Maharashtra APMCs: Current Status and Substitute Marketing

Maharashtra APMCs: Current Status and Substitute Marketing Shivaang Sharma In India, the marketing of agricultural produce is regulated by Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation) Act 1966, which provides for the constitution of market committees by state government, notification of agricultural commodities as also place of marketing of agricultural produce. Hence, the marketing of notified agricultural produce in areas other than notified areas is illegal. The areas so designed by the state government are known as Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) markets or Mandies. The age old monopoly of wholesale markets under the government’s regulation have essentially curbed the advancement of a competitive marketing system in the country, providing provision of help to farmers in direct marketing, organizing retailing, smooth supply of raw materials to industries specialising in agro processing and the adoption of an innovative marketing technologies and systems. The objectives of this report are to: Examine the current status of state agricultural markets and efforts to strengthen their marketing infrastructure. Examine the progress made by alternative marketing channels such as Shetkari Bazaars and Contract farming. Agricultural markets in the country are established (Table 1) and regulated under each state’s APMC acts. The entire physical area within each state is separated and affirmed to be a market area where Market Committees manage the market yards which themselves are established by the individual state governments. When a specific location within the state is confirmed as a market area, it automatically comes within the jurisdiction of the state’s appointed market committee. Within this area only persons who have been granted licence for operating within the region may be free to engage in wholesale marketing activities. These legally established monopolies of wholesale markets which are government regulated have essentially curbed the growth of a more advanced competitive system of agrarian marketing within the realm of each state. Therefore an efficient system of agricultural marketing is much needed for the expansion of the agrarian part of the economy since it further l eads to incentives and mediums for increased agricultural and allied sectors production thereby helping subsistence farmers to commercialise themselves and their businesses more effectively. Table 1: Division wise distribution of APMC main market and sub market yards in Maharashtra: Source: Director of Marketing (DOM), Pune. As per the policy of Government of Maharashtra, produce of agriculture, whether processed or not, including horticulture, animal husbandry, pisciculture and produce from forests are defined as agricultural produce. From time to time, the agricultural produce of the area are notified as agricultural produce for marketing in designated market place by the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection. In this backdrop, GOI constituted an expert committee on strengthening and developing of Agriculture marketing in December 2000, which was followed by constitution of an inter ministerial task force to review the parent system of Agricultural marketing in the country and to recommend measures to make the system more efficient. The committee in its report of June 2001 and Task force in its report of May 2002 made a number of recommendations not only to improve the existing regulated marketing network but also to promote a parallel marketing network in the private and cooperative sector. These recommendations included: analysing the requirements to provide and strengthen existing marketing infrastructure, promote competitive alternative agricultural marketing infrastructure through involvement of private and cooperative sector, provide infrastructure facilities for grading, standardization and quality certification of agricultural produce and to provide training for farmers, entrepreneurs and market functionaries on agricultural marketing. Consequent upon this development, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperation, GOI launched a credit linked back ended capital investment subsidy scheme for development/Strengthening of Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure, Grading and Standardization (AMIGS) with effect from 20th October 2004 with the view to creating: Additional Agricultural Marketing infrastructure Strengthening existing agricultural marketing infrastructure Promoting competitive alternative agricultural marketing infrastructure through the involvement of private and cooperative sectors. Since the scheme was linked to market reforms, the states which have amended the APMC Act to include private participation and contract farming are now eligible for availing the benefit of subsidy under the scheme. The state of Maharashtra being one of the leading states to adopt the new policy of Union government has amended its APMC act and the scheme is in operation since 5th September 2006. Some aspects of this scheme include: Grain units – godown, drying yard, site development and machinery; Milk unit- bulk coolers, combine harvesters and auction sheds. Table 2: Geographical coverage of APMCs in Maharashtra: Source: Director of Marketing (DOM), Pune. Considering the geographical coverage of APMCs within the state (Table 2); as of 31st March 2011, 188 proposals having a financial outlay of Rs. 22,671.32 Lakh, bank loan of Rs. 14,191.68 Lakh and eligible subsidy of Rs. 4,692.61 Lakh were received from different banks by NABARD, Maharashtra Regional Office, Pune. In order to review the processes implemented by the APMCS of Maharashtra, a detailed study was conducted by NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Development). Progressing to the second objective of this report, we begin by analysing the alternative popular