What is the National Livestock Mission (NLM) and which ministry runs it?

The National Livestock Mission (NLM) is a Government of India centrally sponsored scheme operated by the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying. It was first launched in 2014-15 to consolidate livestock-development efforts that had earlier been spread across multiple schemes, and was comprehensively revamped by the Union Cabinet on 14 July 2021 with a new three-pillar architecture: Sub-Mission on Breed Development of Livestock & Poultry (the entrepreneurship arm), Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development (forage and feed-mill capacity), and Sub-Mission on Innovation & Extension (research, extension, awards). The objective is to raise per-animal productivity and rural-livelihood income from small ruminants, poultry, piggery and forage value chains that complement bovine dairy.

What is the headline 50% capital subsidy under NLM and who can claim it?

The flagship instrument inside the revamped NLM is the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) inside the Sub-Mission on Breed Development of Livestock & Poultry. EDP provides a 50% capital subsidy on the eligible project cost, released in two equal instalments through SIDBI, against a bank-loan-anchored project (the borrower brings the remaining ~50% as bank credit and optional promoter contribution). Per-project subsidy ceilings are: up to ₹25 lakh for the Rural Poultry Entrepreneurship Model (parent farms with hatchery and mother units for low-input technology birds), up to ₹50 lakh for sheep and goat breeding farms (typically a 500 ewes + 25 rams or 500 does + 25 bucks unit), up to ₹30 lakh for piggery breeding farms (100 sows + 10 boars) and up to ₹50 lakh for rabbit breeding farms. Eligible applicants include individual entrepreneurs, Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), Self-Help Groups (SHGs), Joint Liability Groups (JLGs), Section 8 companies, Farmer Cooperative Organisations (FCOs) and MSMEs.

What does the Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development fund?

The Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development addresses the chronic green-fodder and concentrate-feed deficit that holds back per-animal productivity in India. Under its entrepreneurship window, NLM provides a 50% capital subsidy up to ₹50 lakh for setting up fodder block-making units, hay / silage-making units and Total Mixed Ration (TMR) plants, against a bank-loan-anchored project on the same SIDBI route as the breed-development EDP. Separately, the sub-mission supports state-government and producer-led activities — fodder seed production by State Seed Corporations, fodder-seed mini-kits, perennial fodder block establishment on degraded grasslands and silvi-pasture / community-fodder-block development — in convergence with ICAR-IGFRI, Jhansi.

How is NLM different from AHIDF and from Rashtriya Gokul Mission?

The three schemes occupy distinct slots in the animal-husbandry portfolio and are designed to converge rather than overlap. NLM is the entrepreneurship-and-fodder scheme — a 50% capital subsidy for individual, FPO and SHG-led projects in sheep / goat, poultry, piggery, rabbit and feed-and-fodder, typically in the ₹25–50 lakh project-cost range. AHIDF (see our /ahidf guide) is the medium-ticket infrastructure financing facility — bank loans up to 90% of project cost with a 3% interest subvention for 8 years, not a capital subsidy, for dairy / meat / feed processing capex. Rashtriya Gokul Mission (see our /rashtriya-gokul-mission guide) is the bovine-genetics scheme — sex-sorted semen, IVF and Breed Multiplication Farms for indigenous cattle and buffalo. A sheep-goat entrepreneur takes 50% NLM and tops up via KCC-AH&D; a dairy-processing plant uses AHIDF; an indigenous-breed BMF uses RGM — no double-funding, and each scheme reinforces the next.

Where do entrepreneurs and FPOs actually apply, and what is the cost-share?

The official application route is the NLM portal at nlm.udyamimitra.in, operated for DAHD on the SIDBI Udyami Mitra platform. The applicant registers with Aadhaar / KYC / bank account, uploads a Detailed Project Report (DPR), land or lease documents and a bank-loan sanction or in-principle approval from a scheduled bank. The State Animal Husbandry Department scrutinises the proposal, the State Level Executive Committee recommends sanction, and on final central approval SIDBI releases the 50% subsidy in two equal instalments to the project escrow against milestone verification. The flagship EDP is 100% centrally funded; the state-government Feed & Fodder and Innovation & Extension components follow the standard Centrally Sponsored Scheme cost-share (60:40 general / 90:10 NE & Himalayan / 100% central for UTs without legislature).

