18 and 40 — the younger you join, the less you pay, starting as low as ₹55/month. The Central Government matches your contribution rupee-for-rupee into a pension fund managed by LIC. Once you turn 60, you receive a guaranteed ₹3,000/month for life. If you pass away after 60, your spouse receives 50% — ₹1,500/month — as a family pension for their lifetime.

• "I get PM-KISAN — am I automatically enrolled in PM-KMY?"
  No. These are two separate schemes. PM-KISAN is income support paid to you; PM-KMY is a voluntary pension you opt into and pay into yourself. Many PM-KISAN beneficiaries do choose to enroll in PM-KMY as well, but it is a separate application.
• "What if I want to exit before turning 60?"
  Within the first 10 years, you get back your own contributions plus interest at the savings bank rate. After 10 years but before 60, you get your own contributions plus whichever is higher — the interest the pension fund actually earned, or the savings bank rate. In both cases the government's matching share stays in the pension fund and is not returned to you. If you die before 60, your spouse can either continue the scheme in your place or exit with the accumulated corpus.
• "I missed a monthly payment — is my enrollment cancelled?"
  No. You can pay the pending dues with a small penalty and keep the account active. To have it reinstated, call the LIC call centre on +91-22-6827-6827 — open 24×7, in English, Hindi and eight other regional languages — or go to your CSC or nearest LIC branch.
• "How do I check my contribution or pension status?"
  Sign in at maandhan.in with your Aadhaar-linked mobile number, or ask at the CSC where you enrolled.

The pension fund is managed by LIC. Its call centre on +91-22-6827-6827 is open 24×7 and answers in English, Hindi and eight other regional languages. For your contribution record, your pension card, or reinstating a lapsed account, you can also go to your nearest LIC branch or the CSC where you enrolled — they hold your enrollment record.

PMMSY covers the whole fish-farming chain — digging a pond, setting up cages, hatcheries, feed, aeration, and post-harvest infrastructure like ice plants and cold storage — as well as marine fishing, including vessel upgrades and harbour facilities. You submit a project proposal (a DPR) for the specific thing you want to build. Government assistance then covers 40% of the project cost for the general category, or 60% if you are SC/ST or a woman — that percentage is the Centre and your State put together, not two separate subsidies — and you fund the remainder yourself or through bank credit, including a Kisan Credit Card for fisheries.

The ₹20,050 crore headline is the whole scheme size, not government spending alone: ₹9,407 crore central share, ₹4,880 crore from the states, and ₹5,763 crore expected from beneficiaries themselves. A newer sub-scheme, PM-MKSSY, adds registration-linked insurance and one-time performance grants on top for those who register on the NFDP.

• 1
  Register on the NFDP

  Create your Fish Farmer ID at the National Fisheries Digital Platform, or through your State Fisheries Department office.
• 2
  Prepare your Detailed Project Report

  Set out what you are building — pond, cage, hatchery, cold storage — and what it costs. Your local fisheries extension officer can help you draft it.
• 3
  Apply through your State Fisheries Department

  Submit the DPR along with your ownership or lease documents for the land or water body.
• 4
  Technical approval and subsidy sanction

  The department checks your project and sanctions the assistance at your category's rate — 40% general, 60% for SC/ST and women.
• 5
  Add a fisheries KCC if you need working capital

  Take your Fish Farmer ID to your bank and ask for a Kisan Credit Card for fisheries. It runs alongside the capital subsidy and carries interest subvention. Ask the bank for the current limit and rate before you plan around a figure.

