Nilam

Chandauliचन्दौली

19.5 lakh people. Larger than Bahrain, Estonia, or Mauritius. Governed as one cell of one state.

Population
19,52,756 (19.5 lakh)
Area
2,554 km²
Headquarters
Chandauli
ODOP: Zari-ZardoziODOP: Black Rice
Black RicePaddy Bowl of UPZari-Zardozi

₹2,159 cr

of bankable business potential identified by the government in Chandauli.

Source: NABARD PLP 2023-24

1 ready-to-build opportunity

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Chandauli black-rice milling & specialty brand

Unverified

A rice mill and branding unit in Chandauli that mills and packs the district's ODOP black rice and premium paddy into specialty retail SKUs, riding Varanasi proximity and rail links to urban and export buyers.

Capex
₹12–25 lakh
Payback
2.5 years payback
Risk
Moderate
NABARD-AIFTourism-Subsidy

NABARD's plan for Chandauli · PLP 2023-24

₹2,159 crof bankable credit potential identified by the government

Crop production, maintenance & marketing

₹882 cr

MSME

₹794 cr

Term loans for agriculture & allied activities

₹208 cr

Agriculture infrastructure

₹112 cr

Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh's 'rice bowl', has a total priority-sector credit potential of about Rs 2,158.73 crore for 2023-24, an 8.05% jump on last year. Farming dominates: agriculture is roughly Rs 1,269.82 crore (about 59% of the plan) and MSME is Rs 793.94 crore (about 37%), with smaller slices for housing, education and social infrastructure.

The biggest opportunity is crop production at Rs 882.38 crore, built on paddy plus wheat, maize, bajra, pulses and oilseeds. The district's calling card is black rice (kala chawal), grown in volume, with a black-rice FPO in Barhani block; black rice and zari-zardozi are its One District One Product picks, and tomato is its PM-FME product. Six NABARD-backed FPOs work in natural farming, fisheries, goat rearing, dairy and vegetables, all e-NAM linked. Allied lines are strong too — poultry Rs 64.82 cr, fisheries Rs 47.42 cr and dairy Rs 27.94 cr. Storage and cold-chain infrastructure carries Rs 107.10 crore, and a rural mart runs in Niyamatabad block. Weaving of handloom/powerloom sarees, zari and chikankari underpins MSME activity.

The plan's own gaps: no organised produce market and no fruit-processing units, badly under-used solar potential, missing soil-testing labs and a weak extension network, poor irrigation and animal-health cover, too few dairy routes, no poultry/fish hatcheries or fish markets, and unreliable power for industry.

See the plan's recommendations

What the plan promotes

  • Paddy is the mainstay — Chandauli is called the 'rice bowl' (dhan ka katora); crop-production potential alone is Rs 882.38 crore across paddy, wheat, maize, bajra, pulses and oilseeds
  • Black rice (kala chawal) is grown in large volumes; a dedicated black-rice FPO has been set up in Barhani block through NABARD, and black rice plus zari-zardozi are the district's One District One Product (ODOP) items
  • Tomato has been taken as the district product under the PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing (PM-FME) scheme via the Horticulture Department, with good scope for processing units
  • 6 NABARD-supported Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) are active in natural farming, fisheries, goat rearing, dairy, black rice and vegetable/medicinal crops, all linked to e-NAM
  • Livestock and allied activities offer large potential: poultry Rs 64.82 cr, fisheries Rs 47.42 cr and dairy Rs 27.94 cr in term-loan potential
  • A rural mart was opened by NABARD in Niyamatabad block on 20.01.2022 to sell vegetables, foodgrains, cloth and daily-need goods and create local employment

Gaps the plan names

  • No organised market for storing and marketing agricultural produce and no dedicated fruit-processing facilities — special efforts needed for both
  • Solar energy is heavily under-tapped; the district urgently needs to harness solar power
  • Weak farm support: soil-testing labs needed in every block, the extension network must be strengthened, and technology demonstration on farmers' fields is required to improve implements and mechanisation
  • Irrigation needs improvement and animal-health services must be upgraded
  • Number of dairy routes should be increased, and poultry/fish hatcheries and fish markets need to be established

Value-chain gaps

Money this district loses today

Raw output sold cheap, value added elsewhere — each gap below is an opening for a local business.

Black rice: raw paddy → branded, packed specialty rice

Unverified
Raw 85%Processed 15%

Chandauli's ODOP black rice is often sold as raw paddy or loose grain at modest rates despite its niche, health-positioned appeal. Cleaned, graded, branded and packed as a specialty antioxidant-rich rice, it commands several times the raw-paddy price in urban and export channels. As the district's signature crop, it is the clearest candidate for forward value capture.

Growth signal

Demand for pigmented and health-positioned specialty rice is growing in premium food retail.

Paddy: raw paddy → milled, graded & branded rice

Unverified
Raw 85%Processed 15%

As the 'paddy bowl of UP', Chandauli ships large volumes of raw paddy to traders at mandi rates. Milling, grading and consumer-packing branded rice locally captures the processing and retail margin that otherwise leaves the district. The existing rice-milling base and rail access to Varanasi support a scaled, branded packing operation.

Resources

What this district has

Tap a category to see the facts and figures underneath. Numbers marked unverified are AI-extracted and need a sourcing pass.

Agriculture & natural resources

1 fact

Industrial clusters

2 facts

Infrastructure

1 fact

About Chandauli

Chandauli district is a district of Uttar Pradesh state of India, and Chandauli town is the district headquarters. Chandauli district, a part of Varanasi Division, became a separate district on 20 May 1997.Chandauli district is located in south eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Source: Wikipedia — Chandauli district

Uttar Pradesh

Chandauli

See Chandauli elsewhere

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