The inefficiencies in post-harvest value chain are leading to crop losses with significant adverse impact on the livelihood of small and marginal farmers. Discuss in the context of India. What steps has the government taken to address these concerns?

As per NITI Aayog, post harvest losses amount for semi-perishables & commodities like milk, fish, meat, eggs, fruits & vegetables. Post harvest value chain contains: harvesting and primary processing, storage & crop matketing, storage & processing, processing & market linkages. Challenges in Post Harvest value chain: i Inadequate harvesting & primary processing: - Lack of awareness - Lack of finance & weak credit linkages - Restricted value addition by small marginal farmers (S&M)

ii Lack of storage and crop production: - Absence of on farm and near farm storage facilities & packaging material iii Lack of near farm processing facilities - Thus ½ of produce is lost during transportation. Farmers - Small holdings, absence of credit, outdated technology. Causes of Post Harvest Losses - Infrastructure (poor storage, poor distribution gaps in processing), Market (imperfect market info, limited market access) Impact on farmers: 1. Decreased Yield 2. Income loss 3. Distress sale 4. Low bargaining power 5. Decreased productivity 6. Lack of value addition Steps taken by Government: 1. PM Kisan SAMPADA Yojana - Giving timely access to credit to develop modern infrastructure under efficient supply chain management. 2. PLI scheme - to support food manufacture to expand processing capacity. 3. VGF scheme - Capital investment in creation of modern storage capacity under Micro Finance. 4. Private enterprise engagement in the sector. To boost productivity, private sector, civil society organisation intervention is needed towards post harvest loss reduction & improvement in livelihood of small & farmers.