marketing channel which is growing in conjunction with the conventional APMC set up i.e. Shetkari Bazars. The Farmer’s Market (Shetkari Bazar) is an idea of marketing the agrarian produce directly to consumers by producers (farmers). By excluding the intermediaries who in the model appear to be an inflationary force, the agrarian produce reaches its destination in good condition due to minimal in between handlers. As a result, this method leads to better price realization for the farmers and also quality produce reaches the consumers at far lower lower price levels. This format of conducting agricultural marketing has previously been enforced in Andhra Pradesh (which was called Raithu Bazar). This format is meant to assist small scale farmer producers (with fewer quantities of fragile vegetables and fruits) to secure better price levels thereby escaping commercial exploitation in the market yard by Dalals. Since 2nd July 2002, as per the government resolution No. APMC-1099/PC.305/11-c, Govt. of Maharashtra has decided to set up Shetkari Bazars in the state and MSAMB has been appointed as nodal agency for implementing this scheme. The produce brought by farmers will not be levied cess at the Shetkari bazaars in all districts and key taluka places by APMCs from the area. As per this resolution, a state level committee is setup under the chairmanship of Hon. Minister of Marketing, Govt. of Maharashtra, for implementing and monitoring of this scheme. The district level committees are also set up under the chairpersonship of respective district collectors with the following objectives4: To help farmers to get reasonable rates for their produce; To benefit consumers by giving them fresh produce at reasonable prices; Immediate value realization of the produce to farmers without any deductions; To provide produce in appropriate weights and measures to consumers; To being producers and consumers together to avoid chain of middlemen. The MSAMB has planned setting up of 100 Shetkari Bazars in the state by the next 5 years. The cost of setting up a single bazaar is estimated to be around 20 25 Lakh. Hence, MSAMB is providing loan to the maximum extent of 10 Lakh per beneficiary. Interest is subsidized up to 50% of the total loan. The rate of interest for the loan is 5% p.p. with 10 years payback period. To avail this loan, the APMC has to submit the proposal to the MSAMB along with the detailed plan and estimates and get prior approval for the same before beginning construction. There have been some compelling success stories in the realm of Contract farming which have transformed the fortunes of farmers belonging to specific regions of Maharashtra. Manchar village in Pune district of Maharashtra is famous for its high quality potato crops. Pepsico company recently began buying the produce of over 6000 acres of land in the area. The key elements of Pepsico’s success are its unique partnership with local agencies, execution of technology transfer through well trained extension personnel, supply of agricultural implements free of cost, regular and timely payment to farmers and the maintenance of a perfect logistic system. This is especially beneficial considering the amount of PHL minimised and the time saved by farmers who otherwise would need to transport their precious crops to the APMC market yard at the daily risk of losing some of their crops to handling, weather and potential road accidents. Recently, Sanghar Exports, Pune, also entered into contract farming of banana with the farmers in Pune (Phoolgaon) and Solapur. In this case however, the contract is only for the purchase of the agricultural produce. In conclusion, owing to the nature of the APMC marketing pipeline, inflationary practices have become inescapably endemic within the APMC marketing apparatus which can only be removed by a two-fold method. Firstly promotion and financing of alternative marketing channels such as Shetkari Bazaars, Contract farming and direct marketing must be followed. Secondly, by reducing the number of middlemen currently included within the APMC marketing process (such as dalals, auctioneers etc) along with increasing the number of licenses granted to more farmers and dalal shops from operating within the market yard shall lead to considerably reduced auction price rates since it inevitably leads to greater supply and more competitive bidding at the market auction yards at the market yards. Furthermore, there exists a dire need to strengthen existing marketing infrastructure, promote competitive alternative agricultural marketing infrastructure through involvement of private and cooperative sector, promote direct marketing and direct integration of processing units with produces, supply infrastructure resources meant to be utilised for standardization, grading and quality certification of agrarian goods, to introduce negotiable warehousing receipt system, also to promote pledge financing, forward and future markets and to create awareness and provide training to farmers, entrepreneurs and market functionaries on agricultural marketing. Hence, although these APMCs have facilitated the provision of a variety of services and forward linkages to farmers for long time after the opening up of Indian economy in late nineties, but, the age old practices and procedures incorporated within their functioning have invited criticism from all quarters in recent past. Since their incorporation, farmers have lost confidence in APMCs due to number of malpractices like lack of transparency, high charges levied by commission agents, wrong weightments and restriction of marketing licences for farmers and auctioneers alike (which curtails supply thereby exacerbating food price inflation). References and Bibliography: www.msamb.com www.nabard.org www.agmarknet.in http://www.msamb.com/schemes/default.htm All table sources: Maharashtra State Agricultural Marketing Board Director Marketing, GOM, Pune.

