National Livestock Mission: Promotion of Piggery Entrepreneur

What is the Promotion of Piggery Entrepreneur component?

Promotion of Piggery Entrepreneur is the pig-farming activity under the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) of the National Livestock Mission (NLM), a scheme of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. The National Livestock Mission is a centrally sponsored programme, running since 2014-15 and restructured from 2021-22, that promotes entrepreneurship in poultry, sheep, goat, pig, feed and fodder. This guide covers only the piggery component; the mission's other pig activities are handled through separate components such as germplasm import and semen banks.

According to the NLM portal, the Promotion of Piggery Entrepreneur component provides a 50% capital subsidy up to Rs 30 lakh to set up a commercial pig breeder farm. The aim is to increase the availability of quality piglets and pork, formalise piggery into bankable enterprises, and improve the incomes of livestock keepers, particularly in the North-Eastern and eastern states where pig rearing is widespread.

Key features

• 50% back-ended capital subsidy, capped at Rs 30 lakh per project.
• The subsidy is bank-linked, a term loan from a scheduled bank is the normal route, with the promoter putting in a margin.
• The subsidy is released in two instalments through the State Implementing Agency and the financing bank.
• Open to individual entrepreneurs as well as farmer collectives and companies.

Who is eligible for the piggery entrepreneurship subsidy?

You can apply if you are:

• An individual entrepreneur setting up a commercial pig breeder farm.
• A Farmer Producer Organisation (FPO), Self Help Group (SHG), Joint Liability Group (JLG) or Farmer Cooperative Organisation (FCO).
• A Section 8 company or a similar registered entity taking up piggery.

The applicant is expected to raise a bank loan or, alternatively, self-finance with the balance secured by a bank guarantee to the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying. Training or experience in pig husbandry strengthens the proposal.

You cannot apply / are not eligible if:

• You are seeking support for a backyard or subsistence unit with no commercial breeder-farm project, this is an entrepreneurship scheme.
• You want funding for land purchase, land rent, working capital or a personal vehicle, these costs are excluded from the capital subsidy.
• You are a state department or agency looking to import germplasm or set up a semen bank — those are separate NLM components, not this one.

What costs does the subsidy cover?

The capital subsidy applies to the project cost of the breeder farm, including:

The breeding stock is to be procured from central or state government farms, veterinary universities or local farmers with high genetic merit, so that the new unit starts with animals of known quality.

How to apply for the piggery entrepreneurship subsidy

1. Prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for your pig breeder farm, covering unit size, housing, breeding stock, costs and expected cash flow.
2. Register and log in on the NLM portal at nlm.udyamimitra.in and start a new application under the pig / piggery activity.
3. Fill in the applicant details, upload the DPR and supporting documents, and nominate the scheduled bank you want to finance the loan.
4. The portal forwards the proposal to the chosen bank for loan appraisal and to the State Implementing Agency for recommendation.
5. Once the bank sanctions the loan, the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying approves the subsidy and releases the first instalment to the bank.
6. Complete the farm, after which the State Implementing Agency verifies it and the second instalment of the subsidy is released.

If you do not want a bank loan, the guidelines allow a self-financing route: bring in your share of the project cost upfront and provide a bank guarantee for the balance to receive the first subsidy instalment.

How the subsidy is released

The subsidy is back-ended and paid in two instalments. The first instalment reaches the financing bank after the loan is confirmed and work begins; the second follows once the State Implementing Agency certifies that the breeder farm is complete and running. Because the subsidy sits in the loan account, it reduces the effective loan the entrepreneur repays rather than being paid out as cash.

How this differs from other NLM pig components

The National Livestock Mission runs several pig activities that are easy to confuse:

• Promotion of Piggery Entrepreneur (this guide). A 50% capital subsidy to individuals and entities for a commercial breeder farm.
• Genetic Improvement of Pig Breeds - Import of Exotic Pig Germplasm: funds state governments to import superior boar germplasm; not an individual subsidy.
• Establishment of State Semen Bank, assists states to store and distribute frozen semen; again a state-level, not individual, benefit.

Only the entrepreneurship component described here is an application a private individual or business files for their own farm.

Help and where to check

• Portal: nlm.udyamimitra.in (application, status and FAQs)
• State Implementing Agency: your state Animal Husbandry / Livestock Development department handles verification and recommendation
• Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, New Delhi, administers the National Livestock Mission

Beware of agents who promise a guaranteed subsidy for a fee. The subsidy is approved only after genuine bank appraisal and physical verification of the farm.