Andhra Pradesh - Ongole   

Regulated market for sale of subabul soon: Minister

– Photo: Srinivas_Kommuri

Minister for marketing Mareppa at a rytu bazaar in Ongole on Thursday.

ONGOLE: The government is taking steps on a war footing to create regulated market for sale of subabul through legislation.

Speaking to newspersons here today, the Minister for Marketing, Mareppa said that the legislation would help check illegal purchases made outside market yards and help farmers get fair price and prompt payment.

He said that the government has sanctioned Rs. 25 lakh each to agricultural market committee as revolving fund to make prompt payment to subabul farmers. The amount would be increased to the market committees on the basis of their purchases, he added.

Mr. Mareppa said that the government would extend the tenure of 199 agricultural market committee chairmen by six months. Efforts are being made to include the market committee chairmen in the protocol list and give them due recognition.

The minister said that terminal markets would be developed at Tirupati, Hyderabad and Guntur at a cost of Rs. 390 crore with infrastructure at international level. The markets would have food processing units, cold storage facilities, weigh bridges etc for sale of items like mirchi at Guntur.

Saying that the market committees had to pay one per cent of the cess collected from farmers as income tax, he said that the Chief Minister is discussing with Income Tax Department to do away with this practice. The Chief Minister would persuade the Income Tax Department to return the amount thus collected till now so that market committees would use the fund for improving facilities for farmers.

Orders would be issued soon to market committees to fill up vacant posts through outsourcing. The wage paid to security guards in 316 market yards would be increased from the present Rs. 2,900 to Rs. 3,900 a month.

The minister later visited rytu bazars at Kothapatnam bus stand and Lawyerpet here and inquired about vegetable prices. He expressed satisfaction that the prices are within the reach of consumers.

He said the government is proposing to start mobile markets to supply vegetables to consumers at their doorsteps, increase sales and thus provide better price to farmers.

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Regulated market for sale of subabul soon: Minister

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