NLM Guide — National Livestock Mission (Revamped 2021): 50% Capital Subsidy up to ₹50 Lakh for Sheep/Goat, Poultry, Piggery, Feed & Fodder Entrepreneurs and How to Apply on nlm.udyamimitra.in

The National Livestock Mission (NLM)is the Government of India's flagship scheme for raising productivity and rural-livelihood income from small ruminants (sheep, goat), poultry, piggery, rabbit and the feed-and-fodder value chain. It was first launched in 2014-15by the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) and comprehensively revamped by the Union Cabinet on 14 July 2021 under a clean three-pillar architecture. The defining instrument inside the revamp is the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP): a 50% capital subsidy on bank-loan-anchored projects, released by SIDBI in two equal instalments, with per-project ceilings of ₹25 lakh (Rural Poultry Entrepreneurship Model), ₹50 lakh(sheep & goat), ₹30 lakh (piggery) and ₹50 lakh (rabbit and feed-and-fodder). For the wider scheme portfolio see our India government schemes for farmers reference.

At a glance

Scheme type: Centrally Sponsored Scheme — capital subsidy + bank loan model for the EDP; state-component activities follow the standard 60:40 / 90:10 cost-share.
Launched 2014-15; revamped 14 July 2021 by Union Cabinet under a three-sub-mission architecture; nodal: Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD).
Three sub-missions: Breed Development of Livestock & Poultry (EDP); Feed & Fodder Development; Innovation & Extension.
EDP subsidy: 50% of eligible project cost, released in two equal instalments via SIDBI.
Per-project ceilings: ₹25 lakh poultry (Rural Poultry Entrepreneurship Model); ₹50 lakh sheep / goat; ₹30 lakh piggery; ₹50 lakh rabbit; ₹50 lakh fodder block / silage / hay / TMR.
Eligible entities: Individuals, FPOs, SHGs, JLGs, Section 8 companies, FCOs, MSMEs — anchored on a sanctioned or in-principle bank loan from a scheduled bank against an approved DPR.
Portal: nlm.udyamimitra.in (linked from dahd.nic.in); converges with AHIDF, Rashtriya Gokul Mission and NADCP.

Why a revamped NLM — and why this matters

India has roughly 74 million sheep, 149 million goats, 9 million pigs and around 850 million poultry birds per the 20th Livestock Census (DAHD, 2019). These small-ruminant and short-cycle species are disproportionately owned by landless, small and marginal farmers, women-headed households and SC / ST families — the exact segments where livestock is often the single most important non-crop income line. Scheduled banks have historically been reluctant to lend at the ₹25–50 lakh ticket size for breeding farms and feed-mill projects because collateral is thin and borrowers are first-generation. The revamped 2021 NLM is designed to break that constraint by combining a 50% capital subsidy (which materially improves the debt-service coverage ratio) with a parallel sub-mission that finances exactly the fodder and feed-mill capacity those farms need to operate profitably. Headline objectives are to raise per-animal productivity, crowd in scheduled-bank credit into the underserved ₹25–50 lakh segment, plug the green-fodder deficit and generate rural employment for women, SC / ST families and landless labour.

The three sub-missions

1. Sub-Mission on Breed Development of Livestock & Poultry

The entrepreneurship arm — and where the headline 50% capital subsidy under the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) sits. The EDP finances breeding farms and parent units across small-ruminant and short-cycle species:

Rural Poultry Entrepreneurship Model — parent farm with hatchery and mother units for low-input technology birds; subsidy ceiling ₹25 lakh.
Sheep & goat breeding farm — typical unit 500 ewes + 25 rams or 500 does + 25 bucks with shed, water and fodder infrastructure; ceiling ₹50 lakh.
Piggery breeding farm — typical unit 100 sows + 10 boars with farrowing, weaner and grower sheds; ceiling ₹30 lakh.
Rabbit breeding farm — commercial rabbit-meat / wool unit; ceiling ₹50 lakh.

The project must be anchored on a sanctioned or in-principle bank loan from a scheduled bank; the balance after the 50% subsidy is met by bank loan plus optional promoter contribution. SIDBI releases the subsidy in two equal instalments — the first on project sanction and first-tranche bank disbursal, the second on milestone verification.

2. Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development

The fodder pillar addresses the chronic green-fodder and concentrate-feed deficit. It runs two streams:

Entrepreneurship window — 50% capital subsidy up to ₹50 lakh for fodder block-making units, hay / silage-making units and Total Mixed Ration (TMR) plants, on the same SIDBI-anchored route as the breed-development EDP.
State-government activities: fodder seed production by State Seed Corporations, fodder seed mini-kits, perennial fodder blocks on degraded grasslands and silvi-pasture / community fodder-block development.