• "Is PMMSY still open this year?"
  Check before you spend money on a DPR. The scheme started in 2020-21 with a ₹20,050 crore outlay, and the most recent extension we can confirm from official sources runs to FY 2025-26; the PM-MKSSY sub-scheme is separately funded to FY 2026-27. Whether your particular activity is taking applications right now is set by your state's annual plan, so confirm with your State Fisheries Department or on pmmsy.dof.gov.in first.
• "I don't own the water body, I lease it — can I still apply?"
  Yes. A registered lease agreement is accepted in place of ownership documents. Make sure the term is long enough to justify the infrastructure you are building on it.
• "Is this only for fish farming, or does it cover boats too?"
  Both. Pond and cage aquaculture as well as marine fishing — vessel modernisation, safety equipment, and harbour and post-harvest infrastructure are all covered components.
• "How is this different from PM-MKSSY?"
  PM-MKSSY is a sub-scheme under PMMSY, focused on registration through the NFDP, one-time performance grants and insurance. It adds to the core PMMSY capital subsidy rather than replacing it. Registering on the NFDP is what opens the door to both.
• "My DPR was rejected — what usually goes wrong?"
  Most rejections are an incomplete cost estimate or missing proof for the land or water body. Have your DPR reviewed by the local Fisheries Extension Officer before you submit it formally.

There is no national call centre for PMMSY — the scheme is delivered through the states. Your State Fisheries Department and your district Fisheries Extension Officer are the people who actually approve and release your money, and they are the right first call for anything about your application.

RGM improves the breeding of indigenous cattle and buffalo, and it reaches you as services rather than money. A trained technician — a MAITRI, community resource person, or government AI technician — comes to your animal and performs artificial insemination free of charge under the Nationwide AI Programme, using only high-genetic-merit bull semen. If you want a female calf, ask for sex-sorted semen: government assistance covers up to half its cost and you pay the rest.

Every animal in the programme is ear-tagged with a 12-digit Pashu Aadhaar and recorded on Bharat Pashudhan, the national livestock database. That tag is becoming the entry point for animal husbandry benefits generally, so it is worth having even before you need one. Farmers buying a high-genetic-merit IVF-born heifer from a Heifer Rearing Centre or Breed Multiplication Farm can also claim a 3% interest subvention on the loan from a milk union, bank or financial institution. The scheme covers all 53 recognised cattle breeds and 20 buffalo breeds.

• 1
  Get your animal tagged with Pashu Aadhaar

  Ask your local veterinary hospital or AI technician. The 12-digit ear tag puts your animal on Bharat Pashudhan and is what most RGM benefits are keyed to.
• 2
  Ask for free AI at your doorstep

  Register with your State Livestock Development Board's AI network. A technician comes to your animal — there is no separate application once it is tagged, and the insemination itself is free.
• 3
  Ask about sex-sorted semen if you want a female calf

  Ask your technician or your dairy cooperative — APDDCF, Vijaya Dairy, KMF, Aavin — whether it is available in your area. You pay about half the cost. Availability varies by district.
• 4
  Buying an IVF heifer? Ask for the interest subvention

  If you are taking a loan from a milk union, bank or financial institution to buy a high-genetic-merit IVF-born heifer, tell the lender it qualifies for the 3% interest subvention under RGM.
• 5
  Everything else goes through your state agency

  RGM is delivered by the State Livestock Development Board or Milk Federation, not from Delhi. They hold your animal's record and decide what runs in your district this year.

• "Is RGM still running?"
  It is, and it is active — the scheme's National Steering Committee last met in June 2026. But the current approval is written to run up to 30 September 2026, with ₹800 crore allocated, pending the scheme's approval under the 16th Finance Commission cycle. Renewal looks likely, but if you are planning around it, ask your State Livestock Development Board what is funded in your district right now rather than assuming the year is open.
• "I only have two cows — is this for big entrepreneurs?"
  No. The parts an ordinary dairy farmer actually uses — free doorstep AI, sex-sorted semen, the heifer loan subvention — carry no minimum herd size. The capital assistance components are for implementing agencies setting up rearing centres, and are a separate thing entirely.
• "What is Pashu Aadhaar, and why does everyone ask for it?"
  It is your animal's official 12-digit ear-tag ID on Bharat Pashudhan, the national livestock database. It is becoming the standard key across animal husbandry schemes — insurance, cattle KCC, RGM benefits — so get your animals tagged even if you need nothing today. Older material calls this database INAPH; Bharat Pashudhan is what replaced it, and it is the name you will be asked for now.
• "Does RGM give me money to buy a cow or build a shed?"
  No. RGM pays for breeding services — insemination, semen, IVF, breed development. For buying animals or building infrastructure, look at the Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund or a Kisan Credit Card for animal husbandry, where the subsidised rate is capped at ₹2 lakh.
• "My technician says sex-sorted semen isn't available here"
  Availability depends on your state's semen station and cooperative infrastructure, and it genuinely varies district by district. Ask your State Livestock Development Board which station serves you, and use standard AI — which is free either way — in the meantime.

