Farmers Movement Archive

Deregulated APMCs rule in Maharashtra

MUMBAI: Four years after Maharashtra removed fruits and vegetables from the purview of of its Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMCs), private markets still play a small role in the trade of agricultural produce. For 2019-20, the turnover of APMCs was 479% higher than the turnover of private markets and those holding private licenses to buy directly from farmers. In 2019-20, the turnover of the state’s 305 APMCs was Rs 48,429 crores. The turnover of its 60 private markets and 1165 direct marketing licenses was Rs 8,360 crores. This means the business of APMCs was almost six times higher and the gap between the two was as high as Rs 40,069 crore. This reveals that in Maharashtra, at least, the deregulation of APMCs did not lead to farmers switching over en-masse to private markets. Indeed, the Maharashtra experience does not support the logic behind the Centre’s new farm legislation on APMCs: that monopolistic mandis are blocking private markets and depriving farmers of choices. The bulk of crops don’t even reach markets but are sold at the village level to traders or dealers, according to NSSO data. However, when it comes to markets, the APMCs are still the preferred destination for farmers in Maharashtra. Maharashtra was among the first states to adopt the Model APMC Act of 2003, laying the ground for agricultural marketing reforms. By 2016, when the BJP-Sena government was in power, it delisted fruits and vegetables from the purview of APMCs. In 2018, during the same regime, the state assembly passed a bill to remove all agricultural produce from the purview of APMCs but the bill was defeated in the upper house. The deregulation of APMCs during the BJP-Sena’s tenure had political undertones since bulk of them are controlled by the NCP and Congress. Data shows that the turnover of the state’s APMCs actually grew the year after they were deregulated. In 2016-17, the turnover was Rs 48,659 crore. In 2017, it rose to Rs 51,003 crore. By 2019-20, the turnover was Rs 48,429 crore. This means that four years after fruits and vegetables were delisted from APMCs in the state, their turnover declined by only 4%. However, APMC arrivals declined during this period from 2,158 lakh quintals to 1,638 lakh quintals during the same period. Private and direct marketing licenses APMC Number Turnover (Crores) Turnover(Crores) 2015-16 274 4,674 46,644 2019-20 1,225 8,360 48,429.5 Gap between private and direct licenses versus APMC turnover: Rs 40,069 crore (479%)Onion and soyabean farmer Khandu Baba Wakchaure from Akole prefers to sell his crop at an APMC. “Private markets sometimes don’t pay on time or we get cheated on price. Also, at an APMC, you can sell a range of goods at the same place,” he says. The APMCs provide a benchmark for pricing and provide crucial infrastructure like weigh bridges and labour for lifting produce. “APMCs were formed to protect farmers from being cheated by traders. They should be reformed, not weakened,” says Ajit Navale from the Kisan Sabha. “APMCs are also not supposed to price produce below the MSP so that helps support the MSP rate,” says Navale. APMC arrivals and turnover in Maharashtra Year (Oct-Sept) Arrivals (Lakh quintals) Turnover (Crores) 2016-17 2,158.8 48,659.9 2017-18 1,999.4 51,003 2018-19 1,808.8 45,066 2019-20 (till sept 25) 1,638.5 48,429.5 Some, like economist R Ramakumar question whether the deregulation of APMCs necessarily results in the growth of private markets. “The experience of Bihar, Kerala and Maharashtra do not inspire confidence in this respect. Bihar annulled the APMC Act in 2006. Kerala never had an APMC Act. Where are the private investments in these States? Most big corporate retail firms purchase their food items directly from APMC markets, and not directly from farmers,” he says the TISS professor.

The Times of India

2020-10-13

India