Jaipur, June 29 -- Union minister of state for agriculture and farmers' welfare Bhagirath Choudhary came under fire from the Opposition after an English daily reported that he received a Rs.99.6 lakh subsidy under a horticulture scheme administered by his ministry. The report said that under the ministry's Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), implemented by the National Horticulture Board (NHB), a cucumber cultivation project spanning 16,592 square metres of land in Rajasthan's Deedwana Kuchaman district, owned by Choudhary, was sanctioned a subsidy amounting to 50% of project cost in 2025. The subsidy was released in March. As minister of state, he is NHB's ex-officio vice president. The report added that Choudhary's proposal for clearance to start work on the project under the scheme was allegedly approved in 14 days. To be sure, it also said that subsidy proposals are approved by an NHB project approval committee that does not include board's president or vice president. Responding to the report, Choudhary said there was nothing improper in availing a government scheme for which he was eligible. "I have not hidden anything," he told reporters. He said he applied for the subsidy in 2018, well before becoming a minister, and had disclosed details of the loans and subsidy related to the project. He said the farm functions as a demonstration centre where farmers are trained in modern agricultural practices and natural farming. "The project was inspected by local officials before the subsidy was sanctioned." Meanwhile, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot took to X to accuse the Centre of promoting a "new model of corruption" through conflicts of interest. He alleged that while ordinary farmers struggled with bureaucratic procedures, BJP leaders and favoured officials received government benefits running into crores....