(a) Whether farmers are gradually getting benefits through Mega Food Parks, if so, the details thereof;
(b) the details and total number of Mega Food Parks that are operational in country;
(c) whether the Government is planning to open new Mega Food Parks in different States of country and also in Bihar, Gujarat and West Bengal, if so, the details thereof; and
(d) whether Mega Food Parks to create employments and job opportunities, if so, the details thereof the last three years?
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES
(SHRI RAMESWAR TELI)
(a), (b) & (d): As per Mega Food Park scheme guidelines, each Mega Food Park on being fully operational will create direct / indirect employment of about 5,000 persons and also benefit about 25,000 farmers. However, the actual configuration of the project may vary depending upon the business plan for each Mega Food Park. Presently, Ministry has accorded final approval to 39 Mega Food Park Projects which are under various stages of implementation. Out of these, a total of 18 Mega Food Park projects at Haridwar (Uttarakhand), Chittoor (Andhra Pradesh), Tumkur (Karnataka), Fazilka (Punjab), Nalbari (Assam), Khargone (Madhya Pradesh), Murshidabad (West Bengal), Rayagada (Odisha), Satara (Maharashtra), Ajmer (Rajasthan), Udham Singh Nagar (Uttarakhand), Surat (Gujarat), Aurangabad (Maharashtra), Una (HP), West Godavari (Andhra Pradesh), West Tripura (Tripura), Nizamabad (Telangana) and Dewas (Madhya Pradesh) have been made operational. Details of actual employment generated from the 11 Mega Food Parks made operational during last three years are at Annexure.
(c): Ministry of Food Processing Industries has been implementing Mega Food Park Scheme (MFPS) to create modern infrastructure for the food processing. Ministry does not establish Mega Food Parks in the country on its own. The proposals under Mega Food Park Scheme for setting up of Mega Food Parks in the country are invited through Expression of Interest (EoI) from time to time. Selection of suitable proposals for these projects is done as per the Scheme guidelines, based on the merit, through a three tier stringent appraisal process as per the prefixed criteria. At present, Ministry has not invited any EoI for submission of proposals under the Scheme. As on date, there is no proposal under consideration to establish any new Mega Food Parks in Bihar, Gujarat and West Bengal under the Mega Food Park Scheme of the Ministry.
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