Parliament Question: Assessment of Integrated Cold Chain

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 837 ANSWERED ON 23TH JULY, 2026 ASSESSMENT OF INTEGRATED COLD CHAIN 837. SHRI SRIBHARAT MATHUKUMILLI: Will the Minister of FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has undertaken any impact assessment of the Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure component of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana (PMKSY), if so, the details of reduction in post-harvest losses, increase in food processing capacity and improvement in farmers’ price realization recorded after commissioning of such projects, the commodity-wise and State-wise; (b) the estimated post-harvest losses, existing cold storage capacity, additional cold storage capacity required and the identified gaps between demand and available capacity as per the latest assessment, commodity-wise and State-wise; (c) whether Government has identified districts or value chains where post-harvest losses continue to remain high despite the creation of cold chain infrastructure and if so, the reasons therefor and the corrective measures proposed therein; and (d) the details of projects sanctioned, completed and operational, funds sanctioned and released, storage capacity created, average capacity utilisation under the scheme, State- wise? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES (SHRI RAVNEET SINGH) (a) & (b): The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) has commissioned a study on Impact Evaluation of Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure Scheme (Cold Chain scheme) during 2025 through Academy of Management Studies, New Delhi. The above study reported that the commissioning of cold chain projects under the Cold Chain scheme has led to reduction in post-harvest losses, increase in processing and preservation capacity across the country and thereby assisting farmers in achieving better price realization for their farm produce. To quantify post-harvest losses, the Ministry relies on periodic studies rather than annual estimates. These studies were conducted by the Ministry through (i) Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering & Technology (CIPHET), Indian Council of Agricultural Research(ICAR) – during 2015 with reference year 2012-14 and (ii) NABARD Consultancy Services Pvt. Ltd. (NABCONS) during 2022 with reference year 2020-22. As per these studies, the estimated percentages of post-harvest losses of various agricultural produce in the country are as mentioned below:Crops/ Estimated Percentage Loss Commodities As per ICAR-CIPHET study (2015) As per NABCONS study (2022) Cereals 4.65 - 5.99 3.89-5.92 Pulses 6.36 - 8.41 5.65-6.74 Oil Seeds 3.08 - 9.96 2.87-7.51 Fruits 6.70-15.88 6.02-15.05 Vegetables 4.58-12.44 4.87-11.61 Plantation Crops & Spices 1.18-7.89 1.29-7.33 Milk 0.92 0.87 Fisheries (Inland) 5.23 4.86 Fisheries (Marine) 10.52 8.76 Meat 2.71 2.34 Poultry 6.74 5.63 Egg 7.19 6.03 State-wise post-harvest losses of major crops in percentage provided as per the NABCONS study (2022) is provided at Annexure-I. As per the data compiled and provided by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, the existing cold storage capacity across the country as on 31.01.2026 is 402.87 lakh MT. As per the latest study on Impact Evaluation of Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure Scheme during 2025 conducted by this Ministry through Academy of Management Studies, New Delhi, there is a gap of 48.03 lakh MT between the existing and required cold storage facility. (c): The Cold Chain scheme operates on a demand driven basis, with Expressions of Interest issued periodically to invite proposals from the eligible entities nationwide, contingent upon fund availability. Importantly, proposals are considered irrespective of specific districts or value chains. To address post-harvest losses, the Ministry has conducted studies that provide crop-wise estimates across the supply chain. These assessments detail losses at various stages of different commodities, along with the