NLM: Establishment of Entrepreneurship for Breed Development of Rural Poultry

What is the NLM rural poultry entrepreneurship scheme?

The Establishment of Entrepreneurship for Breed Development of Rural Poultry is a component of the National Livestock Mission (NLM), implemented by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. NLM, revamped in 2021-22, promotes entrepreneurship in the livestock sector and improves breed productivity. This component targets rural poultry, which supports the incomes of small and landless households.

According to the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, this component helps set up a poultry rearing and hatching unit of at least 1,000 parent birds, along with a mother unit using low-input technology, so that day-old chicks and grown birds reach backyard poultry farmers.

Main features

• One-time 50% capital subsidy, up to a maximum of Rs 25 lakh, released in two equal instalments.
• The subsidy is credit-linked. The applicant arranges a bank term loan and own contribution for the balance.
• Minimum unit size: 1,000 parent birds plus a mother unit.
• Applications are made online at nlm.udyamimitra.in.

This component is one of several entrepreneurship windows under NLM. It differs from the sheep/goat and piggery windows, which carry a higher Rs 50 lakh ceiling and different unit norms. For the shared NLM background and the pig-breeding infrastructure route, see the related NLM guides.

Who is eligible for the NLM rural poultry scheme?

You can apply if you are:

• An individual entrepreneur, or
• A Self-Help Group (SHG), Farmer Producer Organisation (FPO), Farmer Cooperative Society, Joint Liability Group (JLG) or a Section 8 company, and
• You can set up a unit of at least 1,000 parent birds with a mother unit and arrange bank finance plus own contribution.

You cannot apply if:

• You want a pure cash grant with no bank loan, the subsidy is credit-linked, so a project without bank finance is not eligible.
• Your proposed unit is below the minimum 1,000 parent birds with a mother unit.
• You seek personal income support unrelated to setting up a poultry enterprise — this is an entrepreneurship subsidy, not a welfare payment.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the NLM rural poultry scheme

1. Register on the NLM portal at nlm.udyamimitra.in and select the rural poultry breed-development component.
2. Prepare and upload a Detailed Project Report for a unit of at least 1,000 parent birds with a mother unit.
3. Upload your identity, land and bank documents, and choose a financing bank on the portal.
4. The State Implementing Agency and the bank appraise the proposal; on sanction, the term loan is tied up.
5. On approval, the 50% capital subsidy up to Rs 25 lakh is released in two equal instalments through the financing bank against project progress.

How much benefit does the scheme provide?

The scheme provides a one-time capital subsidy of 50% of the project cost, up to Rs 25 lakh, for an eligible rural poultry unit. The subsidy is paid in two equal instalments through the financing bank and is not an upfront cash transfer. The applicant funds the remaining project cost through a bank loan and own contribution. The economic idea is to create rural hatcheries and mother units that supply low-input, hardy birds to backyard poultry keepers, raising household nutrition and income.

What is a parent unit and a mother unit?

Under this component, the parent unit of at least 1,000 parent birds is where breeding stock is kept and hatching eggs are produced. The mother unit takes the day-old chicks, brood them for a few weeks under low-input technology, and then supplies grown-up, hardy birds to backyard poultry farmers in the surrounding villages. This two-stage model is what makes rural poultry breed development different from a commercial broiler farm: the goal is to seed thousands of small backyard flocks with disease-resistant, dual-purpose birds rather than to run one large industrial unit.

The two equal instalments of the subsidy usually track project milestones. The first when the unit is established and the second once it is operational, with the financing bank certifying progress. Because the subsidy is credit-linked, the entrepreneur must first tie up a bank term loan; the subsidy then reduces the effective cost of the project rather than being paid out before any work begins. State Animal Husbandry Departments and the NLM portal provide the standard project templates that banks expect.

Help and more information

• NLM portal: nlm.udyamimitra.in
• State Animal Husbandry Department, which acts as the state implementing agency and can guide the DPR and bank tie-up.

For the wider National Livestock Mission and its pig-breeding infrastructure component, see the related NLM guides on this site rather than repeating the common background here.