-DNA
The state government’s proposal to let farmers circumvent the agriculture produce market committees and sell their yield directly to consumers — which essentially means whoever they wish to sell it to — needs to be welcomed even by those of us in the cities who may not be conversant with agricultural practices.
While the middlemen who control the APMCs are bound to raise howls of protest about the attempt to overturn a ‘well-set’ structure, if not ‘sell out’ to big business, the fact remains that this ‘traditional’ mechanism has long since ceased to work for either the farmer or the consumer. While food prices scale new highs almost every month, those who slog to produce this food aren’t getting to see any of the resultant prosperity. Haven’t we often witnessed the sorry spectacle of farmers letting their produce rot because prices are not remunerative while consumers elsewhere in the country pay through their noses for the very same necessities?
For too long have we accepted this situation as our lot. With the entry of big corporations in the retail business, however, options are opening up not just for the consumer, but also for the producer. If the urban consumer is happy to benefit from these large retail chains, why must the farmer, who still accounts for a massive chunk of our economy and without whose labours we would become a basket case, not do likewise?
The middlemen may complain about lakhs of workers suddenly finding themselves without work, but many of them will be absorbed in the organised sector and, perhaps, be paid and trained better as well. As for the APMCs, they will need to modernise and compete or perish. Where is the injustice in that?