The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn :: essays research papers

E.M. Forster makes a bold statement when he declares that he would rather betray his country than betray his friend. Forster takes a very moral stand on the issue and states that a friendship is often more important than a government's actions or society's beliefs. His opinion regarding the value of friendship is a common theme shared by many authors throughout history, including Mark Twain, and Alexandre Dumas.Mark Twain's classic novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, describes a young boy torn between what he feels his country and society expect of him and what his heart tells him is right. Society believes that slaves should be treated as property; Huck, who had befriended a runaway slave, sees Jim as a person, not property. In the end, Huck Finn decides that he would rather disobey society's teachings about slavery, than betray his friend by returning him to his previous condition of servitude.Further reiterating Forster's conception of the proper order of one's loyalty is a product of English folklore, Robin Hood. According to legend, Robin Hood robbed from the rich and gave to the poor in an effort to bring happiness to the peasants of Nottingham in an otherwise dreary time under the tyrannical rule of Prince John. A childhood friend of Robin, Maid Marion places her friendship with Robin Hood above loyalty to the crown. She has numerous opportunities to betray Robin Hood, but she does not. She sees the good he is doing for the land and the lone resistance he and his band of Merry Men provide against the evil Sheriff. Had she been loyal to her country, Robin Hood would have never been successful against the Sheriff of Nottingham and the citizens of her kingdom would have had to endure even greater injustices. Sharing many of the same principles Robin Hood embodies is Alexandre Dumas's The Three Musketeers. The famous trio of noblemen battle against the villainy of the Court of King Louis XIII. D'Artagnan, Athos, Porthos and Aramis fight to preserve the honor of their Queen, Anne of Austria, against the Cardinal Richelieu. Their famous motto " All for one and one for all!" illustrates the value they place on their friendship.

How economically smart war is Essay

War has been a part of the lives of people since history began. People have battled over different things, ranging from roaming rounds in prehistoric times to control of the world in present day. This essay will analyze how economically smart war is, specifically World War I, from the view of the United States of America. The US entered World War I in 1917; however, we entered the economic war long before that. The US had been supplying Europe with weapons, bullets, and other equipment into the war. The term mobilizing is used in warfare, but our economy was getting a boost without the US sending any soldiers out of the country. These products were inelastic, meaning that the consumers of the goods were unresponsive in change in price. For the US, this meant that they could set prices at extreme prices and the countries that could not make these goods themselves or get from another source had to buy the goods at these extreme prices. This created an economic boom for 44 months from 1914-1918. This also eased the process of the US joining the war. It was not as economically straining to mobilize for war because some facilities that would be used for the war were already functioning close to the production possibilities curve. This means that the facilities were functioning at maximum efficiency. During this time period, the unemployment rate went from 7.9% to 1.4%, showing that as soldiers left to go overseas, jobs opened up on the home front. However, the war had to be paid for somehow, and this somehow came on the form of taxes and bonds. Takes were raised from anywhere from 20%- 60%. War bonds were bought by citizens and were promised to be repaid with interest after the war. However this also would lead to the downfall in the Great Depression, as the government would have no money left to pay the population back with. In my opinion, war has a greater value than the debts it creates. It is about â€Å"flexing your military muscles† to make sure order is kept in the world. Some of the things that soldier’s lives are lost for are found many years later in the forms of our rights and freedoms and do not have a value that can be expressed in dollars and cents. Because these do not have prices, it is a personal opinion weather a war is economically worth the risk. However, I feel that it is worth being able to live the life that I have now than suffer under laws enforce upon our country by the would-be conquers of my homeland.

