Farmers in India are moving online gradually, says reports ahead of New Year. Moreover, it’s great news to rejoice in 2020. This year is expected to be a bright year for the farmers, farming and Rural India as compared to the last year where many government schemes were stuck due to different problems.
There are a good number of farmers who have set an example by adopting the online move and earned a big amount by directly selling their products through the online platforms and Farmer’s Produce Company (FPC). As per reports, FPCs in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab to have helped farmers take advantage of online trade that leaves out middlemen and earn the higher value of their produce.
Deepak Chauhan, a farmer in Sultanpur village of Aurangabad’s district has six acres of land and he plans to buy an acre more. Chauhan is buoyed by the 20 percent earnings he got additionally by selling his products online directly to Swarup Satkari FPC, farmers produce company (FPC).
Another farmer is Swarup Sarkari, from one of the largest FPCs in Sultanpur who has registered around 400 farmers in the region and helps them trade maize, soybean, pulses, and other agricultural commodities directly to bulk dealers and corporate consumers. There are more than 300 FPCs registered across Maharashtra that help farmers of all incomes sell their produce online.
However, a number of FPCs have taken membership of the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) to take reference of futures price and make selling decisions.
“We have successfully sold maize and soybean through online platforms through futures and spot auctions. Earlier, we used to sell our products in distress at the time of harvesting to pay lenders spontaneously. But, our FPC has helped us realize higher. This year alone, we have successfully earned 20 percent more profits by selling online,” said Chauhan.
Farmers like Chauhan, Swarup Satkari have avoided distress sale and earned higher than used to, as FPCs and other online partners help them avail funds to pay lenders and sell their produce on highs.
As per reports, warehousing companies like Star Agriwarehousing & Collateral management Ltd (Star Agri) and National Collateral Management Services Ltd (NCML) have also launched their online commodity trading platforms auction agricultural commodities of their clients to facilitate fetching higher prices. While Star Agri has launched Agra bazaar dot com, NCML has introduced the market yard dot com to facilitate its clients to sell their produce. Another warehousing company National Bulk Handling Corporation (NBHC) is planning to introduce the online trading platform to facilitate its clients rule out commission agents and earn higher by selling agricultural products directly to bulk consumers.
Moreover, the online platforms by warehousing service providers are different from that of the electronic National Agriculture Market (eNAM), a Union government initiative.
While eNAM is a mandi-linked service, the platforms developed by warehousing companies are useful for post-mandi services for their clients who deposit goods in these warehouses either for future sale or avail funding from banks and financial institutions to avoid distress sale.
