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RE-STRUCTURING OF NATIONAL HORTICULTURE MISSION

February 10, 2026 4 min read Economics Polity & Governance GS3 (Economics — Agriculture) GS2 (Polity & Governance — Government Schemes)
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What Happened

  • The Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) scheme has been restructured in 2025 with revised Operational Guidelines, expanding coverage to all districts in the country.
  • The restructuring enhances cost norms for various interventions, incorporates high-value, exotic, and medicinal crops, and promotes the latest and innovative technologies in the horticulture sector.
  • The Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) is being used to support farmers by purchasing perishable horticultural produce excluded from Minimum Support Price protections, preventing distress selling during peak harvest periods.
  • MIS includes Price Differential Payment (PDP) to farmers for the gap between Market Intervention Price and actual selling prices at APMC mandis, with all payments transferred directly to registered farmers' bank accounts.
  • Logistics support under MIS provides reimbursement for transportation and storage costs for TOP crops (Tomato, Onion, Potato) transferred between producing and consuming states.

Static Topic Bridges

Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH)

MIDH is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) launched in 2014-15, subsuming the earlier National Horticulture Mission (NHM) launched in 2004-05 and five other horticulture-related schemes. The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare is the nodal ministry, with the National Horticulture Board (NHB) as a key implementing agency.

  • MIDH subsumes six schemes: (1) National Horticulture Mission (NHM), (2) Horticulture Mission for North East and Himalayan States (HMNEH), (3) National Bamboo Mission (NBM), (4) National Horticulture Board (NHB), (5) Coconut Development Board (CDB), and (6) Central Institute for Horticulture (CIH), Nagaland.
  • Funding pattern: 60:40 Centre-State ratio (90:10 for NE and Himalayan states, 100% Central for Union Territories).
  • Covers: fruits, vegetables, root and tuber crops, mushrooms, spices, flowers, aromatic plants, coconut, cashew, cocoa, and bamboo.
  • Implementation: through State Horticulture Missions (SHMs) at the state level, with a State Level Executive Committee (SLEC) under the Principal Secretary (Horticulture).
  • 2025 guidelines mandate: planting material procurement only from NHB-accredited nurseries, ensuring quality assurance in horticultural plantations.

Connection to this news: The 2025 restructuring expands MIDH to cover all districts nationally (previously limited to identified districts), enhances financial norms, and adds high-value and medicinal crops — representing a significant expansion of the scheme's scope and ambition.

Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Market Intervention Scheme (MIS)

The MSP is the minimum price at which the government purchases crops from farmers, announced for 22 mandated crops (14 Kharif, 6 Rabi, 2 commercial crops) based on the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) recommendations. The Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) extends similar price protection to perishable horticultural and agricultural produce not covered under MSP.

  • MSP is announced for 22 crops + sugarcane (Fair and Remunerative Price under Sugarcane Control Order, 1966). Horticultural crops are NOT covered under MSP.
  • MIS operates on a request basis: state governments request the Central government for MIS intervention when market prices fall below production costs by a specified threshold.
  • CACP recommends MSP based on: cost of production (A2+FL and C2 costs), demand-supply conditions, price trends, terms of trade, and international prices.
  • Since 2018-19, the government has fixed MSP at minimum 1.5 times the A2+FL cost of production (following the Swaminathan Committee recommendation).
  • TOP crops (Tomato, Onion, Potato) are the most price-volatile horticultural crops, subject to sharp price crashes during peak harvest — MIS and Operation Greens (2018) specifically target price stabilization for these crops.

Connection to this news: The restructured MIDH integrates MIS provisions including Price Differential Payment and logistics support for TOP crops, addressing the critical gap in price protection for horticultural produce that falls outside the MSP framework.

Agricultural Marketing Reforms — APMC and e-NAM

Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) are state-level bodies that regulate the first sale of agricultural produce. The APMC Act (various state versions) requires produce to be sold through regulated mandis, where market fees and commission charges are levied. The electronic National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) was launched in April 2016 to create a unified national market for agricultural commodities.

  • APMC Acts: state subjects under Entry 28 of State List (7th Schedule). Each state has its own APMC Act; some states have reformed, others retain restrictive provisions.
  • e-NAM: launched April 2016, integrates APMCs across states through an online trading portal. As of 2025, over 1,361 mandis across 23 states and 4 UTs are linked to e-NAM.
  • Model APLM Act, 2017 and Model Contract Farming Act, 2018 were circulated by the Central government for state adoption.
  • Three farm laws enacted in 2020 (allowing trade outside APMCs, contract farming, and essential commodity deregulation) were repealed in November 2021.
  • Horticulture produce faces particular challenges in APMC mandis: lack of cold storage, grading facilities, and the perishable nature leads to high post-harvest losses (estimated at 25-30% for fruits and vegetables).

Connection to this news: The MIS provision under the restructured MIDH addresses distress selling at APMC mandis by providing Price Differential Payments directly to farmers, effectively supplementing the APMC market mechanism with government price support for perishable horticultural produce.

Key Facts & Data

  • NHM launched: 2004-05; subsumed under MIDH in 2014-15; restructured in 2025
  • MIDH subsumes: 6 schemes (NHM, HMNEH, NBM, NHB, CDB, CIH)
  • Funding pattern: 60:40 Centre-State (90:10 for NE/Himalayan states)
  • MSP covers: 22 crops + sugarcane; horticultural crops are NOT covered
  • TOP crops: Tomato, Onion, Potato — most price-volatile horticultural produce
  • Estimated post-harvest losses in fruits and vegetables: 25-30%
  • 2025 restructuring key changes: all-district coverage, enhanced cost norms, high-value and medicinal crops included, NHB-accredited nurseries mandatory
  • e-NAM coverage: 1,361+ mandis across 23 states and 4 UTs