There is no national RGM helpline for farmers — the scheme runs through the states. Your State Livestock Development Board, your district veterinary hospital, or the milk union that collects from your village are the people who can actually book a technician and tell you what is available near you.

MIDH is an umbrella scheme covering the whole horticulture chain — planting a new orchard, rejuvenating an old one, protected cultivation, nurseries, mushroom units, cold storage and post-harvest infrastructure. Most farmers reach it through their State Horticulture Mission and their District Horticulture Officer; larger commercial projects go directly to the National Horticulture Board, which has its own norms and a much higher ceiling.

⚠️ The subsidy is back-ended and usually credit-linked, which catches people out. You or your bank fund the work first. Only after a joint departmental inspection confirms a stage is finished does the subsidy get released — in instalments, to a designated account. It is not an upfront grant, so plan the cash flow before you commit. The Centre pays 60% and your state 40% of the scheme's outlay (90:10 in the North-Eastern and Himalayan states), and the annual plan sits inside the Krishonnati Yojana — which is why what is actually funded changes from year to year.

• 1
  Work out which component you actually want

  A new orchard, orchard rejuvenation, a polyhouse, a mushroom unit, a nursery and a cold store are all separate components with their own cost norms and rates.
• 2
  Ask your District Horticulture Officer what is funded this year

  Priority crops and allocations are set in the year's Annual Action Plan and revised annually, so a component funded last year may not be open now. This is the question worth asking first.
• 3
  Submit the application

  With land records, Aadhaar and bank details — plus a DPR and bank sanction letter for the larger, credit-linked components.
• 4
  Build the work, then ask for the joint inspection

  A departmental team verifies what you have actually built against what you applied for. The subsidy is released against that inspection, not against your application.
• 5
  Subsidy arrives in instalments

  Credited in stages as inspection milestones clear, to a designated or escrow account. Budget for funding the whole project yourself until then.
• 6
  Going big? Apply to the NHB instead

  For commercial protected cultivation in project mode, the National Horticulture Board runs a separate route at nhb.gov.in — 50% of eligible project cost, up to ₹100 lakh per project, well above what the state route can sanction.

• "What crops does MIDH actually cover?"
  Fruits, vegetables, root and tuber crops, mushrooms, spices, flowers, medicinal and aromatic plants, coconut, cashew, cocoa and bamboo. It does not cover paddy, wheat or other staple grains — those sit under NFSM and other schemes.
• "Is MIDH the same as NHM?"
  In practice, for a farmer outside the North-East and the Himalayan states, yes. The National Horticulture Mission is MIDH's main sub-scheme and the one you actually apply through at your District Horticulture Office. MIDH is the umbrella above it.
• "Why did my subsidy come in instalments instead of all at once?"
  Because it is a back-ended subsidy by design. Money is released only after a joint inspection confirms each stage is genuinely complete, which is how the scheme avoids paying out for work that was never finished. Expect to carry the cost yourself, or on a loan, until then.
• "I want a bigger polyhouse than my DHO can approve"
  The state route's 50% assistance covers a maximum of 2,500 sq m per project. Above that, apply to the National Horticulture Board in project mode instead — 50% of eligible project cost with a ceiling of ₹100 lakh per project, on its own norms and its own application process at nhb.gov.in.
• "Is cold storage really up to 50%?"
  Not in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka or Tamil Nadu. Cold storage assistance is 35% in general areas, which is what all four of these states are. The 50% rate applies to the North-Eastern and Himalayan states, scheduled areas, vibrant villages, and the Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands. Storage above 5,000 MT goes through the NHB route, not your state.

