Making markets work for people

Total soya
in MP

Year Percentage 233826742002-0387 359646532003-0477 258937602004-0567 417048142005-0687 469647852006-0798 (Figures in thousand tonnes) (Source: MP government )

Does this always lead to profits for the farmer?

In Sehore district, which is well-known as a basket for the finest varieties of wheat and soya, the farmers were running as it were between the devil and deep sea.

They had taken a beating from the recent government announcement of Rs 100 bonus for wheat farmers, to be paid by traders along with the Rs 1,000 minimum support price.

Traders were prompt to move to neighbouring Rajasthan to buy cheaper wheat leaving farmers in Madhya Pradesh without buyers.

Bhagirath Verma of Kankarkheda, Ramesh Parmar of Jamli and Gajraj Singh of Farad village have one thing in common. They all are soya and wheat farmers and unanimous in reviling the Madhya Pradesh government and Sehore district mandi officials for offering them Rs 100 as bonus on per quintal wheat sold. The farmers here are now ready for some distress selling at an e-choupal created by ITC Limited, since they have already lost four days and each of them have covered an average distance of 25 km.

"It would be difficult for me to go back home with 45 quintal of mill-quality wheat. I have sold out at Rs 1,101 per quintal against the mandi price of Rs 1,100," Ramesh Parmar said, adding: "The ITC will not purchase mill variety from tomorrow."

A placard at ITC's Rafeeqganj (in Sehore district) procurement centre says