Market watch: Only writ of middlemen runs

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: 'Food insecurity' is the order of the day in Assam. A section of unscrupulous middlemen robs farmers of remunerative prices of their produces, besides bleeding consumers dry.

The price of every single grocery item has been hiked several times in the past one month. The prices of edible oil have been hiked by Rs 40-42 per litre that vary from brand to brand. Masur dal (red dal) is now sold at Rs 81 per kg against Rs 76 per kg earlier, mong dal at Rs 104 per kg against Rs 92 earlier.

Broiler chicken is now sold at Rs 180 per kg now against Rs 130 earlier.

Even prices of medicines have been hiked by 10-20 per cent in the recent past.

Take the plight of farmers. They're selling their produces like pumpkin, tomato, brinjal, cucumber etc., at throwaway prices at the sources to middlemen who sell them at exorbitant prices in cities and towns. Barring the middlemen, neither the farmers nor the consumers are benefited in this practice.

Talking to The Sentinel, Radheshyam, a retailer of the Beltola area in Guwahati said, "We see prices going up when we go to the wholesale market, weekly. We're not feeling cozy to run business when prices go up frequently. The consumers have to bear the brunt."

Imtiaz Ali, a retailer of broiler chicken at Ganeshguri, said, "Wholesalers hike broiler chicken prices almost after every two days. We're selling broiler chicken at Rs 180 per kg now against Rs 130 earlier. We've no way out but to stop business. We find it very difficult to face the consumers."

The plight of farmers is even worse. Khagen Hazarika and Ananta Das of Sonitpur district cultivated pumpkin in a vast area. However, they've to sell pumpkin at Rs 5 per piece to middlemen as they don't have the wherewithal to take their produces to the market. Strangely enough, the pumpkins are sold at Rs 30/40 per kg in the market.

Sambhu Das cultivated watermelon by taking KCC (Kishan Credit Card) loan and loan from private parties. However, he's not in a position to repay the loan, let alone making profit. He gets only Rs 5/6 per kg of watermelon from the middlemen.

This is a long-standing problem in the State. And the ailment lies in the lack of any mechanism with the government to check the menace of famers and frequent hikes in prices. Had there been a system of MSP (Minimum Support Price) for vegetables, the middlemen wouldn't have been able to rob the farmers of remunerative prices. Does the government have anything tangible in mind to check it, or will it continue to be a mute spectator?

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