Agriculture department to operate 2,000 Onam markets this year

The Agriculture department and agencies under it will operate 2,000 Onam markets from September 1 to 4, Agriculture Minister P. Prasad said here on Saturday.

As many as 1,076 markets will be directly run by the department while the Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK), and the Kerala State Horticultural Products Development Corporation (Horticorp) will run 160 and 764 markets each.

The government agencies will procure vegetables and fruits from farmers at 10% higher cost and sell it at 30% discount to the public. This is meant to ensure a fair price to farmers while ensuring affordable prices to the public, Mr. Prasad said.

Vegetables cultivated using good agricultural practices (GAP) and organic methods will be procured at 20% higher cost and sold at 10% discount. The State government has decided to spend ₹13 crore on market intervention during Onam, the Minister said.

Action plan

The Agriculture department is also devising action plan for the procurement of vegetables produced in the State. Horticorp has already launched measures for procuring potato and shallots from other States, he said. “The government is making arrangements with farmer producer organisations (FPO) and similar agencies in other States, bypassing wholesale dealers, to ensure a better price for us,” he said.