The Spices Board of India on Saturday held e-auction of small cardamom at the Puttady Spice Park, where the operations had been temporarily suspended for technical maintenance works.
Though the maintenance works are yet to be completed, one e-auction will be held every week at the Spices Park till the work is over, said A. Jayatilak, chairman, Spices Board of India.
He said there was no truth in rumours that e-auction was completely shifted to Bodinayakanur in Tamil Nadu. “The decision to hold e-auction every week is to dispel such rumours,” he said. The maintenance work and technical upgrade are progressing at a fast pace and the e-auction will be restored to its full strength once the work was over.
The Spices Board has conducted test trials for the last two weeks to make e-auction error-free. At the Puttady facility, the e-auctions were held through 70 terminals. As the maintenance got under way, cardamom e-auctions were temporarily shifted to the auction centre at Bodinayakanur to prevent disruption of the trade and help farmers.