Question:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) the specific horticulture crops that are recommended for farmers in Haryana for better
profitability;

(b) the key benefits that horticulture crops offer over traditional agricultural crops in terms of
profitability;

(c) the potential increase in profit that farmers can expect by switching to horticulture crops
in Haryana, the details thereof;

(d) the measures or support programs that Government plan to introduce to encourage and
assist farmers in adopting horticulture crops; and

(e) challenges or barriers farmers may face in transitioning from traditional agricultural crops
to horticulture crops, and the manner in which Government plan to address such challenges?

Answer

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
(SHRI NARENDRA SINGH TOMAR)
(a) to (e): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF RAJYA SABHA
STARRED QUESTION NO.175 DUE FOR ANSWER ON 04/08/2023.

(a) & (b) : Horticulture crops perform a vital role in the economy by generating employment,
nutrition support, providing raw material to food processing industry and women empowerment. The
horticulture sector provides benefits like higher returns per unit area, higher export value, higher
productivity compared to other crops, best utilization of marginal lands and production of more food
energy per unit area than that of field crops. The adaptability of horticulture crops in different climatic
and soil conditions with enhanced yields make them profitable for the farmers. The yield of fruits
and vegetables per unit area is higher than cereals. Paddy gives a yield of 40 Qtl/ ha whereas banana
gives 370 Qtrl/ ha and grapes 210 Qtl/ ha. Horticulture crops recommended for Haryana are as under

(i) Fruits – Mango, Guava, Kinnow, Citrus (lemon), Aonla, Ber and Sapota.
(ii) Vegetable – Cucurbit, Cole crops, tomato, potato, onion, brinjal and mushroom
(iii) Flowers – Gladiolus, marigold and Lilium.
(iv) Spices – Ginger, chillies, garlic, turmeric, coriander, fennel and fenugreek
The details of horticulture crops grown in Haryana are given in Annexure-I.

(c) : The potential increase in profit for vegetables is estimated to be 5 – 6 times higher than that
of field crops and 3 – 4 times in case of fruit crops. The rotation of field crops with vegetables is also
providing increased profit per acre to the farmers.

(d) & (e) : Government of India promotes holistic development of horticulture through
regionally differentiated programmes like Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture
(MIDH) with an end to end approach encompassing components for planting material, new
plantation, micro irrigation, horticulture mechanization, protected cultivation, post harvest
management and marketing infrastructures. The main challenges faced in adopting horticulture are
high initial investment, availability of planting material, lack of technical knowledge, post harvest
losses, inefficient supply chain and weak linkages with markets. In order to address these challenges,
eleven (11) crops specific Centres of Excellence (CoE) have been established in Haryana under
MIDH and state scheme for providing quality planting material, technical knowledge through
trainings and demonstrations to the farmers. Out of eleven (11) centres, seven (7) CoE have been
established under MIDH and four (4) have been established under State Plan Schemes. These centres
are located in various districts of State and are meant for development of fruits and vegetables etc.

Further, support is also available under Market Intervention Scheme for procurement of
Horticultural crops which are perishable in nature. Horticulture crops are also covered under Pradhan
Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) to provide safeguards to farmers. The assistance is also
available for creation of infrastructure in Horticulture sector under Agriculture Infrastructure Fund
(AIF) Scheme of Government of India. National Horticulture Board (NHB) is also providing support
for development of commercial horticulture, protected cultivation and post harvest infrastructure
including cold storages, pack-houses, primary processing etc. and the board has assisted 92 projects
in Haryana state till 2023-24. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has also recommended
climate resilient four (4) varieties of fruits and also four (4) varieties of vegetables for Haryana.

In addition, State Government of Haryana is also implementing Bhavantar Bharpayee Yojana
(BBV) to compensate the horticulture growers by providing gap incentive of cost and prevailing
market price of perishables. Further, to safeguard the farmers against adverse weather conditions, a
state specific crop assurance scheme namely Mukhyamantri Bagwani Bima Yojana (MBBY) is being
implemented to assure minimum realization of Rs. 30,000/- and Rs. 40,000/- per acre for vegetables
and fruits respectively.