Implementation is led by DAHD with state animal husbandry, forest and seed-corporation departments and with ICAR-IGFRI (Indian Grassland and Fodder Research Institute), Jhansi on technology.

3. Sub-Mission on Innovation & Extension

The smallest pillar in financial terms but the connective tissue between research, extension and the EDP beneficiaries. It funds applied research, livestock-insurance support, breeder-association strengthening, the Livestock Census and Integrated Sample Survey, recognition awards and studies on antimicrobial resistance and climate-resilient breeds — in convergence with ICAR institutes and State Animal Husbandry / Veterinary Universities.

Eligible entities and cost-share

Eligible applicants under the EDP are individual entrepreneurs, FPOs, SHGs (particularly women SHGs federated under DAY-NRLM), JLGs, Section 8 companies, Farmer Cooperative Organisations (FCOs) and MSMEs. The flagship EDP is 100% centrally funded, with the subsidy released by SIDBI on the central account. State-government implementation components inside Feed & Fodder and Innovation & Extension follow the standard Centrally Sponsored Scheme pattern: 60:40 Centre-State for general states, 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states (and UTs with a legislature), and 100% central funding for UTs without a legislature.

How to apply on nlm.udyamimitra.in

Register on nlm.udyamimitra.in with Aadhaar, KYC and bank account; choose the applicant category (individual / FPO / SHG / JLG / Section 8 / FCO / MSME).
Select project type— Rural Poultry Entrepreneurship Model, sheep & goat / piggery / rabbit breeding farm or fodder / silage / TMR unit — and upload a DPR aligned with NLM cost norms.
Obtain a bank-loan sanction or in-principle approval from a scheduled bank against the DPR; upload it to the portal.
State scrutiny. The State Animal Husbandry Department examines the proposal; the State Level Executive Committee recommends sanction.
SIDBI disbursal. On final central approval, SIDBI releases the 50% capital subsidy in two equal instalments directly to the project escrow account against bank-disbursal and milestone verification.

Documents required

Aadhaar and PAN plus entity registration (FPO / SHG / Section 8 / MSME Udyam, as applicable).
Land record / lease — khasra / khatauni / Bhulekh / Mahabhulekh / Dharani reference per state, or a registered lease for at least the project tenure.
Bank-loan sanction or in-principle approval from a scheduled bank against the DPR.
Detailed Project Report (DPR) aligned with NLM cost norms, with expected herd / flock build-up and a feed-and-fodder plan.
Aadhaar-linked bank account with IFSC for the project escrow.

How NLM converges with the rest of the animal-husbandry portfolio

AHIDF: the ₹29,610 crore (extended 2024) medium-ticket infrastructure financing facility for dairy, meat, feed and breed-multiplication processingcapex — bank-loan-led with a 3% interest subvention for 8 years, not a capital subsidy. NLM's ₹25–50 lakh EDP projects sit below the typical AHIDF ticket size and avoid double-funding by design.
Rashtriya Gokul Mission: the bovine-genetics scheme — covers indigenous cattle and buffalo, complementary to NLM's small-ruminant / poultry / piggery / rabbit scope. The same family can hold RGM-tagged bovines and run an NLM-subsidised goat unit.
KCC-AH&D: the collateral-free Kisan Credit Card limits of ₹1.6–2 lakh extended to animal husbandry in 2018-19 — useful working-capital cover on top of the NLM project term loan.
Knowledge: browse our knowledge base, the India crop calendar for fodder-cropping windows and our National Beekeeping & Honey Mission guide for the adjacent apiculture entrepreneurship stream.

Important official links and references

nlm.udyamimitra.in — official NLM application portal on the SIDBI Udyami Mitra platform: applicant registration, DPR upload, bank-loan-sanction linkage and subsidy-tranche tracking.
Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (dahd.nic.in) — nodal department; Revamped NLM operational guidelines and cost norms for EDP, Feed & Fodder and Innovation & Extension sub-missions.
Press Information Bureau (PIB) — Cabinet decision of 14 July 2021 restructuring NLM and subsequent state-wise sanction releases.
ICAR-IGFRI, Jhansi — technology partner on fodder varieties, silage / hay and silvi-pasture; and DAHD 20th Livestock Census (2019) — species population counts underpinning NLM target groups.

