Polyhouse / Greenhouse Cost per Acre in India (2026): Official Norms vs Vendor Quotes

Polyhouse cost in India is the vendor’s itemized quotation for a stated structure and area, not one national rate. There is no defensible single, exact “polyhouse cost per acre in India” that applies to every project. Structure type, covered area, site conditions and the inclusions in a contractor’s bill of quantities can all change the commercial quotation.

For subsidy planning, the current national reference is the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) Operational Guidelines 2025. These guidelines publish protected-cultivation cost norms in rupees per square metre and provide assistance at 50% for a maximum area of 2,500 sq m per beneficiary. Crucially, MIDH defines a cost norm as the upper limit of cost used to calculate subsidy—not as a guaranteed contractor price or reimbursement of half of any invoice. (MIDH Operational Guidelines 2025, Annexure V and cost-norm note)

This guide therefore separates three different figures:

1. MIDH protected-structure cost norms and assistance;
2. PDMC assistance for eligible drip and sprinkler micro-irrigation; and
3. a vendor’s commercial quotation and BOQ.

They should not be treated as interchangeable.

Current official MIDH protected-structure norms

The table below reproduces the current national MIDH slabs for the three requested structure categories. These are official subsidy-calculation norms, not India-wide market prices.

MIDH states that the rates above are 15% higher in North Eastern and Himalayan States, Scheduled areas, vibrant villages, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep. Confirm whether the location and beneficiary qualify with the implementing state agency before budgeting on that basis. (MIDH 2025, Annexure V, B.5)

Transparent examples: calculate the norm, not a market quote

The arithmetic below illustrates the published slabs. It does not estimate a contractor’s charge, prove eligibility or promise a subsidy payment.

For planning illustration, each example applies the rate shown for that total covered-area slab to the stated area. The implementing agency should confirm the admissible calculation for an actual application.

Do not extend the 50% calculation across an uncapped one-acre invoice. The protected-structure assistance in this table is capped at 2,500 sq m per beneficiary. A commercial project can be larger, but this table does not authorize treating the entire larger invoice as eligible at 50%. (MIDH 2025, Annexure V, B.5)

For bamboo structures, both the overall assistance-area limit and the additional unit rules must be considered. Confirm their application with the relevant state horticulture mission rather than inferring a larger entitlement from one limit alone.

Which published slab fits the size in your search

Searches for polyhouse cost, poly house cost per acre, half acre polyhouse cost, 1 acre polyhouse cost and polyhouse construction cost are asking which figure to use. There is still no separate official price for each phrase. Convert the size to square metres, then read the matching row in the MIDH table above. One acre is about 4,047 square metres. One square foot is about 0.0929 square metres. The rupee amounts already printed on this page stay the only amounts here.

A 1 acre or 2 acre project is larger than the 2,500 sq m assistance cap already stated above. The commercial quotation can cover the full area. Do not treat the part above that cap as eligible just because the searched phrase says per acre.

Polyhouse construction cost is the quotation, not the norm

Polyhouse construction cost means the lines a contractor includes: frame, foundations, covering, fixing, irrigation, labour, freight and taxes. The MIDH rows are only the ceiling used to calculate assistance. Use the comparison checklist later on this page to line two quotations up. Do not turn a slab into a construction rate.

What does “cost norm” mean?

MIDH’s own note says: “Cost norms means upper limit of cost for calculation of subsidy.” (MIDH 2025, cost-norm note)

• the norm is an administrative ceiling for calculating assistance;
• it is not a national price list for contractors;
• it does not guarantee that a quotation will equal the norm;
• it does not guarantee approval, eligibility or disbursement; and
• a higher vendor invoice does not automatically increase admissible assistance.

MIDH’s protected-cultivation section also says that the cost is inclusive of irrigation systems and that material or technology used to claim assistance should conform to BIS standards. (MIDH 2025, section 7.25) Ask the implementing agency how this inclusion applies to the proposed BOQ, especially before treating an irrigation line item as eligible under another scheme.

MIDH assistance for the protected structure

For the naturally ventilated, fan-and-pad and bamboo/cable-purlin rows above, MIDH provides 50% assistance for a maximum area of 2,500 sq m per beneficiary, or pro rata for smaller areas. (MIDH 2025, Annexure V, B.5)

Before relying on a calculation, verify with the state implementing agency:

• the current application window and local process;
• beneficiary and land eligibility;
• approved structure type and technical specification;
• whether the project area falls within the applicable slab and cap;
• the admissible BOQ and inspection requirements;
• how irrigation included in the MIDH norm is treated; and
• whether any location-based uplift applies.

A supplier quotation cannot decide scheme eligibility.

PDMC assistance is for micro-irrigation—not the whole polyhouse

Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) must be kept separate from the protected-structure calculation. PDMC focuses on drip and sprinkler micro-irrigation systems. It is not a 55% or 45% subsidy on an entire polyhouse invoice.

Under PDMC, the government provides 55% assistance for small and marginal farmers and 45% for other farmers for installing drip and sprinkler systems. (PIB, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, 9 December 2025)

The PDMC Operational Guidelines 2024 state that micro-irrigation assistance is limited to an overall ceiling of 5 hectares per beneficiary. They also use a 7-year projected life before the same land becomes eligible for assistance again, subject to the guideline’s stated provisions. The guideline makes clear that PDMC concerns micro-irrigation—not the greenhouse structure.

PDMC has been implemented under RKVY since 2022–23. Some states provide additional incentives, so any top-up must be checked against the current state notification and beneficiary category rather than assumed nationally. (PIB, 12 December 2023)

Do not assume that MIDH and PDMC can both subsidize the same irrigation line item. Ask the implementing agency to identify the eligible component, governing scheme and anti-duplication treatment before applying.

