CHENNAI: More farmers are selling their produce through online regulated marketplace e-NAM (national agricultural market) owing to the better prices it fetches them.C Mani, a small-scale coconut farmer from Madurai’s Kuruvithurai, said average prices of copra at the regulated market were higher and increased with demand.
“Traders take up to 15 days to pay and, sometimes, compromise on weight. Once a trader cheated me by short-weighing my produce by 20kg, but I argued with him using a computer-generated weight receipt. At regulated markets, however, we get paid on time and can trust the weighing.” Also, contrary to general belief, farmers said they preferred getting payments credited to their bank accounts.
G Ravi, a farmers’ union leader from Madurai’s Vadipatti, said traders usually demanded 150 pieces of copra for free for every 1,000 pieces they bought. He told TNIE that traders and middlemen dictated prices during farm-gate sales (sale happening on fields) whereas farmers got better prices at e-NAM regulated market owing to bidding.
The volume of trade through e-NAM regulated market is higher in the northern districts of Villupuram, Kallakurichi, Cuddalore, Vellore, Tirupathur, Tiruvannamalai and Ranipet. In southern districts, it’s significantly less. V Mercy Jeyarani, secretary of Madurai market committee, however, said the department of agricultural marketing and agri business was trying to increase goods arrivals at the regulated market with the help of farmers producers organisations (FPOs).
MV Chandrasekar, secretary of Tiruvannamalai market committee, said farmers got better prices for paddy at e-NAM regulated markets, sometimes, higher than the minimum support price (MSP) at direct procurement centres (DPCs). He said a farmer would get Rs 3-5 more a kg of paddy at uncleaned stage. Likewise, farmers could sell paddy with up to 21% moisture content at the regulated market whereas 14% was the cap at DPCs.
Dr Natarajan, director of the department of agriculture marketing and agri business, said computerised bidding made it harder for traders and corrupt officials to rig the system. Speaking to TNIE, he said farmers get Rs 200-300 more a quintal, depending on the type and demand for the crop, due to online bidding.
“Now inter-mandi and interstate trade of produce is being promoted; pulses, cotton, turmeric and other produce from Tamil Nadu are highly sought after by traders in other states.” Mandis engaged in interstate trade are located in Madurai, Kilpennathur, Oddanchatram, Udumalpet, Panruti and Myiladuthurai. Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Puducherry are the states and the Union Territory engaged in interstate trade with TN.
Natarajan said his department was planning to buy high-precision cameras, a near infrared (NIR) spectrometer, sorting, grading machines, etc., to ease interstate trade online.While a unified single licence is issued to traders to promote inter-mandi trade, numerous bottlenecks mar interstate trade of produce.