FNB News - Centre offers 50% subsidy to boost rural livestock farming under NLM

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AGRICULTURE

Centre offers 50% subsidy to boost rural livestock farming under NLM

Thursday, 11 December, 2025, 12 : 00 PM [IST]

Our Bureau, New Delhi

The Government of India, through the National Livestock Mission (NLM), has announced a generous 50% capital subsidy up to Rs 50 lakh per project to support individuals, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Self-Help Groups (SHGs), Joint Liability Groups (JLGs), cooperatives, and Section 8 companies. The subsidy is aimed at establishing rural poultry breeding farms, sheep, goat, pig, camel, horse, and donkey breeding farms, along with fodder value-addition units including hay, silage, total mixed ration (TMR), fodder blocks, seed processing and storage facilities. The entire scheme has been fully digitalized to ensure transparency and ease of access.

So far, a total of 3,843 projects have received formal approval under the entrepreneurship-development component of NLM. The total project cost amounts to Rs 2,672.65 crore, with an approved subsidy pool of Rs 1,233.69 crore. To date, 2,014 projects have received their first installment totaling Rs 354.06 crore, while 706 projects have drawn the second installment amounting to Rs 119.34 crore.

Breakdown by category:

Small ruminants (sheep & goat): 3,169 projects; project cost ?2,240.40 crore; subsidy Rs 1,050.34 crore — creating capacity for 11.43 lakh sheep and goats.
Piggery units: 338 projects; project cost Rs 200.13 crore; subsidy Rs 80.63 crore — expected to support 0.32 lakh pigs.
Rural poultry: 207 projects; project cost Rs 111.50 crore; subsidy Rs 49.86 crore — covering 2.31 lakh birds.
Feed and fodder infrastructure: 129 projects; project cost Rs 120.62 crore; subsidy Rs 52.86 crore — enabling production capacity of 4.65 lakh MTPA of fodder.

This investment drive under NLM aims to strengthen India’s livestock sector, improve fodder availability, and encourage private-sector participation in allied agriculture. According to the Ministry, the scheme is a critical move to support rural livelihoods and livestock-based enterprises.

With substantial financial backing and streamlined procedures, the NLM’s subsidy scheme is poised to transform the landscape of small-scale and marginal livestock farming across the country.