Official norm vs vendor quotation

A vendor quote is useful only when its inclusions and exclusions are clear. A low headline rate can omit foundations, fixing hardware, irrigation, fogging, labour, freight or taxes. A higher rate may include some of those items. Compare normalized BOQs, not isolated rupees-per-square-metre figures. Before asking bidders to price the scope, use the greenhouse farm planning guide to think through the crop, site, cover and water choices that shape the brief.

Vendor BOQ comparison checklist

Ask every bidder to return the same checklist. Mark each line as included, excluded, optional or owner-supplied.

Project basis

• Site location and covered area
• Structure category and design assumptions
• Layout, spans, bays, height and ventilation configuration
• Site survey, drawings and engineering responsibility
• Ground, wind, drainage and access assumptions

Structure and civil work

• Columns, arches, purlins, bracing and gutters
• Steel specification, coating and applicable standards
• Foundations, anchors, excavation and concrete
• Doors, vents, roll-up mechanisms and openings
• Installation consumables and structural fasteners

Covering, nets and fixing

• Film specification, thickness, UV treatment and stated performance terms
• Insect net, shade net or other cladding by location
• Locking profiles, springs, clips, clamps and repair materials
• Side and roof fastening method
• Wastage allowance and replacement material

See BLUSTAL’s greenhouse net and sheet range and greenhouse fixing hardware when preparing component descriptions. These catalogue links are for product discovery, not proof of scheme eligibility.

Irrigation and climate systems

• Water source and water-quality assumptions
• Pump, filtration, mainline, sub-main and valves
• Drip laterals, emitters, fittings and flushing points
• Fertigation equipment and controls
• Fan-and-pad equipment, where applicable
• Fogging or misting equipment, separately itemized
• Electrical panels, cabling, sensors and automation, where requested
• Testing pressure, design flow and commissioning records

Relevant catalogue routes: drip irrigation components and misting and fogging systems.

Commercial and handover terms

• Installation labour and supervision
• Travel, accommodation and site logistics
• Freight, unloading and local handling
• Taxes and duties
• Work excluded from the quotation
• Delivery and installation assumptions
• Inspection, testing and handover documents
• Maintenance schedule, spare-parts list and replacement items
• Written warranty terms from the bidder, without assuming a standard national term
• Quote validity and payment milestones

For more procurement context, read BLUSTAL’s polyhouse construction equipment buyer’s guide and browse greenhouse structure kits.

How to compare two polyhouse quotations

1. Confirm that both quotes use the same covered area and structure category.
2. Put every BOQ line into the same included/excluded/optional format.
3. Separate the structure, civil work, covering, fixing, irrigation, fogging, electrical work, labour, freight and taxes.
4. Record the specification and quantity behind each line—not only its amount.
5. Compare the vendor total with the official norm only for subsidy planning; do not call the norm a market price.
6. Ask the implementing agency which lines are admissible and within the 2,500 sq m MIDH cap.
7. Treat PDMC as a separate micro-irrigation check and prevent the same line item from being counted twice.

Frequently asked questions

What is the exact polyhouse cost per acre in India in 2026?

There is no source-backed single exact price that applies across India. The current MIDH document provides protected-structure cost norms by square-metre slab only up to its 2,500 sq m assistance cap. A one-acre commercial quotation still needs a site-specific, itemized BOQ.

Is the MIDH norm the price a contractor must charge?

No. MIDH defines a cost norm as the upper limit used to calculate subsidy. It is not a contractor price list or a guarantee that an invoice will match the norm. (MIDH 2025, cost-norm note)

Does MIDH pay 50% of the complete one-acre invoice?

The cited protected-structure assistance is 50% within the admissible cost norm and for a maximum area of 2,500 sq m per beneficiary. Do not extrapolate that percentage to an uncapped one-acre invoice. (MIDH 2025, Annexure V, B.5)

Is the 55% or 45% PDMC assistance a polyhouse subsidy?

No. Those PDMC rates apply to eligible installation of drip and sprinkler micro-irrigation: 55% for small and marginal farmers and 45% for other farmers. (PIB, 9 December 2025)

Does the MIDH protected-cultivation norm include irrigation?

The MIDH protected-cultivation narrative says the cost is inclusive of irrigation systems. Ask the implementing agency how that statement applies to the proposed structure and BOQ, and do not assume the same line item can also receive PDMC assistance. (MIDH 2025, section 7.25)

What should I ask a polyhouse vendor to quote separately?

Request separate lines for structure, foundations and civil work, covering and nets, fixing hardware, irrigation, fogging or misting, electrical and control work, installation labour, freight, taxes, testing and handover. Ask for specifications and quantities, not only a headline rate.

Can state subsidies or top-ups differ?

Yes. The central PDMC information says some states provide additional incentives for micro-irrigation. Check the current state notification, beneficiary category and application status; do not generalize a state-specific programme nationally. (PIB, 12 December 2023)

Prepare an itemized project enquiry

Before requesting a quote, note the project location, covered area, preferred structure category, crop, water source and the systems required. Browse BLUSTAL’s greenhouse equipment range and submit those inputs for an itemized commercial quotation.

A supplier quotation is not a subsidy approval. Confirm scheme eligibility, admissible cost and the applicable cap directly with the authorized state implementing agency.

Methodology and sources

Source check date: 27 August 2026. This article uses the current MIDH Operational Guidelines 2025, dated 31 December 2024, for protected-structure cost norms, assistance and the definition of “cost norm.” It uses the PDMC Operational Guidelines 2024 and current central-government PIB releases for micro-irrigation scope and assistance. Calculations are simple area × official norm illustrations within the cited slabs. Supplier listings were not used to create a national price range. No current national component-price claim was made for fixing accessories, separately itemized fogging or construction labour because the evidence review found no defensible current primary-source range.