UP Government gears up to build 5000 agri-warehouses to help farmers
In a move to help farmers store their produce safely as well as boost agri-warehousing, the government of Uttar Pradesh is planning to construct about 5,000 agri-warehouses across the state, with at least one warehouse for every 10 villages. This is also aid farmers to get a fair price for their hard work and efforts.
According to government officials, the scheme is expected to cost INR 2,500 crore and will increase the storage capacity of the state by 8.60 lakh tons. It will provide huge relief to farmers by not only helping them protect their produce during natural calamities like rain and fire but also in getting better rates as storing foodgrains properly will prevent them from rotting.
In the current scenario, the farmers end up selling their produce at whatever rate they get as they are not able to store their produce and cannot wait for a better price. The buyers know about this scenario and use it against farmers. The construction of these warehouses will also create employment opportunities for the rural youth as it create requirement of caretakers accountants, security personnel as well as supervisors.
The UP Warehousing and Logistics Policy witnessed a major change in July this year which allowed land for warehousing and logistics to be made available at industrial rates. The new policy change has made land substantially cheaper for those planning to set up warehousing and logistics facilities in UP.