Can a PACS or cooperative society take an AIF loan for storage infrastructure?

Yes, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) and cooperative societies are eligible borrowers under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, and PACS are specifically encouraged to use it to build village-level storage, godowns, processing and other post-harvest infrastructure. The benefits are the same, the 3 percent interest subvention up to the ceiling and credit guarantee on eligible loans. PACS are a natural fit because they already aggregate produce and serve members, so a godown or grading and processing unit run by a PACS tends to have ready usage. In many states there is a push to modernise PACS and make them multi-service centres, and AIF financing for storage and processing dovetails with that. Practical points for a PACS. First, the society's accounts, audit status and governance need to be in order, since the bank appraises the cooperative as the borrower. Second, the project report should show how member volumes will keep the asset busy and how storage charges or processing margins repay the loan. Second, explore convergence, PACS projects can sometimes combine AIF with state cooperative or godown schemes, keeping costs from being double-claimed. Third, decide management and operations clearly so the facility is actually run well after it is built. Confirm current eligibility, limits and any cooperative-specific support on the official AIF agriinfra portal or with your district cooperative bank. This is general information and not financial advice.