Blood essays

Blood essays Functions 1. Transportation medium for food and oxygen cells. 2. Transport medium for waste and carbon dioxide from the cells. 3. Movement of hormones, enzymes, immune cells and other chemicals throughout the body. 4. Important in the regulation of body temp. BLOOD Plasma Solutes Proteins Albumins -Originate in hemocytoblasts, found in marrow and lymphatic system -Increase in blood during infection. Grandular - Basophil-Secretes heparin and histamine. (Anticoagulant and inflammatory response) - Eosinophil-Cellular defence, phagocytosis of lg. Pathogenic microorganisms and releases antinflamatory substances in allergic reaction. - Neutrophils-Cellular defence-phagocytosis of sm. Pathogenic microorganism. Agranulocytes - Lymphocytes-Hormonal defence-secretes antibodies involved in immune system response and regulation. - Monocytes-Can migrate out of blood into tissue as a macrophage capable of eating bacteria cellular debris and cancerous cells. -no nucleus, very sm. Biocave disks allow them to squeeze thought tiny areas. -Transports oxygen and carbon dioxide. -Produced in bone marrow (Erythropoiesis) -Short life, no DNA so they cannot divide and replenish. -They are broken down and recycled. -Blood Clotting (When blood is removes they join together. -They have no nucleus and are formed in the Red Bone Marrow. By fragments of very lg. Cel ...

Brief History of the US Federal Income Tax

Brief History of the US Federal Income Tax Money raised through income tax is used to pay for the programs, benefits, and services provided by the US government for the benefit of the people. Essential services such as national defense, food safety inspections, and federal benefit programs including Social Security and Medicare could not exist without the money raised by the federal income tax. While the federal income tax did not become permanent until 1913, taxes, in some form, have been a part of American history since our earliest days as a nation. Evolution of Income Tax in America While taxes paid by American colonists to Great Britain were one of the main reasons for the Declaration of Independence and ultimately the Revolutionary War, Americas Founding Fathers knew that our young country would need taxes for essential items such as roads and especially defense. Providing the framework for taxation, they included procedures for the enactment of tax law legislation in the Constitution. Under Article I, Section 7 of the Constitution, all bills dealing with revenue and taxation must originate in the House of Representatives. Otherwise, they follow the same legislative process as other bills. Before the Constitution   Before final ratification of the Constitution in 1788, the federal government lacked the direct power to raise revenue. Under the Articles of Confederation, money to pay the national debt was paid by the states in proportions to their wealth and at their discretion. One of the goals of the Constitutional Convention was to ensure that the federal government had the power to levy taxes. Since Ratification of the Constitution Even after the ratification of the Constitution, most federal government revenues were generated through tariffs taxes on imported products and excise taxes taxes on the sale or use of specific products or transactions. Excise taxes were considered regressive taxes because people with lower incomes had to pay a higher percentage of their income than did people with higher incomes. The most recognized federal excise taxes still in existence today include those added to the sales of motor fuels, tobacco, and alcohol. There are also excise taxes on activities, such as gambling, tanning or the use of highways by commercial trucks.​ As true with the modern income tax, those early taxes were far from popular among the people.But with the spirit of the American Revolution and independence still running high, some of the people took their dislike of taxes to far higher level. Between 1786 and 1799, three organized rebellions- all protesting various taxes- challenged the authority of the state and federal governments to generate needed revenue. Shays Rebellion from 1786 to 1787 was raised by a group of farmers in objection to what they considered the unfair methods used by state and local tax collectors. The Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 in western Pennsylvania came in protest to what President George Washingtons Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton wrongly considered an innocuous excise tax â€Å"upon spirits distilled within the United States, and for appropriating the same.† Finally, Fries’ Rebellion of 1799 was led by a group of Pennsylvania Dutch farmers opposed to a new federal government tax on houses, land, and slaves. While the farmers owned lots of land and houses, they were far from keen on paying taxes on slaves none of  them owned. Early Income Taxes Came and Went During the Civil War from 1861 to 1865, the government realized that tariffs and excise taxes alone could not generate enough revenue to both run the government and conduct the war against the Confederacy. In 1862, Congress established a limited income tax only on people who made more than $600 but abolished it in 1872 in favor of higher excise taxes on tobacco and alcohol. Congress re-established an income tax in 1894, only to have the Supreme Court declare it unconstitutional in 1895. 16th Amendment Forward In 1913, with the costs of  Ã‚  World War I looming, ratification of the 16th Amendment permanently established the income tax. The 16th  Amendment states: â€Å"The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.† The 16th Amendment gave Congress the power to tax the incomes of all individuals and the profits of all businesses. The income tax enables the federal government to maintain the military, construct roads and bridges, enforce the laws and federal regulations, and carry out other duties and programs.   By 1918, government revenue generated from the income tax exceeded $1 billion for the first time and topped $5 billion by 1920. The introduction of the mandatory withholding tax on employee wages in 1943 increased tax revenue to almost $45 billion by 1945. In 2010, the IRS collected nearly $1.2 trillion through income tax on individuals and another $226 billion from corporations. The Role of Congress in Taxation According to the US Treasury Department, the goal of Congress in enacting tax-related legislation is to balance the need to raise revenue, the desire to be fair to taxpayers, and the desire to influence the way taxpayers save and spend their money.