There is no national MIDH helpline for farmers. Your District Horticulture Officer is the person who receives the application, orders the inspection and releases the subsidy — go to them first for anything about your own case, and to the State Horticulture Mission for what the state has funded this year.

This scheme exists for food businesses that are already running but are informal — pickle-making, papad, spice grinding, a home bakery, dairy products, millet snacks. It brings them into the formal economy with real machinery and market access. ⚠️ The subsidy is credit-linked and back-ended. You take a bank loan for the project, your Detailed Project Report is appraised, and the 35% subsidy is then set against that loan — it reduces what you owe. It does not arrive in your account as cash you can spend.

There are three other ways in. SHG members can get ₹40,000 seed capital each for working capital and small tools — capped at ₹4 lakh per SHG, so roughly ten members. Groups building a shared processing line — FPOs, cooperatives, SHG federations — get the same 35% with a much higher ceiling of ₹3 crore. And groups marketing a common brand can claim a 50% grant for branding and marketing. Every district has a designated One District One Product; there are 713 districts covered and 137 distinct products, and units working on their district's product tend to move faster.

• 1
  Find your district's ODOP

  Processing that product is not compulsory, but it usually means faster approval and access to shared cluster infrastructure. The list of all 713 districts is on the portal.
• 2
  Get help writing your DPR

  A District Resource Person appointed under the scheme will help you draft the cost and machinery plan. Use them — a weak DPR is the usual reason an application stalls at the bank.
• 3
  Apply on the portal or through your State Nodal Agency

  Submit online at pmfme.mofpi.gov.in with your documents, or go through the State Nodal Agency for your state.
• 4
  Bank appraisal and loan sanction

  A partner bank reviews your DPR and your eligibility, then sanctions the loan portion of the project cost.
• 5
  Subsidy is set against your loan

  Once verified, the 35% — up to ₹10 lakh — is credited back-ended against the sanctioned loan. Plan on funding the work through the loan until then.
• 6
  SHG members: seed capital is a separate route

  The ₹40,000 per member is paid as a grant to your SHG federation through the State Rural or Urban Livelihoods Mission, and reaches you as a loan from the federation — not as a transfer into your own account. Up to ₹4 lakh per SHG.

• "Is PMFME still open?"
  The scheme was notified for 2020-21 to FY 2025-26 with a ₹10,000 crore outlay, and we could find no announcement extending it beyond that. It is clearly still operating, though — the portal is live, it published newsletters through mid-2026, and the helpline is staffed. Before you spend money on a DPR, call the helpline or your State Nodal Agency and confirm applications are open.
• "I run a small pickle business from home, completely informal — can I apply?"
  Yes, and that is exactly the intended applicant. As long as the unit is genuinely running and you have some ownership or operating record, this scheme exists to formalise and upgrade businesses like yours, not only registered factories.
• "Do I get the ₹10 lakh in cash upfront?"
  No. It is a back-ended, credit-linked subsidy. You take a bank loan, and after appraisal and verification the 35% is adjusted against that loan — it reduces what you owe rather than arriving as money you can spend. Budget accordingly.
• "Can my spouse and I both apply from the same household?"
  No. Only one person per family can take the individual-unit subsidy.
• "I'm in an SHG — do I get the same 35%?"
  Not directly. As a member you access the ₹40,000 seed capital for working capital and small tools, which comes to you as a loan from your SHG federation. If the group wants to build a shared processing unit, that goes down the group project route instead, where the same 35% applies with a ₹3 crore ceiling.
• "My district's ODOP is not what I make — can I still apply?"
  Yes. Other products are eligible. ODOP-aligned units simply get priority for shared cluster infrastructure, training and quicker processing, so expect your application to take a little longer.

The PMFME helpline runs on five numbers — 9254997101 to 9254997105 — Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM, or email support-pmfme[at]mofpi[dot]gov[dot]in. Your State Nodal Agency and District Resource Person contacts are listed on the portal, and they are the people who help with the application itself.