Govt’s plan to control vegetable prices: New urban farming clusters to boost supply

According to a source, the scheme is expected to benefit over 2 lakh farmers near big cities and aimed at providing remunerative prices to them while curbing the role of middlemen. It also aims to ensure uninterrupted supply of fresh vegetables at reasonable prices to consumers, the source said.

The scheme will engage Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and cooperative bodies to control volatility in prices and supply of tomato, onion and potato. When there is glut in the market, the crop does not fetch a good price for farmers, and during shortage, consumers feel the heat of price rise, the source said.

Data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) Monday showed that the food inflation rate slipped to a 13-month low of 5.42% in July, from 9.36% in June. Food inflation has hovered between 8-9% during the last eight months as prices of vegetables, cereals and pulses have stayed consistently elevated. Among food items, the inflation rate of vegetables eased to 6.83% in July from 29.32%.

In her Budget speech on July 23, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had proposed setting up vegetable clusters near big cities for ramping up production and supply chains. “Large-scale clusters for vegetable production will be developed closer to major consumption centres. We will promote Farmer Producer Organisations, cooperatives and start-ups for vegetable supply chains including for collection, storage, and marketing,” Sitharaman had said.

A source said the clusters, to be developed in partnership with implementation agencies from private sector, FPS and cooperative bodies for fresh vegetables, would be set up in a radius of 50 km from cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad among others. Consumers can buy vegetables in their locality from retail shops and vending trucks/vans.

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Under the scheme, support will be provided to select implementing agencies, decentralised cold storage facilities, procurement of vending trucks/vans and for fruit and vegetable processing, a source said. The scheme will have a provision to support the agencies to set up at least 10 kiosks/retail outlets at 10 strategic locations in residential areas like apartment complexes, societies and colonies.