Fruit, veggies to get cheaper in Delhi

With these out of the APMC Act, govt can buy directly from farmers, sell at prices lower than market rates

After taking fruit and vegetables out of the ambit of the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee Act (APMC) in the national capital, the government is planning to purchase these commodities directly from farmers and sell these to consumers at prices lower than market rates.

Last month, authorities here began selling onions and potatoes purchased directly from farmers. The sales are being carried out by farmer-producer organisations, under the guidance of the Small Farmers’ Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC).

Officials said onions and potatoes were being brought from villages in Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and sold at half the market rates to consumers. It has been planned other vegetables and fruit will also be purchased directly from farmers.

DIRECT FROM THE FIELD

• Last month, authorities bought onions and potatoes directly from farmers from villages in Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and sold at half the market rates to consumers
• Now, the government is planning to purchase other vegetables and fruit directly from farmers
• On July 19, the Delhi government had de-listed fruits and vegetables from the APMC Act
• The move is aimed at helping farmers sell their produce directly to consumers

“This is a sort of soft-launch of our initiative to allow farmers sell their produce directly to consumers. A full-fledged kisan-mandi is expected to be started in the capital by November,” said Pravesh Sharma, managing director of SFAC.

On July 19, the Delhi government had de-listed fruits and vegetables from the APMC Act. It said any objection to the move would have to be stated within 45 days; the deadline expired on Tuesday. Consequently, the regulation on the movement of fruit and vegetables, in place for markets other than the three major ones — Azadpur, Okhla and Keshopur — ceased.

Freeing fruits and vegetables from the ambit of mandis is expected to lower transaction costs and help consumers get the final produce at lower rates. Also, it enables bulk purchases by food processors.

According to unofficial estimates, commissions earned by agents, also called artiyas, stand at two-five per cent of retail prices. Other taxes such as mandi tax, octroi, value-added tax, sales tax and inter-state movement charges account for 10-12 per cent of the retail price. In the Azadpur market here, among the largest wholesale markets in India, agent commissions stand at about six per cent of retail prices.