The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Coimbatore News : ‘Market intelligence, a star project of NAIP’

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Sunday, Jun 28, 2009
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

‘Market intelligence, a star project of NAIP’

Staff Reporter

Photo: K. Ananthan.

Project launch: Director of National Agricultural Innovation Project Mruthyunjaya speaking at a workshop in Coimbatore on Saturday. The Vice-Chancellor of the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, P. Murugesa Boopathi (third right), is in the picture. —

COIMBATORE: The project on market intelligence titled “Establishing and Networking of Agricultural Market Intelligence Centres in India” is one of the star projects sanctioned under the National Agricultural Innovation Project (NAIP). This aims at bridging the gap in providing market information support to farmers for enabling them to take better decisions, Mruthyunjaya, National Director, NAIP, said here on Saturday.

He was launching the project at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) in the presence of the principal investigators of the project from different states. The project would enable establishment of Market Intelligence Centres in State Agricultural Universities in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttarkhand.

The Centres in these States, along with the 11 State Agricultural Universities, would make price forecasts and provide market intelligence for paddy, wheat, maize, coarse grains, groundnut, sunflower, gingelly, coconut, red chillies, pepper, cardamom and major vegetables.

The project would be implemented at a total outlay of Rs. 6.19 crore for the next period ending March 2012. Elaborating the project, Mr. Mruthyunjaya said: “Since this is a pioneering attempt, new challenges will emerge. These should be addressed to collectively by the networking institutions.”P. Murugesa Boopathi, Vice-Chancellor, TNAU, said the project would provide major forecasts for major commodities so as to improve the marketing skills of farmers and thereby maximising their profits.

“Earlier Government efforts were more towards increasing farm production. But, now the State Government has shifted its focus to improving marketing not only for the profit of farmers, but also the traders.

Hence, regulated markets have introduced a new facility whereby loans will be extended to traders by pledging their produce at low interest rates. The future plan is to establish mega markets by the State Government similar to the market in Ottanchatiram,” he added. The market intelligence project would be handled by a team of scientists with N. Raveendaran, Project Director of Domestic and Export Market Intelligence Cell of TNAU, as the national consultant.

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