Agriculture Infrastructure Fund Boosts Post-Harvest Assets

The scheme focuses on improving agri-logistics, reducing post-harvest losses, promoting modern storage, processing and value-addition facilities, and enhancing farm-gate infrastructure to support efficient agricultural supply chains. Under AIF, banks and financial institutions provide loans with an interest subvention of three per cent per annum, along with credit guarantee coverage for loans up to Rs 20 million through CGTMSE and NABSanrakshan.

Since its inception in July 2020 until 26 January 2026, loans worth Rs 802.24 billion have been sanctioned for 1,50,431 projects under AIF, mobilising total investments of Rs 1275.08 billion.

Components B and C of the PM-KUSUM were included as eligible assets for availing AIF benefits in a convergent mode in September 2020. These components support the solarisation of grid-connected agriculture pumps and standalone solar pumping systems.

Since September 2020 until 26 January 2026, loans amounting to Rs 292.0 million have been sanctioned for 921 projects under these components, primarily benefiting farmer groups such as Self Help Groups, Joint Liability Groups, Water User Associations and cooperatives.

The information was shared by Ramnath Thakur, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.