Finance Research Group

IGIDR-NCDEX roundtable on Building national agricultural markets: Issues and challenges

3rd March, 2016
Marigold Hall, IHC, Delhi

In July 2015, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) earmarked an amount of Rs.200 crore to the Central Sector Scheme for the Promotion of National Agricultural Market through the Agri-Tech Infrastructure Fund. The scheme seeks to integrate 585 regulated markets in the country through a common e-platform between 2015-16 to 2017-18. The integration can help overcome multiple challenges facing Indian agriculture which include restrictive participation in agricultural marketing, multiple levy of mandi fees, poor quality of infrastructure, information asymmetry of quantity and prices and so on. The e-market platform can promote free flow of agricultural commodity trade and ensure better prices and greater freedom of choice to farmers.

The scheme is a step in the right direction. However for its successful implementation, several challenges need to be met. The objective of this roundtable is to focus on:

  1. What is the need for a national agricultural market? How does the empirical evidence guide us about policy interventions for improving market efficiency?
  2. How was the Karnataka model implemented? What were the policy and political economy challenges? What are the implications for national agri- cultural markets?
  3. How can a better warehousing infrastructure and regulation promote the development of national agricultural markets?
  4. What are the ground-level challenges in integrating these markets? How can they be met?

Agenda

10:00 - 10:05 Introduction
Susan Thomas, IGIDR Finance Reasearch Group
10:05 - 10:30 The Karnataka model: Policy reforms and implementation [presentation]
R Ramaseshan, ReMS
10:35 - 11:00 The Karnataka experience: Implications for unified agricultural markets [presentation]
Nidhi Aggarwal, Sudha Narayanan, IGIDR
11:05 - 11:30 Commodity exchanges: International experience [presentation]
Sudha Narayanan, IGIDR
11:35 - 12:00 Building better warehouse infrastructure and regulations [presentation]
Anirudh Burman, Macro/Finance Group, NIPFP
12:00 - 13:00 Panel discussion
Ashok Gulati, ICRIER
Ajay Vir Jakhar, Bharat Krishak Samaj
GC Chaturvedi, WDRA
Shri Rajiv, NABARD
Samir Shah, NCDEX
13:00 - 14:00 Lunch