The Karnataka Agriculture Price Commission has proposed that the government commence online trading of arecanut to ensure scientific and remunerative price for the produce.
Chairperson of the commission T.N. Prakash Kammaradi told The Hindu that the prices of copra got stabilised after the government introduced online trading through Rashtriya e-Market Services.
In the wake of sharp fluctuations in arecanut prices in the recent times, growers and traders have strongly felt that there was a need to introduce online trading to stabilise the price, he said.
It may be mentioned here that the price of red variety of arecanut, which was traded at Rs. 410 a kg in first week of June, was raised to Rs. 830 a kg by the first week of July. In a span of 10 days, there was a sudden slump in the price and by second week of July, arecanut was traded at Rs. 700 a kg.
The commission had convened a meeting of arecanut growers, representatives of traders’ organisations and members of cooperative marketing societies of arecanut growers in Shimoga on Friday to discuss the issue.
The commission will hold similar meetings in Mangalore and Sirsi also, he said.
Mr. Kammaradi said the reasons for the fluctuation in arecanut price need to be studied. There was no information on the demand and supply of arecanut. It is unfortunate that a major chunk of the trading of arecanut takes place outside the purview of the Agriculture Produces Marketing Committee.
He said many unauthorised traders purchase the produce from farmers at their doorstep. Such traders adopt unfair trade practices resulting in loss for farmers. The unauthorised trading of arecanut has also resulted in loss of revenue for the government as these traders do not pay market cess and value added tax. It is necessary to stop unauthorised trading of arecanut. The arecanut market needs to be streamlined, he said. Mr. Kammaradi said online trading will address these problems. A clear picture on the demand and supply of arecanut will emerge after the introduction of online trading. Online trading would remove the existing market barriers and competitive prices would be quoted for the produce. The payment would be made directly to the bank accounts of farmers, he said.
Separate BoardHe stressed the need to establish a separate board for arecanut on the model of the Coffee Board and Spices Board. The establishment of a separate Board would boost study and research on arecanut and explore new markets for the produce, he added.
