Odisha, a state largely regulated by an agrarian economy, does not have a functional cold store facility to preserve the perishable agro produce in as many as 14 districts out of 30 revenue districts.
Odisha has 26 cold stores, of which four are in a dysfunctional state, while 14 districts out of 30 revenue districts do not have a functional cold store, Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo told the Assembly on Wednesday in a written reply.
The district-wise breakup of cold stores, either functional or dysfunctional, is Sambalpur (5), Sundargarh and Khurdha (3), Balasore, Koraput (2), and one each in Jharsuguda, Angul, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Ganjam, Puri, Bolangir, Cuttack, Nabarangpur, Bargarh, and Malkangiri.
More than 80 per cent of the state’s population resides in rural areas, where agriculture is the principal source of income. In the current fiscal year, there is an outlay of Rs 14,701 crore for the Agriculture & Farmers Empowerment Department.
The Government has brought in a Cold Storage Policy and targets to construct new cold storage units at all 58 Sub-Divisions across the state, along with the restoration of non-functional ones for preservation of perishable agro produce, said an official of the Agriculture & Farmers Empowerment Department.
Incidentally, some of the districts with no cold storage are among the leading producers of perishable commodities.