primary causes and critical loss points. These findings inform policy measures and guide infrastructure development aimed at reducing losses. These studies do not furnish district-wise estimates of post-harvest losses of crops. (d): As of 30.06.2026, under the Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure (Cold Chain scheme) component of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY), a total of 409 projects have been approved, with a sanctioned grant-in-aid of ₹3089.08 crore, of which, ₹2540.89 crore has already been disbursed. Of these approved projects, 311 have been successfully completed and operationalized, leading to the creation of a cumulative cold storage capacity of 9.236 lakh metric tonnes. A comprehensive State-wise breakdown of theapproved, completed and operational projects, along with the funds sanctioned and released along with total cold storage created is furnished in Annexure-II. Furthermore, the sector-wise average capacity utilization of various components supported under these projects has also been assessed; these utilization figures are drawn from the Ministry’s 2020 evaluation study – titled “Impact of units implemented under Scheme for Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure assisted by Ministry of Food Processing Industries" conducted by NABCONS Pvt. Ltd., and are detailed in Annexure-III. *****ANNEXURE-I Annexure-I referred in reply to part (a) & (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 837 for answer on 23.07.2026 regarding “Assessment of Integrated Cold Chain” State-wise Post-Harvest Losses of Major crops in percentage Sl. State/ UT Post-harvest losses of crops in percentage No Bajra BananBla Cashe Chickp ChilCitr CoconCotto Egg Gre GrounInla MaizMan MariArecan . a ck w ea i us ut n en g d nut nd e go ne fisut gra nut seed ram fish h m 1. Andhra Pradesh 5.07 9.33 5.56 4.82 5.71 7.06 7.97 4.32 3.03 5.47 6.17 6.58 4.68 5.98 7.90 8.50 2. Assam 6.05 3. Andaman & Nicobar 4.25 6.44 Islands 4. Bihar 6.06 5.83 10.10 5. Chhattisgarh 6. Gujarat 4.41 7.59 4.8 2.93 5.85 5.31 5.18 7. Haryana 3.77 5.66 2.55 6.74 8. Himachal Pradesh 2.27 9. Jharkhand 10 Jammu & kashmir 6.08 3.92 11 Kerala 3.07 3.61 5.53 8.75 4.01 12 Karnataka 5.03 3.17 3.78 5.64 4.41 8.97 4.15 13 Madhya Pradesh 4.53 6.73 5.85 6.29 7.4 6.33 6.11 6.3 14 Maharashtra 4.21 6.06 7.48 5.4 8.79 2.98 5.55 5.9 6.16 5.3 8.61 8.8 15 Meghalaya 4.53 16 Nagaland 17 Odisha 6.09 6.63 6.11 5.68 9.89 18 Punjab 5.4 6.9119 Rajasthan 5.03 5.74 5.83 2.53 6.21 5.03 5.81 20 Tamil Nadu 7.47 5.93 6.6 5.31 4.39 9.14 21 Telangana 6.06 7.73 3.04 5.36 6.24 6.67 6.51 22 Uttarakhand 23 Uttar Pradesh 4.11 6.11 6.06 5.77 24 West Bengal 7.07 6.24 7.24 3.79 5.42 8.94Sl. State/ UT Post-harvest losses of crops in percentage No . Milk Musk Paddy Papa Pome- Poultry Sorghum Tapioc Tomat TurmerCabbag Meat Mushro PineapplRadish melon ya granat Meat a o ic e om e e 1 Andhra Pradesh 0.58 7.42 5.73 6.58 8.69 7.39 5.67 - 12.36 4.97 - 2 Assam 6.07 6.61 7.38 3.44 4.48 7.11 5.14 3 Andaman & Nicob ar Islands 4 Bihar 4.65 8.7 5.89 5.11 5 Chhattisgarh 3.92 6.66 6 Gujrat 0.5 4.54 5.81 10.97 8.39 7 Haryana 0.74 4.63 2.88 5.91 7.51 8 Himachal Pradesh 6.01 9 Jharkhand 6.73 10 Jammu & kashmir 11 Kerala 5.32 4.8 2.2 12 Karnataka 8.19 9.97 4.63 3.73 13 Madhya Pradesh 0.53 5.76 4.20 11.85 14 Maharashtra 0.65 4.44 6.02 4.78 2.78 9.24 15 Meghalaya 4.99 5.64 16 Nagaland 5.42 17 Odisha 4.17 13.19 8.08 13.64 18 Punjab 0.63 5.48 3.15 6.7 19 Rajasthan 1.35 20 Tamil Nadu 5.98 6.08 3.04 11.03 21 Telangana 8.12 1.61 22 Uttarakhand 1.16 2.87 23 Uttar Pradesh 1.12 7.25 4.00 7.24 2.8 2.74 24 West Bengal 1.09 5.14 5.41 8.71 2.41 5.66 6.45Sl. State/UT Post-harvest losses of crops in percentage No. Bottle Gour Brinjal Cauliflowe Guav Inland fis Okra Potato Sugarcane Sunflower Sapot Onion Mustar Wheat Beans Pigeon pe d r a h a d a 1 Andhra Pradesh 2 Assam 3 Andaman & Nicoba r Islands 4 Bihar 7.35 7.52 6.76 15.36 5.99 6.27 6.11 8.99 5.18 5 Chhattisgarh 6.77 13.79 6 Gujrat 6.99 7.99 5.79 5.18 7.47 7.57 4.38 5.18 6.65 4.27 7 Haryana 6.34 4.44 4.52 4.37 8 Himachal Pradesh 3.32 9 Jharkhand 