Professional Development Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Professional Development Plan - Essay Example These included some friends and colleagues, among other people I closely interacted with. While interacting with these people in my life, I realize that it is when I developed an interest in learning about the inner workings of the human mind. This also made me develop a strong interest in helping people. Nonetheless, this is the basis for my counseling experiences. I understand that large number of people today is affected by ill psychological health. Depression has been identified as one of the leading cause of deaths in the world today. For these and other reasons, my passion for Clinical Psychology has grown, and I believe that with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology coupled with my empathy, I can be able to make a bigger difference in lives of people, who might be victims of psychological ill health. My personal goal mainly centers on my personal development. I want to develop myself in various dimensions, and in a manner that will put in a better position to initiate positive chang e in the lives of different people. In order to achieve this, I need to develop for myself a conducive environment and a harmonious state of mind to complete my Masters’ program successfully, as I believe that this is a major part in my personal development. ... In addition, I need to grow my knowledge base in Psychology and learn and develop important skills, which are essential for one to practice Clinical Psychology professionally. Nonetheless, I am working on these personal goals, which I believe will enable me to perform well in my profession as a future clinical psychologist. I strongly envision myself completing my Ph.D. program in Clinical Psychology at Walden University. This will not be an end to my pursuit of knowledge; instead, I view this as another beginning of learning and discovering myself and the people around me, but in a different level. As noted before, I have had a considerably high level of empathy since as I was child. Therefore, with a Ph.D. in Psychology, I hope to become a Clinical Psychologist, and engage in different voluntary work. Although presently I highly participate in volunteer work in the community, I believe that a Ph.D. will help me to help people in a better way, as this will increase my knowledge in t he field. I provide volunteership to different disadvantaged people in the community including the elderly, the homeless, vulnerable children, and those people with mental illness, among others. These are the major people in society that suffer ill psychological health, and I deal with them hoping that I make a positive change in their lives. At this point of my life therefore, I consider an advance in education as important to me, and to my clients, as this will increase the quality of my experience with them. A Ph.D. in Psychology at Walden University is important to me, as this will help me increase my capacity of serving people in the community. Nonetheless, since I have a passion for Clinical Psychology, it is in my best interests

History of Interpretation paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

History of Interpretation paper - Essay Example This is a pointer to the progressive mission which Jesus had. He was not on earth for an instance but to carry out a continuous mission. Knowing that the questioner may have tuned to out to be hypothetical as was seen in Luke 10: 29 where one asked about whom his neighbor was, Jesus gave his answer to the question by posing a personal challenge. He calls on the individuals in the crowd to act in a way which will show that they are saved. In verse 24, Luke gives the condition for getting to eternal life by stating that people will â€Å"struggle to enter† the kingdom. The term agonizomai implies that â€Å"the few† will have to cope with â€Å"the many† for entry through a limited space. The struggle will be compounded by the short duration of time that those seeking to enter will have. Luke goes ahead to talk about the â€Å"narrow door†. In this verse, it may appear as though Luke has lost contrast as he does not talk of the wide gate which is seen in Matthew 7:1. However, this may have been intentionally done to provide a quick answer to the audience about the process of getting into the kingdom. Burns furthers this line of thought by noting that interpretation of the verse requires considering of two issues (588). First, is the aspect of entering the place being talked of. From the text, it is plain that Luke is talking about entering the Kingdom of God. After stating that the audience should â€Å"strive to enter through the narrow door†, he goes ahead to allude to a master of a particular house who stands and shuts the door to bar others from entering. The alternative to entering the narrow gate which Luke is referring to is found in the book of Mathew where it is stated â€Å"Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction† (Matt. 7:13). Luke goes ahead to state that as the audience strive to enter the narrow gate, there are obstacles that they have to overcome so as