Govt to Establish MNI to Boost Inter-Mandi and Inter-State Trade of Agricultural Produce

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has decided to introduce the concept of  ‘Market Yard of National Importance’ in six states, one of which is Odisha. This initiative aims to facilitate the smooth and uninterrupted trade of agricultural produce between different mandis and states.

On Monday, an official source announced that the implementation of Market Yard of National Importance (MNI) will take place in Odisha, along with five other Indian states, namely Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, and Bihar. 

This decision was made during the first meeting of the expert committee in Bengaluru, which aims to facilitate seamless inter-mandi and inter-state trade of agricultural produce by conceptualizing and executing the MNI. 

The committee, which includes Mr. Sanjeeb Kumar Chadha, the Principal Secretary of the Cooperation Department and Member Secretary of the OSAM Board, has been tasked with suggesting a framework for the MNI's implementation.

The Indian government has undertaken several measures to provide sustainable benefits to farming communities. The development of the agriculture sector is facilitated through diverse programs and schemes, which are implemented in a decentralized manner. This allows state governments to tailor their initiatives to their specific needs and formulate and execute suitable projects accordingly.

The Indian Ministry of Agriculture & Farmer’s Welfare Department, specifically the Agricultural Marketing Division, has established an Expert Committee. The committee's primary objective is to facilitate effortless trade of agricultural produce between mandis (wholesale markets) and states by developing and executing Market Yards of National Importance (MNI). One of the committee members is Shri Sanjeev Kumar Chadha, who is the Principal Secretary of the Cooperation Department in the Government of Odisha and also a member of the OSAM Board.

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The MNI Platform aims to create a trading system that is based on an order-driven approach, with a focus on ensuring quality, quantity, and transparent price discovery. This will involve incorporating basic risk management principles and integrating logistics into the process.

The goal is to expand the buyer base across different districts and states, which can be achieved by standardizing lot sizes, quality parameters, assaying, and market rules, with the flexibility to change according to location and season. By implementing a transparent price discovery mechanism and enabling an integrated delivery/logistics model, the platform will facilitate the efficient transfer of farmers' produce to buyers located both within and outside of their districts.

To enable trading between states, it is important to enhance the process of assaying commodities. This will allow traders from faraway places to make well-informed decisions based on the assayed parameters provided on the platform and submit their bids. An automated assaying process that seamlessly transfers results to the electronic platform for display is crucial, especially during peak seasons when the volume of arrivals is high. The appointment of accredited third-party assayers will also facilitate trading on the MNI platform.

After the meeting, the Principal Secretary, Mr. Chadha, announced that the implementation of the Market Yard Networking Initiative (MNI) would begin in the state of Odisha in the first phase, focusing on market yards for Cotton, Maize, Ginger, and Chilly.

-With inputs from Orrisa Post 

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