10 Jammu & kashmir 11 Kerala 12 Karnataka 4.82 4.84 4.22 8.70 7.33 4.57 13 Madhya Pradesh 7.46 6.46 14.93 5.84 7.00 8.11 4.86 4.94 6.43 14 Maharashtra 8.61 4.93 6.78 6.90 15 Meghalaya 16 Nagaland 17 Odisha 7.57 7.30 7.65 6.25 18 Punjab 5.57 4.38 4.55 19 Rajasthan 4.75 6.25 20 Tamil Nadu 8.65 7.82 21 Telangana 5.01 22 Uttarakhand 5.46 2.51 23 Uttar Pradesh 6.43 4.99 5.82 6.91 5.97 6.36 24 West Bengal 7.85 7.26 15.86 6.05 5.71 5.21 6.21 6.13 5.48State/UT Post-harvest losses of crops in percentage Sl. Apple Capsicum Green pea Black Grapes Safflower Sorghum Soybean Coriander No. pepper 1 Andhra Prad esh 2 Assam 3 Andaman & Nicobar Islan ds 4 Bihar 5 Chhattisgarh 6 Gujrat 7 Haryana 8 Himachal Pra 9.20 5.74 6.35 desh 9 Jharkhand 10 Jammu & Ka 9.51 shmir 11 Kerala 1.26 12 Karnataka 5.75 1.31 8.02 3.10 5.69 6.63 13 Madhya Prad 4.33 6.27 6.76 7.36 6.01 esh 14 Maharashtra 6.73 3.02 6.16 8.84 15 Meghalaya 16 Nagaland 17 Odisha 18 Punjab 4.31 6.67 19 Rajasthan 6.01 6.54 5.70 20 Tamil Nadu 6.29 21 Telangana 22 Uttarakhand 11.50 23 Uttar Pradesh 6.34 24 West BengalANNEXURE-II Annexure-II referred in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 837 for answer on 23.07.2026 regarding “Assessment of Integrated Cold Chain” State-wise details of projects approved, completed and operational, Grants-in-aid approved, Grants-in-aid released and total cold storage capacity created from the completed projects Sl. State/UT No. of No. of Approved Released Total No. projects Completed/ GIA (₹in GIA (₹in Cold approved Operational cr.) cr.) Storage capacity created from completed projects (Lakh MT) 1 Andaman & 1 1 2.81 2.81 0.00600 Nicobar 2 Andhra Pradesh 37 25 313.67 245.82 0.45614 3 Arunachal 2 1 15.59 6.46 0.01000 Pradesh 4 Assam 2 2 17.37 17.37 0.081 5 Bihar 5 3 39.85 34.86 0.366 6 Chandigarh 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 7 Chhattisgarh 4 2 30.41 11.52 0.085 8 Dadra & Nagar 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 Haveli and Diu & Daman 9 Delhi 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 10 Goa 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 11 Gujarat 29 25 233.27 203.77 0.568 12 Haryana 23 18 174.00 147.67 0.547 13 Himachal Pradesh 16 14 138.10 130.92 0.35 14 Jammu & 7 5 52.83 32.83 0.053 Kashmir 15 Jharkhand 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 16 Karnataka 20 14 147.37 101.39 0.288 17 Kerala 8 4 56.96 24.31 0.411 18 Ladakh 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 19 Lakshadweep 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 20 Madhya Pradesh 11 9 83.03 71.20 0.221 21 Maharashtra 77 59 543.37 458.30 1.768 22 Manipur 1 1 9.96 9.96 0.029 23 Meghalaya 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 24 Mizoram 2 2 12.77 12.77 0.00525 Nagaland 2 1 12.48 8.39 0.010 26 Odisha 9 5 71.38 52.05 0.11886 27 Pondicherry 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 28 Punjab 25 21 157.03 138.40 0.566 29 Rajasthan 14 13 83.42 81.00 0.435 30 Sikkim 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 31 Tamil Nadu 26 15 187.02 119.72 0.349 32 Telangana 15 11 113.03 93.54 0.188 33 Tripura 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 34 Uttar Pradesh 26 21 207.21 190.54 0.627 35 Uttrakhand 30 27 275.10 265.64 1.009 36 West Bengal 17 12 111.05 79.65 0.689 Total 409 311 3089.08 2540.89 9.236ANNEXURE-III Annexure-III referred in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 837 for answer on 23.07.2026 regarding “Assessment of Integrated Cold Chain” Sector-wise/ component-wise capacity utilisation of cold chain projects approved under Cold Chain scheme Sector Average Percentage Capacity Utilisation of components supported in Cold Chain projects Single Cycle Components IQF Plate Freezer Blast Primary Sorting Packaging Line Freezer Processing Grading Line Dairy 2 - 78 4 - 89 Fisheries 58 26 14 27 - 59 Fruit & 26 20 - 68 39 12 Vegetable Meat 41 49 56 23 - - Sector Multi Cycle Components Cold Storage/ Reefer Vans/ Deep Precooling units CA Insulated Freezer Vans Dairy 42 78 15 - Fisheries 61 7 1 - Fruit & 33 19 14 33 Vegetable Meat 13 - 68 45 *****