New Delhi, Jun 28 (IANS): Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched a web portal to automate and speed up the process of settlement of interest subvention claims of banks submitted under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF).

He said the newly launched automation of credit claims will ensure timely settlement of claims within a day, which otherwise took months due to the manual settlement.

The Union Minister said the move will also ensure transparency and check corruption.

This would help farmers and agri entrepreneurs financially and encourage them to take up more such projects for the development of agriculture in the country, he added.

Shivraj Chouhan said that the investments worth Rs 72,000 crore have been mobilised with Rs 43,000 crore already sanctioned for 67,871 projects under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund till today.

Additionally, banks can anticipate quicker settlement of interest subvention claims.

The Agriculture Infrastructure Fund scheme was launched by PM Modi in 2020, with the objective of development of post-harvest management infrastructure for reducing losses, realisation of better value to farmers, innovation in agriculture and attracting investments for the creation of Agriculture infrastructure.

The scheme provides for 3 per cent interest reimbursement to beneficiaries of the scheme for loans of up to Rs 2 crore given by banks for a maximum period of 7 years, besides reimbursement of credit guarantee fees paid by banks.

The portal has been developed jointly by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare and NABARD.

Addressing senior officials of the government, NABARD and various banks, Shivraj Chouhan said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is committed to increasing farmers' incomes and various measures are being implemented in this regard.

He said the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund was launched by PM Modi with a corpus of Rs 1 lakh crore in a bid to increase storage capacity for crops and reduce losses of farmers.

The portal will also be used by banks, Central Project Management Unit (CPMU) of the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and NABARD.

The Union Minister also launched Krishi Katha, a blogsite meant to serve as a digital platform to share the experiences, insights and success stories of farmers across the country.

Shivraj Chouhan said the new portal will enable the farming community to gain from each other's experiences.

He said there are several farmers who are self-experimenting and their successful stories should be brought forward for others to emulate.

The objectives behind this initiative will be helpful in raising awareness, facilitating exchange of knowledge, fostering collaboration and empowering farmers, he added.