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Karnataka APMC members to go on all-India study tour

BANGALORE: After the Karnataka farmers’ China study tour, it is now the turn of the members of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMCs) in the State to go on an all-India study tour.

Karnataka Minister for Agricultural Marketing and Sugar Shivaraj S. Thangadagi on Thursday announced that he had cleared a proposal to this effect and the Government Order would be issued shortly.

He was speaking at the valedictory of the two-day meet of APMC presidents, vice-presidents and officials here. The meet was organised by the Agriculture Marketing Department to discuss the challenges of maintaining the native agriculture and local market in the midst of economic changes caused by globalisation and privatisation.

With the tour proposal being cleared, presidents, vice-presidents and members of over 160 APMCs across the State will undertake the all-India tour.

“They will study different practices adopted by APMCs across the country and it will not be a jaunt,” Mr. Thangadagi said.

Officials of the department said the tour expenditure would have to be borne by the respective APMCs.

Speaking about the outcome of the meet, Mr. Thangadagi said the recommendations of the meet would be placed before the government.

A plan of action would be chalked out based on these recommendations, he said. Conferences of this kind, the Minister said, would bring the administration closer to farmers and it was necessary to hold similar meets annually.

The last of such meet was held during the Ramakrishna Hegde government, he recalled.

The meet witnessed discussions on various issues that focussed on getting fair price for farm produce and technical sessions by experts suggesting improvements in marketing techniques.

In his presentation, Gopala Nayak, professor, IIAM, Bangalore, suggested setting up of a national spot exchange for electronic trading of farm produces.

“Even a marginal farmer can get good price under this scheme,” Prof. Nayak said.

Tourism Minister G. Janardhan Reddy and Sports and Youth Services Minister Goolihatti D. Shekhar were present.

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