Bihar’s Cooperative Department Minister Ram Kripal Yadav on Wednesday (August 12, 2026) said that Indian Potash Ltd (IPL) to set up and operate two sugar mills at Sakri in Madhubani and Raiyam in Darbhanga as part of State government’s “Samriddh Udyog-Sashakt Bihar” initiative of Saat Nischay-3 programme.
The setting up of two sugar mills would infuse strength, power and energy among the farmers of the area as it would raise their income and create employment opportunities at local level, he said.
“It is the State government’s resolve to revive the closed sugar mills in the State, for which the Cabinet has already given its approval. We are going to start two sugar mills at Sakri and Raiyam soon,” Mr. Yadav said while asserting that “an agreement with IPL has been signed for setting up and running the sugar mills and production will soon be started within a time-frame.
The two sugar mills will also house distilleries, cogeneration power plants and Compressed Biogas (CBG) units, the Minister said while adding that the state government is committed to revive other closed sugar mills one by one.
Bihar State Cooperative Police 2026
Stating that the Cooperative Department is committed to strengthening the rural economy and creating employment opportunities, Mr. Yadav said that the State government, under the leadership of Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, is working for the betterment of farmers with the help and guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Cooperative Minister Amit Shah.
The State government has adopted “Bihar State Cooperative Policy, 2026” intending to strengthen, modernise, and make the cooperative movement in Bihar innovation-driven and future-ready, while ensuring an effective and extensive role for cooperatives in building a “Developed Bihar”, he added.
He asserted that the policy will connect every section of society- particularly youth, women, farmers, entrepreneurs, and disadvantaged communities- with the cooperative movement, thereby creating new avenues for self-reliance, entrepreneurship, and collective prosperity.
Bihar State vegetable processing and marketing scheme
The department has set a target to construct 350 panchayat-level vegetable collection centres and 50 block-level infrastructure facilities, Mr. Yadav said and added that Primary Vegetable Producer Cooperative Societies (PVCSs) have been set up in all the 534 blocks of the State. Each PVCS will be provided ₹2 lakh, while nine vegetable federations will get ₹10 lakh per federation as working capital to expand their businesses.
The Department has already approved various schemes worth ₹106.39 crore for creating better infrastructure facility for collection of vegetables, apart from providing better transportation and marketing arrangement, he said.
“We are continuously working to ensure that Bihar’s vegetables reach every plate. For this, farmers are being encouraged on a large scale. Soon, vegetable booths, on the lines of Sudha Dairy booths, will be opened at various locations through VegFed,” he said, adding that this will create new employment opportunities and significantly benefit farmers engaged in vegetable production at the local level.
Crop Insurance benefits to begin from Rabi Season
The implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana in the State has been approved from the Rabi season of financial year 2026-27. Under the scheme, farmers will be assured compensation equivalent to their agricultural costs. Farmers will have to pay only a very small premium, while both the State and central governments will contribute their respective shares towards the premium.
Published - August 13, 2026 11:24 am IST