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The National Horticulture Board issued a circular on 21 August 2026 amending the guidelines of its commercial horticulture scheme, tightening eligibility and cutting subsidy rates.
The subsidy component falls from 50 per cent to 35 per cent of eligible project cost in general-category States, and from 50 per cent to 45 per cent in North-Eastern and Himalayan States.
Holders of constitutional posts, Ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, mayors, district panchayat chairpersons and serving government and PSU employees are now ineligible, with an exception for MTS, Class-IV and Group-D staff.
The definition of family has been widened to spouse, father, mother, sons and daughters, and a one-family-one-assistance principle now applies across all NHB schemes.
The change follows disclosures that a Union Minister of State for Agriculture had drawn a Rs 99 lakh subsidy under the same scheme and later refunded it.
| Provision | Earlier guidelines | Revised guidelines |
|---|---|---|
| Subsidy in general-category States | Up to 50 per cent of project cost | Up to 35 per cent of project cost |
| Subsidy in North-Eastern and Himalayan States | Up to 50 per cent of project cost | Up to 45 per cent of project cost |
| Definition of family | Husband, wife and dependent minor children | Spouse, father, mother, sons and daughters |
| Assistance per family | Up to a maximum subsidy of Rs 1 crore per family | Only one member of a family may avail assistance under any NHB scheme |
| Cold storage projects | Governed by the general project ceiling | NHB assistance capped at Rs 2 crore per project |
| Exit during lock-in | Not separately provided for | Voluntary exit permitted on refunding the subsidy with applicable interest |
Set up in 1984 to develop commercial horticulture, it provides capital investment subsidy for large-scale cultivation, post-harvest management, cold chain infrastructure and market information. It is registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act and operates through about 29 field offices
GS Paper 3 > Agriculture, Subsidies and Public Distribution; GS Paper 2 > Government Policies and Interventions
General Awareness > Government Schemes and Static GK
General Awareness > Priority Sector and Agricultural Credit
General Awareness > Current Affairs
A one-time grant covering part of a project's capital cost, released through the financing bank rather than as a running payment
The minimum period a subsidised asset must be retained and operated; exiting earlier now requires refunding the subsidy with interest
Growing crops under polyhouses, shade nets or greenhouses to control the growing environment - capital-intensive, and the segment most affected by the rate cut
The new NHB principle that assistance taken by any family member exhausts the family's entitlement across all NHB schemes, however the application is routed