Delisting agri commodities faces opposition

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s proposal to delist fruits and vegetables from the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) Act, allowing farmers to sell these through the open market, has been opposed by the National Horticulture Board (NHB), a registered society under the ministry of agriculture.

The idea behind allowing such sales outside the APMC yards was to remove middlemen from the operation, and the effect of mandi taxes and other levies, thus cutting the price to the buyer.  “The APMC Act has been in place for over 50 years. We have been repeatedly saying that APMC is a state subject and therefore, the Centre cannot impose its decision,” said a senior NHB official. Bihar and Kerala have scrapped the APMC Act but this hasn’t brought down prices there, says the NHB. In fact, some fruits are costlier in Patna than in Mumbai.

“APMC also offers support to farmers. A comprehensive market yard helps farmers in fair price discovery of their produce, which is impossible outside mandis. And, bulk buyers always seek to purchase from mandis, rather than procuring commodities directly from farmers in small quantities. Hence, the APMC Act is not always negative,” said N C Mistry, additional managing director of NHB.Other critics of the government move say what is needed is to improve post-harvest management, to control wastage, presently estimated at not below 25 per cent of production.

Sanjay Bhujbal, an arhatiya (middleman) for vegetables at the Vashi APMC in navi Mumbai, said: “APMC is needed for all classes of farmers. While arhatiyas provide finance and assurance of a fair price for agriculture produce, they also provide funds to farmers in dire need. Small farmers cannot afford to hire a vehicle and bring their produce for direct selling; arhatiyas bring these to APMC.”

Retail chains dealing in fresh produce are for the change. “An APMC yard is an important place for small vendors to sell their produce. However, the Act must allow free flow of goods across the country. The farmer must have the right to decide the buyer of his produce. The APMC yard must be made modern, with excellent handing facility, ripening and cold chambers,” said K Radhakrishnan, director, Freskins, a retail chain.

Price movement (Rs /kg)
Particulars	20-Jun	26-Jun	Variations (%)
Lady’s finger	32	36	12.5
Bottle guard	18	22	22.22
Cauliflower	18	20	11.11
Cucumber	32	34	6.25
Green peas	60	62	3.33
Coriander (per bundle)	34	35	2.94
Menthi (per bundle)	22	25	13.63
Source: Agricultural Produce Market Committee, Vashi