Politics
NHB Halts New Subsidy Applications After Minister Returns Rs 99-Lakh Grant Following Probe
The National Horticulture Board (NHB), an autonomous body functioning under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, has temporarily stopped accepting new applications for Grant of Clearance (GoC) under two of its schemes for a period of one month, starting September 4. The move follows recent changes to scheme guidelines after it emerged that a Union minister and the relative of a serving central government secretary had received subsidies for cucumber cultivation.
An investigation by The Indian Express earlier revealed that Bhagirath Choudhary, Minister of State in the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, had obtained a subsidy through a scheme administered by his own ministry — one approved by a board where he serves as ex-officio Vice-President.
According to the June 27 report by The Indian Express, Choudhary, along with the wife, mother, and son of IAS officer Naresh Pal Gangwar — currently Secretary of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying — had availed subsidies under the Scheme for Development of Commercial Horticulture through Production and Post-Harvest Management of Horticulture Produce. After the report surfaced, Choudhary returned the Rs 99 lakh subsidy to the NHB. Subsequently, the government revised the scheme’s guidelines, effective August 21.
In a circular dated September 3, the NHB announced the suspension of new GoC applications under two schemes — the Development of Commercial Horticulture scheme (Scheme 1) and the Capital Investment Subsidy Scheme for Construction, Expansion, and Modernization of Cold Storages (Scheme 2). The suspension, approved by the “competent authority,” is meant to allow for verification of pending cases and updates to the online application system in line with the revised guidelines.
The circular clarified that during this one-month period, the online portal for submitting fresh GoC applications under these schemes would remain unavailable. However, it specified that applications already submitted before September 4 would continue to be processed under the updated guidelines and other applicable NHB instructions. The board said a new date for resuming applications would be announced later.
The GoC is a mandatory requirement for applicants seeking credit-linked, back-ended subsidies under NHB schemes.
The Development of Commercial Horticulture scheme aims to promote large-scale, profit-oriented cultivation of horticultural crops such as capsicum, cucumber, and tomato, as well as eight varieties of flowers including rose, lilium, and chrysanthemum. It offers a subsidy of up to 50 percent of the project cost, capped at Rs 1 crore per family.
On August 21, the government revised the scheme’s guidelines, redefining the term ‘family’ and barring several categories of individuals — including holders of constitutional posts, sitting ministers, MPs, MLAs, mayors, district panchayat chiefs, and government employees — from availing financial assistance under NHB schemes. Under the new definition, ‘family’ now includes “the applicant’s spouse, father, mother, sons and daughters,” replacing the earlier definition that limited it to “the husband, wife, and dependent minor children.”