Subsidy Scheme on Establishment of 25 R.I.R. Bird's Unit, 40 R.I.R. Bird's Unit and Stipend for Poultry Farming Training

What is the R.I.R. bird unit and poultry training stipend scheme?

The Subsidy Scheme on Establishment of 25 R.I.R. Bird's Unit, 40 R.I.R. Bird's Unit and Stipend for Poultry Farming Training is run by the Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Cooperation Department, Government of Gujarat, through the Directorate of Animal Husbandry, and applications are handled on the state's iKhedut portal.

R.I.R. stands for Rhode Island Red, a dual-purpose poultry breed that lays well and is hardy enough for backyard rearing without an intensive shed. The scheme's purpose, as stated by the Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Cooperation Department, is to promote poultry farming among weaker sections and Divyang individuals as a supplementary source of income.

The scheme has three distinct components:

1. 25 R.I.R. bird unit for weaker section to 75 percent of total expenditure or a maximum of Rs 6,000 in kind (25 R.I.R. birds and poultry feed).
2. 40 R.I.R. bird unit for Divyang people to 90 percent of total expenditure or a maximum of Rs 10,800 in kind (40 R.I.R. birds and poultry feed).
3. Stipend for poultry farming training, a maximum of Rs 2,000, paid by RTGS or NEFT directly into the bank account.

The distinction between components 1 and 2 on one hand and component 3 on the other is important. The bird units are delivered in kind. The beneficiary receives birds and feed, never cash. Only the training stipend is a money transfer.

The Directorate of Animal Husbandry has functioned under the Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Cooperation Department since the formation of Gujarat State on 1 May 1960, and handles livestock health, breed improvement and the development of cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat, horse, camel and poultry rearing.

Who is eligible for the R.I.R. poultry unit subsidy?

You can apply if:

• You are from Gujarat.
• You belong to the Economically Weaker Section (EWS).
• You have completed 6 days of poultry-rearing training at the Intensive Poultry Development Project or the District Poultry Extension Centre.

Divyang persons of Gujarat state are also eligible, and they qualify for the larger 40-bird unit at 90 percent assistance rather than the 25-bird unit.

Priority in selection is given to female applicants and to applicants from Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.

You cannot apply, or are not eligible, if:

• You have not completed the 6-day poultry training. The Agriculture Department is explicit that training must be finished before the application is filed, it is a precondition, not a follow-up step.
• Another member of your family has already taken the benefit. Only one member of a family may benefit. For the 25-bird unit, a second member of the same family becomes eligible only after 3 years; for the 40-bird unit and the stipend, the limit is one member per family.
• You do not belong to the economically weaker section and are not a Divyang person.
• You are not a resident of Gujarat.
• You are claiming the 40-bird unit without disability proof — that component is reserved for Divyang applicants.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the poultry unit subsidy

1. Complete the 6-day poultry rearing training at the Intensive Poultry Development Project or your District Poultry Extension Centre, and collect the completion certificate. Do this before anything else, the application cannot be filed without it.
2. Visit the iKhedut portal at ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in and complete beneficiary registration. Since the iKhedut 2.0 upgrade, registration is compulsory for every beneficiary and Aadhaar verification uses an OTP sent only to the Aadhaar-linked mobile number.
3. On the home page, click Schemes, then Agricultural Schemes.
4. Select the R.I.R. bird unit / poultry training scheme and click Apply.
5. Click Apply New and complete the application with your personal details, category details, training certificate details and bank account details.
6. Use Update Application to correct anything before you finalise.
7. Confirm the application. An unconfirmed application is not treated as submitted.
8. Take a printout of the confirmed application and keep it, submitting it with the supporting documents where your taluka office asks for it.

How to get the poultry training first

1. Contact your District Poultry Extension Centre or the Intensive Poultry Development Project covering your district, or ask at the nearest veterinary dispensary of the Directorate of Animal Husbandry.
2. Enrol for the 6-day poultry rearing training. Weaker-section and Divyang trainees are the target group.
3. Attend the full course and collect the completion certificate.
4. Provide your bank account details so the training stipend of up to Rs 2,000 can be sent by RTGS or NEFT.

How much assistance is given?

A 25-bird backyard unit at Rs 6,000 of assistance and a 40-bird unit at Rs 10,800 are deliberately small. These are supplementary-income units for household egg and meat production, not commercial layer or broiler farms, and the scheme should not be read as start-up capital for a poultry business.

How to check your application status

1. Open the Applicant Corner at ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in/public/frm_Applicant_Corner.aspx.
2. Enter your application number.
3. From the same page you can view, print and upload application documents, which is how you supply anything the department asks for after scrutiny.

Why applications get rejected

• Training not completed before applying. This is the defining condition of the scheme and the most common failure.
• No training completion certificate attached, even where the training was attended.
• Another family member has already benefited, or the 3-year interval on the 25-bird unit has not elapsed.
• Disability proof missing on a 40-bird unit application.
• Application saved but never confirmed on iKhedut.
• Income or caste documentation incomplete, so weaker-section status cannot be verified.
• Aadhaar-linked mobile not working, which blocks iKhedut registration at the OTP stage.
• Bank account details wrong, which stops the training stipend even after approval.

Key timing points

• Training first, application second. Plan on completing the 6-day course well before you expect the iKhedut window to open.
• No single annual last date is published. iKhedut opens component-wise application windows through the year against each component's budget allocation, and a component closes when the window ends or the allocation is used up.
• 3-year interval applies before a second family member can take the 25-bird unit.

Help and grievance redressal

• iKhedut public contacts: ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in/Public/frm_Public_Contacts.aspx
• District Poultry Extension Centre and the Intensive Poultry Development Project for training enrolment and stipend queries.
• Directorate of Animal Husbandry, Gujarat, doah.gujarat.gov.in, which publishes scheme details, government resolutions and district-wise office contacts.
• Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Cooperation Department; agri.gujarat.gov.in.

Both the training and the iKhedut application are free. No fee is payable to any officer, and the birds and feed are supplied in kind by the department rather than purchased by the beneficiary from an agent.