Government Schemes and Subsidies for Custard Apple Farmers in India

The Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture, operating under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, provides financial assistance to custard apple farmers across India through the National Horticulture Mission and its state-level implementing agencies. MIDH annual reports document total horticulture subsidy disbursements exceeding ₹2,800 crore annually across all fruit crops, with custard apple specifically included as a priority crop under area expansion programs in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat. Individual custard apple farmers can access subsidies of 40 to 50 percent on planting material costs, drip irrigation installation, pack house construction, and cold storage infrastructure, with total benefits ranging from ₹25,000 for small planting material subsidies to ₹5 lakh or more for infrastructure investments depending on the specific scheme component and state implementation guidelines.

MIDH Area Expansion Subsidy for New Custard Apple Planting

Under the MIDH area expansion component implemented through state horticulture departments, farmers establishing new custard apple orchards are eligible for financial assistance of 40 percent of the cost of cultivation up to a maximum of ₹30,000 per hectare for plains areas and ₹37,500 per hectare for hilly areas, disbursed in three instalments over three years tied to survival of planted material. NHB documents show the per hectare cost norm for custard apple establishment is set at ₹75,000 covering planting material, land preparation, and first-year inputs. To apply, farmers must approach their Block Agriculture Officer or District Horticulture Officer with land ownership documents, soil test report, bank account details, and Aadhaar card. Applications are processed through the DBT Agriculture portal in most states and subsidy amounts are directly credited to the farmer's bank account after field verification by the horticulture department.

PM Krishi Sinchai Yojana: Drip Irrigation Subsidy

The Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana Per Drop More Crop component provides the highest subsidy rates available to custard apple farmers for drip irrigation installation. Small and marginal farmers owning less than 2 hectares receive 55 percent subsidy on drip irrigation system cost while other farmers receive 45 percent subsidy under PMKSY guidelines. For a one-acre custard apple orchard, drip irrigation system installation cost ranges from ₹35,000 to ₹55,000 depending on pipe layout and emitter type, meaning subsidy amounts of ₹15,750 to ₹30,250 are available per acre. Applications are submitted through state agriculture department portals or directly at the district agriculture office. ICAR research confirms that drip-irrigated custard apple orchards show 25 to 30 percent yield improvement over flood irrigated orchards, making this subsidy one of the highest return investments available to custard apple farmers.

NHB Development Schemes for Pack House and Grading Infrastructure

The National Horticulture Board administers capital investment subsidy schemes for post-harvest infrastructure that custard apple farmer groups and FPOs can access. NHB Scheme for Development of Cold Chain, Value Addition and Preservation Infrastructure provides credit linked back-ended subsidy of 35 percent of the project cost for pack house construction with grading and sorting facilities, with a maximum subsidy cap of ₹35 lakh per project. For a basic pack house of 100 metric tonne capacity serving a custard apple FPO, project cost typically ranges from ₹25 to ₹50 lakh, making NHB subsidy of ₹8.75 to ₹17.5 lakh available. Applications are submitted directly to NHB regional offices in Pune, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru. Individual farmers can also access NHB subsidy for smaller on-farm pack shed construction of up to ₹3 lakh project cost with 35 percent subsidy amounting to ₹1.05 lakh.

NABARD Refinance and Farmer Producer Organisation Support

NABARD provides refinance support to cooperative banks and regional rural banks for agricultural term loans taken by custard apple farmers for orchard establishment and infrastructure, at concessional interest rates that reduce effective borrowing cost for farmers. Under NABARD's FPO promotion scheme, groups of custard apple farmers forming a Farmer Producer Organisation receive equity grant support of up to ₹15 lakh per FPO over 3 years for building working capital, along with credit guarantee coverage of up to ₹1 crore through the Credit Guarantee Fund for FPOs. NABARD district development managers conduct free FPO formation training camps across all major custard apple growing districts. Custard apple FPOs in Maharashtra's Nanded and Osmanabad districts have successfully accessed NABARD-supported bank credit to establish shared grading and packaging infrastructure that has enabled direct supermarket supply, according to NABARD annual report case studies.

State-Specific Schemes in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh

Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, the two largest custard apple producing states, have additional state-funded schemes supplementing central government programs. Maharashtra's Dr. Punjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Udyog Mitra scheme provides additional top-up subsidy of 10 to 15 percent on horticulture infrastructure costs over and above central MIDH subsidy, effectively raising total subsidy to 50 to 65 percent for small and marginal farmers in the state. Andhra Pradesh Horticulture Department's YSR Horticulture development scheme provides free quality planting material of improved custard apple varieties including Arka Sahan and Balanagar from state government nurseries to farmers in identified horticulture clusters, completely eliminating the planting material cost which otherwise ranges from ₹80 to ₹150 per grafted sapling. Farmers in both states can check current scheme availability and application procedures through their respective state horticulture department websites or by visiting the District Horticulture Officer.