[Apply] Operation Green Scheme 2024 Online Registration – 50% Subsidy for Air Transportation of Fruits, Vegetables

Central government has launched Operation Green Scheme 2024 to control prices of tomato, potato and onion (TOP). In mission Operation Greens, the consignments of all notified fruits and vegetables irrespective of price and quantity will be eligible for the 50% freight subsidy. Check the list of fruits, vegetables covered in this scheme, pattern of assistance, duration, eligible entities, submission of claim for subsidy. Apply online for air transport subsidy by filling Operation Green Scheme registration form.

The state govt. was providing incentives to the farmers to boost the production of these 3 veggies under TOP Scheme. The TOP Scheme was enabling govt. to control the prices of tomato, onion and potato even in the period of scarcity / lean period. Now in Operation Greens Scheme, govt. will lay emphasis on control of other fruits and vegetables (TOP to Total).

The TOP Scheme was started earlier to promote processing of tomato, onion and potato and boost the supplies of these veggies. For this operation green, central govt. had allotted Rs. 500 crore in its annual budget. Moreover, central govt. has also compressed the supply chains and is focusing on creating infrastructure to naturally preserve TOP to Total crops.

Operation Green Scheme 2024

The central government on November 11, 2020 announced a new scheme namely Operation Green. In this scheme, govt. will provide 50% subsidy will be provided to the Himalayan and North-Eastern states for air transportation of 41 notified fruits and vegetables to any place in the country. The airlines will provide direct air transport subsidy to the supplier, consignor, consignee or agent by charging only 50% of the actual contracted freight charges.

The balance 50 percent will be claimed by the airlines as subsidy from the  Ministry of Food Processing Industries. The announcement was made by Union Food Processing Industries Ministry in a statement. The amended guidelines were notified on November 2, 2020.

List of Fruits Eligible for Air Subsidy in Operation Green Scheme  

Under the Operation Greens scheme, the consignments of all notified fruits and vegetables irrespective of price and quantity will be eligible for the 50 percent freight subsidy. Around 21 fruits will be eligible for the air subsidy which includes:-

1. Mango
2. Banana
3. Guava
4. Orange
5. Mousambi
6. Litchi
7. Kiwi
8. Lime
9. Lemon
10. Pineapple
11. Pomegranate
12. Papaya
13. Apple
14. Almond
15. Pear
16. Sweet Potato
17. Chikoo
18. Passion fruit
19. Jackfruit
20. Kinnow
21. Aonla

List of Vegetables Eligible for Air Subsidy in Operation Greens Scheme  

Around 19 vegetables will be eligible for the air subsidy which includes the following:-

1. Onion
2. Potato
3. Tomato
4. French beans
5. Garlic
6. Brinjal
7. Capsicum
8. Carrot
9. Cauliflower
10. Bitter Gourd
11. Green Chillies
12. Cucumber
13. Peas
14. Large Cardamom
15. Okra
16. Ginger
17. Cabbage
18. Squash
19. Dry Turmeric

The air transportation of these commodities is allowed from all airports in the northeastern states including in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim (Bagdogra) and Tripura and Himalayan states including Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

Operation Greens Mission (TOP to Total Scheme) Details

The important features and highlights of this TOP to Total Scheme under Operation Green Scheme are as follows:-

Objective

The objective of intervention is to protect the growers of fruits and vegetables from making distress sale due to lockdown and reduce the post-harvest losses.

Eligible Crops (Fruits / Vegetables)

Mango, Banana, Guava, Kiwi, Lichi, Papaya, Citrus, Pineapple, Pomegranate, Jackfruit; Vegetables: – French beans, Bitter Gourd, Brinjal, Capsicum, Carrot, Cauliflower, Chillies (Green), Okra, Onion, Potato and Tomato. Any other fruit/vegetable can be added in future on the basis of recommendation by Ministry of Agriculture or State Government (List of eligible crops, selected surplus production clusters and trigger price for intervention under the scheme – Please (Click Here).

Duration of Operation Green Scheme

For the period of six months from the date of notification i.e., 11/06/2020.

Eligible Entities

Food Processors, FPO/FPC, Co-operative Societies, Individual farmers, Licensed Commission Agent, Exporters, State Marketing/Co- operative Federation, Retailers etc.  engaged in processing/ marketing of fruits and vegetables.

Pattern of Assistance

Ministry will provide subsidy @ 50 % of the cost of the following two components, subject to the cost norms:

1. Transportation of eligible crops from surplus production cluster to consumption centre; and/or
2. Hiring of appropriate storage facilities for eligible crops (for maximum period of 3 months);

Operation Green Scheme Online Registration

The applicant should register on the portal before carrying out transportation/storage of fruits and vegetables. For Registration, please (Click Here). The Operation Green Scheme Subsidy Registration Form 2024 will appear as shown below:-

For list of districts of each crops mentioned in Serial No. 7.5 of Horticulture Statistics at Glance 2018 published by Ministry of Agriculture, which will be taken as eligible production clusters subject to meeting of the criterion of essential conditions, please (Click Here).

Submission of Claim for Subsidy

Eligible entities, who comply with the aforesaid essential criteria may undertake the transportation and/or storage of notified crops from notified surplus production cluster, without any prior approval from MoFPI and thereafter submit their claim on online portal https://www.sampada-mofpi.gov.in/Login.aspx.

Features of Operation Green Scheme

• Food Processing Ministry is making every possible effort to successfully implement Operation Green Scheme.
• Central govt. is promoting TOP processing and is also incentivising production of Tomato, Onion and Potato.
• For this purpose, govt. is compressing the supply chains and is also providing an appropriate climate infrastructure for natural preservation of TOP. Central govt. has also earmarked Rs. 5 billion for this TOP Scheme.
• Under this scheme, various Farmers Producers Organisations (FPOs), agri-logistics processing facilities and professional management are encouraged.

Operation Green Scheme has benefited the farmers in getting appropriate prices for their crops. In addition to this, TOP to Total scheme is also benefiting people to get Tomato, Onion and Potato along with other fruits & vegetables at reasonable prices.

Operation Green Scheme Implementation

For the successful implementation of this scheme, central govt. has already mapped the fruits and vegetable clusters across the country. Moreover, govt. will work out on backward and forward linkages for FPOs to enable them to take advantage of this scheme. Central govt. has launched ‘Operation Green Scheme’ on the same lines of ‘Operation Flood’. Operation Flood was launched in 1966 and was the biggest diary development program of the central government.

Background

A similar transportation subsidy was extended to Kisan Rail Scheme under Operation Greens. The scheme was brought into effect from October 12. The Railways charges only 50 percent of the actual freight charges for the notified vegetables and fruits. 

For more details, visit the official link – https://www.mofpi.gov.in/Aatmanirbhar-Bharat/Operation-Greens-(TOP-to-Total)/about-og-total