Opinion Express View on government’s new grain storage plan: More in store
New grain storage plan would almost double existing capacity, help farmers in more ways than one
At the same time, the framework of this new storage plan also points towards the increasing emphasis the government is placing on cooperatives. 
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Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the world’s largest grain storage plan in the cooperative sector. PM Modi, who was speaking at the inauguration of a pilot project being carried out in 11 states by primary agricultural credit societies under this plan, said that the government is looking to “set up a storage infrastructure of 700 lakh metric tons”. Expected to fructify over the coming five years, this is likely to cost Rs 1.25 lakh crore. The government’s plan is ambitious. To put it in perspective — the Food Corporation of India currently has a storage capacity of 361.62 lakh tonnes and state government agencies have capacities of another 400.74 lakh tonnes as reported in this paper. This would imply that the government aims to almost double the existing storage capacity in the country.
This sharp increase in storage facilities would help at multiple levels — it will cut down losses due to lack of adequate infrastructure, and enable farmers to sell their output at an opportune time in terms of prices. At the same time, the framework of this new storage plan also points towards the increasing emphasis the government is placing on cooperatives. It had previously outlined a plan to establish two lakh primary agricultural credit societies (PACS), dairy and fisheries cooperatives in the country.
The Union Budget 2023-24 flagged the initiation of the process of computerisation of 63,000 PACS with an investment of Rs 2,516 crore. The formation of a Ministry of Cooperation under Amit Shah is also indicative of this priority.
The appeal of PACS rests in these societies serving as the last, but vital, link in the cooperative credit structure. A report by the Reserve Bank of India had pegged the number of such societies in the country at 1.02 lakh at the end of March 2021. These societies, which have a sizeable presence in the western part of the country, served “13.7 crore members and 5.4 crore borrowers”, it said. The disaggregated data shows that small and marginal farmers and others accounted for 81 per cent of these 13.7 crore members. Around 60 per cent of lending of district central cooperative banks is through these societies. However, as the study pointed out, of these one lakh plus PACs, only 47,297 were in profit.
This increasing reliance on cooperatives stems from the prime minister’s belief in their critical role in solving farmers problems “through group/collective strength”. PM Modi, while also outlining the expanding role of these societies, said, “As chief minister, I experienced the strength of cooperatives. The world knows Amul and Lijjat Papad.” This emphasis may also be an indication, though, of receding expectations of large-scale investments from the private sector in agriculture infrastructure and marketing.
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