Cold Storage Directory · Data
Cold storage capacity in India, state by state
The government's own count, made readable: how many cold storages each state has, how much they hold, and how big a typical store is.
The short answer
- India has 8,653 cold storages holding 394.2 lakh MT, as on 20 November 2023.
- Uttar Pradesh alone has 38.2% of that capacity. With West Bengal, the two hold 53.3%: most of it is potato country.
- The average Indian cold storage holds about 4,555 MT.
Every state
| State or UT | Cold storages | Capacity (MT) | Share of India | Average MT per store |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uttar Pradesh | 2,472 | 1,50,45,874 | 38.2% | 6,087 |
| West Bengal | 515 | 59,48,316 | 15.1% | 11,550 |
| Gujarat | 1,014 | 39,74,593 | 10.1% | 3,920 |
| Punjab | 761 | 25,88,686 | 6.6% | 3,402 |
| Andhra Pradesh & Telangana | 467 | 18,93,071 | 4.8% | 4,054 |
| Bihar | 313 | 14,76,557 | 3.7% | 4,717 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 315 | 13,64,003 | 3.5% | 4,330 |
| Maharashtra | 656 | 11,76,499 | 3.0% | 1,793 |
| Haryana | 382 | 8,67,884 | 2.2% | 2,272 |
| Karnataka | 250 | 8,38,940 | 2.1% | 3,356 |
| Rajasthan | 191 | 6,52,879 | 1.7% | 3,418 |
| Orissa | 182 | 5,79,321 | 1.5% | 3,183 |
| Chhattisgarh | 120 | 5,53,832 | 1.4% | 4,615 |
| Telangana | 108 | 5,41,397 | 1.4% | 5,013 |
| Tamil Nadu | 188 | 3,99,690 | 1.0% | 2,126 |
| Jammu & Kashmir | 89 | 3,41,515 | 0.9% | 3,837 |
| Jharkhand | 60 | 2,48,629 | 0.6% | 4,144 |
| Assam | 45 | 2,16,388 | 0.5% | 4,809 |
| Uttrakhand | 60 | 2,06,621 | 0.5% | 3,444 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 89 | 1,74,072 | 0.4% | 1,956 |
| Delhi | 97 | 1,29,857 | 0.3% | 1,339 |
| Kerala | 202 | 96,655 | 0.2% | 478 |
| Tripura | 14 | 46,354 | 0.1% | 3,311 |
| Chandigarh (UT) | 7 | 12,462 | 0.0% | 1,780 |
| Meghalaya | 4 | 8,200 | 0.0% | 2,050 |
| Nagaland | 5 | 8,150 | 0.0% | 1,630 |
| Goa | 29 | 7,705 | 0.0% | 266 |
| Arunachal Pradesh | 2 | 6,000 | 0.0% | 3,000 |
| Manipur | 2 | 4,500 | 0.0% | 2,250 |
| Mizoram | 3 | 4,071 | 0.0% | 1,357 |
| Andaman & Nicobar Islands (UT) | 4 | 2,210 | 0.0% | 553 |
| Sikkim | 2 | 2,100 | 0.0% | 1,050 |
| Pondicherry (UT) | 4 | 185 | 0.0% | 46 |
| Lakshadweep (UT) | 1 | 15 | 0.0% | 15 |
| India | 8,653 | 3,94,17,231 | 100% | 4,555 |
Source: State wise distribution of Cold Storages in the Country (as on 20.11.2023), Government of India, annexure to a parliamentary reply released by PIB on 19 December 2023. The table names its own basis as DMI up to 2009, NHB, NHM, HMNEH and MoFPI. Copied as printed, including its separate "Andhra Pradesh & Telangana" and "Telangana" rows; shares and averages are ours. Read 21 October 2026.
Inside Uttar Pradesh: where the subsidised capacity went
The National Horticulture Board publishes the cold storage projects it part-funded in Uttar Pradesh, 919 of them, sanctioned between 2000 and 2012 and adding up to 47.5 lakh MT. It is not every store in the state, but it shows where the building happened: the Agra and Firozabad belt took more than a third.
| District | NHB-assisted projects | Capacity (MT) | Share of the list |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agra | 212 | 11,05,895 | 23.3% |
| Firozabad | 120 | 7,27,701 | 15.3% |
| Kannauj | 50 | 3,53,809 | 7.4% |
| Hathras | 58 | 3,28,217 | 6.9% |
| Aligarh | 58 | 3,24,084 | 6.8% |
| Farrukhabad | 21 | 1,54,897 | 3.3% |
| Etawah | 27 | 1,39,715 | 2.9% |
| Kanpur Nagar | 19 | 1,33,047 | 2.8% |
| Prayagraj | 33 | 1,30,732 | 2.8% |
| Mainpuri | 20 | 1,29,908 | 2.7% |
| Mathura | 24 | 1,25,996 | 2.7% |
| Budaun | 33 | 1,18,037 | 2.5% |
| Ghazipur | 27 | 1,04,112 | 2.2% |
| Hardoi | 15 | 79,210 | 1.7% |
| Raebareli | 19 | 68,853 | 1.4% |
Source: National Horticulture Board, Uttar Pradesh: cold storage projects assisted under capital investment subsidy. Projects sanctioned 2000 to 2012 with NHB back-ended subsidy, through banks. Not every cold storage: the state had 2,472 by the 2023 table. Top 15 districts by capacity, our tally of the list; a store can appear twice, once when built and again when expanded. Read 21 October 2026.
Using these figures
You are welcome to use this table in reports, articles and project files. Please cite the government source and link to this page: Cold Storage Directory, "Cold storage capacity in India, state by state", https://coldstoragedirectory.com/cold-storage-capacity-india.
Common questions
- How many cold storages are there in India?
- 8,653, with a combined capacity of 3,94,17,231 MT (394.2 lakh MT), as on 20 November 2023, according to the state-wise table the Government of India gave Parliament in December 2023.
- Which state has the most cold storage capacity?
- Uttar Pradesh: 2,472 cold storages and 150.5 lakh MT, which is 38.2% of India's capacity. West Bengal is next with 59.5 lakh MT.
- What is the average size of a cold storage in India?
- About 4,555 MT across the country. It varies widely: 6,087 MT in Uttar Pradesh and 11,550 MT in West Bengal, where stores are fewer and larger.
- Where do these figures come from?
- From the government table "State wise distribution of Cold Storages in the Country (as on 20.11.2023)", which names its own basis as DMI up to 2009, NHB, NHM, HMNEH and MoFPI. The link is on this page. We have copied it as printed and only added the shares and averages.