The Centre on Tuesday informed the Lok Sabha that BJP MP from Rajasthan’s Jalore, Lumbaram Choudhary, received financial assistance under a Central horticulture scheme for lemon cultivation, making him the second serving parliamentarian, after Union Minister Bhagirath Choudhary, to have availed such benefits in the past five years.
According to government records, Lumbaram received a subsidy of Rs 4.20 lakh for cultivating lemons on his six-acre farm in Vadeli village of Rajasthan’s Sirohi district. Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Ramnath Thakur, in a written reply to the House, said the subsidy was released in 2025 under the “Development of Commercial Horticulture through Production and Post-Harvest Management of Horticulture Crops” scheme.
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The records show that Lumbaram had applied for the subsidy in April 2021, well before he entered Parliament. He was elected as an MP in 2024, while the project was approved in December that year and the subsidy was transferred to his bank account on January 15, 2025. The total project cost stood at Rs 16.92 lakh, supported by a loan of Rs 12.69 lakh.
The disclosure comes weeks after controversy over Union Minister Bhagirath Choudhary receiving a Rs 99 lakh subsidy under a scheme administered by his own ministry. The government informed Parliament that the minister has since returned the amount.
Responding to questions from Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, the Centre also acknowledged that the National Horticulture Board’s existing scheme guidelines do not contain any conflict-of-interest or recusal provisions for applications submitted by public representatives or their immediate family members.
