Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Bhagirath Choudhary has returned the ₹99 lakh subsidy he received under a horticulture scheme run by the ministry in which he serves, according to the Centre's statement to the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. As reported by Business Standard, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Ramnath Thakur confirmed that Choudhary has communicated he has refunded the subsidy to the bank concerned under the scheme. The concerned bank has been directed to return the subsidy amount to the National Horticulture Board (NHB). Thakur informed the Lok Sabha that Lumba Ram (MP of Sirohi, Rajasthan) in 2025 and Bhagirath Choudhary (Union Minister of State for Agriculture and MP of Ajmer, Rajasthan) in 2026 received financial assistance under NHB schemes during the last five years.
The subsidy was provided for Choudhary's cucumber farming project under the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture, which supports large-scale commercial cultivation of selected vegetables and flowers. According to the government's reply, the programme, launched in 2014-15, is implemented by the National Horticulture Board, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare. Under the scheme, beneficiaries can receive financial assistance of up to 50 per cent of the project cost, subject to a maximum of ₹1 crore per family. As per Business Standard, Minister Ramnath Thakur explained that financial assistance under NHB schemes is provided in the form of credit-linked back-ended capital investment subsidy to eligible farmers and entrepreneurs for development of commercial horticulture, protected cultivation, post-harvest management and cold chain infrastructure.
Choudhary's cucumber cultivation project covers 16,592 sq metres and was among 467 projects approved by the NHB in 2025 under the "Development of Commercial Horticulture through Production and Post-Harvest Management of Horticulture Crops" scheme. As reported by Business Standard, the support is available for the cultivation of crops such as capsicum, cucumber and tomato, as well as eight flower varieties, including roses, anthuriums and orchids. According to the government's reply, the project land should be owned by the applicant or held on lease for a minimum period of ten years, duly reflected in the revenue records.
According to the government's reply, another BJP MP from Rajasthan, Lumbaram Choudhary, received financial assistance under NHB schemes during the past five years. According to Business Standard, Lumbaram Choudhary received assistance in 2025, while Bhagirath Choudhary received it in 2026. The information was provided in response to a question by Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee in the Lok Sabha. Minister Ramnath Thakur also stated that the existing NHB Scheme Guidelines do not contain any specific provision regarding conflict of interest or recusal in respect of applications submitted by public functionaries or their family members. He clarified that the schemes are open to all eligible applicants, including individuals, partnerships, companies, cooperatives and other eligible legal entities, subject to fulfillment of the prescribed eligibility conditions.
