Nearly 60 lakh farmers have registered on cooperative procurement portals launched under the Ministry of Cooperation’s Atmanirbharta Abhiyan, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply.
The initiative aims to boost domestic production of tur, urad, masur and maize, reduce India’s dependence on pulse imports, and promote maize cultivation for ethanol production under the Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP).
Shah said the programme is being implemented through NAFED and NCCF, both of which have developed dedicated farmer registration portals. While NCCF operates the e-Samyukti portal, NAFED has launched the e-Samridhi portal.
According to the Minister, 44,09,590 farmers have registered on NCCF’s e-Samyukti portal, while 15,84,759 farmers have enrolled on NAFED’s e-Samridhi portal, taking the combined registrations to nearly 59.94 lakh.
The Minister said both organizations have assured 100% procurement at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) from pre-registered farmers growing tur, urad, masur and maize. However, farmers remain free to sell their produce in the open market if prevailing market prices are higher than the MSP.
The initiative is part of the Ministry of Cooperation’s broader strategy to strengthen agricultural cooperatives, improve farmer incomes and enhance India’s self-reliance in pulses while supporting the country’s ethanol blending targets.