Frequently asked questions

What is the National Livestock Mission (NLM) and which ministry runs it?: The National Livestock Mission (NLM) is a Government of India centrally sponsored scheme operated by the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying. It was first launched in 2014-15 to consolidate livestock-development efforts that had earlier been spread across multiple schemes, and was comprehensively revamped by the Union Cabinet on 14 July 2021 with a new three-pillar architecture: Sub-Mission on Breed Development of Livestock & Poultry (the entrepreneurship arm), Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development (forage and feed-mill capacity), and Sub-Mission on Innovation & Extension (research, extension, awards). The objective is to raise per-animal productivity and rural-livelihood income from small ruminants, poultry, piggery and forage value chains that complement bovine dairy.
What is the headline 50% capital subsidy under NLM and who can claim it?: The flagship instrument inside the revamped NLM is the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) inside the Sub-Mission on Breed Development of Livestock & Poultry. EDP provides a 50% capital subsidy on the eligible project cost, released in two equal instalments through SIDBI, against a bank-loan-anchored project (the borrower brings the remaining ~50% as bank credit and optional promoter contribution). Per-project subsidy ceilings are: up to ₹25 lakh for the Rural Poultry Entrepreneurship Model (parent farms with hatchery and mother units for low-input technology birds), up to ₹50 lakh for sheep and goat breeding farms (typically a 500 ewes + 25 rams or 500 does + 25 bucks unit), up to ₹30 lakh for piggery breeding farms (100 sows + 10 boars) and up to ₹50 lakh for rabbit breeding farms. Eligible applicants include individual entrepreneurs, Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), Self-Help Groups (SHGs), Joint Liability Groups (JLGs), Section 8 companies, Farmer Cooperative Organisations (FCOs) and MSMEs.
What does the Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development fund?: The Sub-Mission on Feed & Fodder Development addresses the chronic green-fodder and concentrate-feed deficit that holds back per-animal productivity in India. Under its entrepreneurship window, NLM provides a 50% capital subsidy up to ₹50 lakh for setting up fodder block-making units, hay / silage-making units and Total Mixed Ration (TMR) plants, against a bank-loan-anchored project on the same SIDBI route as the breed-development EDP. Separately, the sub-mission supports state-government and producer-led activities — fodder seed production by State Seed Corporations, fodder-seed mini-kits, perennial fodder block establishment on degraded grasslands and silvi-pasture / community-fodder-block development — in convergence with ICAR-IGFRI, Jhansi.
How is NLM different from AHIDF and from Rashtriya Gokul Mission?: The three schemes occupy distinct slots in the animal-husbandry portfolio and are designed to converge rather than overlap. NLM is the entrepreneurship-and-fodder scheme — a 50% capital subsidy for individual, FPO and SHG-led projects in sheep / goat, poultry, piggery, rabbit and feed-and-fodder, typically in the ₹25–50 lakh project-cost range. AHIDF (see our /ahidf guide) is the medium-ticket infrastructure financing facility — bank loans up to 90% of project cost with a 3% interest subvention for 8 years, not a capital subsidy, for dairy / meat / feed processing capex. Rashtriya Gokul Mission (see our /rashtriya-gokul-mission guide) is the bovine-genetics scheme — sex-sorted semen, IVF and Breed Multiplication Farms for indigenous cattle and buffalo. A sheep-goat entrepreneur takes 50% NLM and tops up via KCC-AH&D; a dairy-processing plant uses AHIDF; an indigenous-breed BMF uses RGM — no double-funding, and each scheme reinforces the next.
Where do entrepreneurs and FPOs actually apply, and what is the cost-share?: The official application route is the NLM portal at nlm.udyamimitra.in, operated for DAHD on the SIDBI Udyami Mitra platform. The applicant registers with Aadhaar / KYC / bank account, uploads a Detailed Project Report (DPR), land or lease documents and a bank-loan sanction or in-principle approval from a scheduled bank. The State Animal Husbandry Department scrutinises the proposal, the State Level Executive Committee recommends sanction, and on final central approval SIDBI releases the 50% subsidy in two equal instalments to the project escrow against milestone verification. The flagship EDP is 100% centrally funded; the state-government Feed & Fodder and Innovation & Extension components follow the standard Centrally Sponsored Scheme cost-share (60:40 general / 90:10 NE & Himalayan / 100% central for UTs without legislature).

Subsidy ceilings, project-cost norms and eligibility above summarise the NLM Operational Guidelines on dahd.nic.in and the Cabinet release of 14 July 2021, current as of mid-2026. Cost norms, sub-limits and bank-specific terms are updated from time to time; applicants should verify the current cost norms on nlm.udyamimitra.in or with their State Animal Husbandry Department before finalising the DPR.