Why PoCRA
Nanaji Deshmukh Krishi Sanjivani Prakalp — named after the Bharat Ratna social reformer Nanaji Deshmukh — operates as the Project on Climate Resilient Agriculture (PoCRA). It is the largest World Bank-funded agricultural project in India by direct impact area — covering 5,142 villages across 15 districts of Marathwada, Vidarbha and the rain-shadow tracts of northern Maharashtra. The geography overlaps with some of India's most climate-stressed and agrarian-distressed regions.
PoCRA combines investments in soil-and-water conservation, micro-irrigation, protected cultivation, bio-input units, FPO formation, market linkage and farm-level digital advisory. Implementation is by the Maharashtra Agriculture Department's State Project Management Unit (SPMU); the project is performance-monitored against externally verified milestones under World Bank loan covenants.
Phase 1 (2018-2024): ₹4,000 cr
- Farm ponds and water storage: in-situ rainwater harvesting at the farm level.
- Drip / sprinkler subsidy: stacked with PMKSY-PDMC for individual and cluster installations.
- Protected cultivation: polyhouse, shade-net, naturally ventilated structures at 50-75 % subsidy.
- Bio-input units: vermicompost, bio-fertiliser and bio-pesticide units at the village level.
- Certified seed: certified seed replacement for pulse, oilseed, millet and climate-resilient varieties.
- FPO formation: village producer organisations supported with seed capital and cluster aggregation infrastructure.
- Soil and water conservation: check-dams, gabions, contour bunds, deep-CCT and field bunding — through MGNREGA convergence.
Phase 2 (PoCRA-2, 2024-2030)
- Expanded coverage: deeper penetration in existing villages plus expansion to additional climate-stressed blocks.
- Carbon-credit pilots: PoCRA village level emissions-accounting and carbon-credit aggregation pilots — paddy direct-seeded methane reduction, biochar and bio-input substitution credits.
- Climate-smart villages: end-to-end CSV demonstrations with crop calendar advisories, stress-tolerant varieties, weather index insurance tie-ups.
- Value-chain finance: FPO finance, AIF convergence for primary processing, market linkage tie-ups with e-NAM and private buyers.
- Digital farmer advisory: SMS / app-based crop-specific advisories tied to local weather and remote-sensing crop stress indices.
Eligibility
- Farmer in one of the 5,142 PoCRA-targeted villages in 15 districts.
- 7/12 + 8-A land record on file.
- Aadhaar-seeded bank account.
- For FPO and entrepreneurship components: cluster / FPO registered under the appropriate state / central FPO scheme.
How to apply — step by step
- Register on dbt.mahapocra.gov.in with Aadhaar, 7/12 + 8-A land record, bank passbook, village inclusion certificate.
- Choose subsidy component (farm pond, drip / sprinkler, polyhouse, bio-input unit, certified seed, etc.).
- For FPO and infrastructure components, submit project DPR through the FPO board.
- Village PoCRA committee + block agriculture officer verify eligibility and recommend; SPMU sanctions.
- Component executed by farmer / FPO / empanelled vendor; geo-tagged proof and inspection at each milestone.
- Subsidy released in tranches via DBT against work verification.
Coverage and reach
Per Maharashtra Agriculture Department and World Bank implementation reports, PoCRA covers 5,142 villages across the 15 priority districts: Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar), Beed, Jalna, Latur, Osmanabad (Dharashiv), Nanded, Parbhani, Hingoli, Buldhana, Akola, Washim, Amravati, Yavatmal, Wardha and Jalgaon (north Maharashtra rain-shadow). Phase-1 benefited several lakh farmer households through direct subsidies and FPO-channelled benefits.
Latest changes (2024 — 2026)
- 2024: PoCRA-1 closed; PoCRA-2 loan agreement with World Bank signed for the 2024-2030 phase.
- 2024-25: Carbon-credit pilot launched in select villages with paddy direct- seeded rice and biochar pilots.
- March 2025: dbt.mahapocra.gov.in portal upgraded with AgriStack Farmer ID integration.
- August 2025: Convergence with Magel Tyala Shet Tale (farm pond on demand) and PMKSY-PDMC (drip subsidy) deepened.
- 2025-26: Climate-smart village playbook published; weather-index insurance pilot tied to PMFBY component pricing.
Common rejection reasons
- Village not on PoCRA list: scheme is geographically scoped; farmers outside the 5,142 villages cannot access PoCRA subsidies.
- 7/12 mismatch: land record differs from Aadhaar; remediate at Talathi.
- Component not approved: village PoCRA committee may reject a request that doesn't match the village plan.
- DPR weakness (FPO/entrepreneurship): project DPR must be technically sound and financially viable.
- Aadhaar — bank seeding failure: DBT credit fails on NPCI side.
Grievance: Village PoCRA committee → Block Agriculture Officer → District PoCRA cell → State Project Management Unit (SPMU), Maharashtra Agriculture Department, Pune. World Bank grievance redressal mechanism also available via the project disclosure portal.
How PoCRA stacks with other schemes
PoCRA is a convergence vehicle across MGNREGA, PMKSY-PDMC, MIDH, NMNF, PKVY, PMFME, AIF, e-NAM and PMFBY. State schemes layered with PoCRA include Namo Shetkari (income), Mahatma Phule Karjmukti (loan waiver), Magel Tyala Shet Tale (farm pond), and Birsa Munda Krishi Kranti (ST well subsidy).
Related
- Magel Tyala Shet Tale — farm pond complement.
- PMKSY-PDMC — drip subsidy stacked with PoCRA.
- Maharashtra state guide.