Guntur: The prestigious e-NAM (National Agriculture Market) system introduced in Asia’s biggest chilli market at Guntur has been a failure as the traders are showing reluctance to do business under the new online system.
The e-NAM was introduced on September 1, 2017, under which only a few transactions were carried on that day and later the chilli traders stopped transactions opposing the system claiming that its norms were unacceptable to the traders.
In the last one week, the chilli growers have been facing trouble in selling their produce and have been storing their produce in cold storages due to the absence of purchase centres.
The chilli producers are seeking trading in the yard which would help them to sell produce and begin cultivation.
Chilli growers B. Nageswara Rao and others said they got a good price through e NAM and brought chilli stocks to sell under e-NAM but in vain as no trader was ready to purchase their stocks.
They said that they were forced to store the chilli stocks in the cold storages unable to take back their villages and the cold storage charges would put extra burden on them.
They said that they would start tilling works to cultivate crops with the money they get by selling chilli but their produce did not sell which is preventing them form starting cultivation activity in this kharif. They lamented that chillis were failing to get good price for the past six months and boycotting of the sales by traders would incur huge losses.
They further lamented that nearly 1 lakh chilli bags were stored in the cold storages, chilli growers are waiting to sell them for capital of Kharif and demanded the government to take measures for the purchasing activity in the chilli yard.
Chilli Traders Association president K. Sambi Reddy said a majority of the chilli growers were tenant farmers and they get investment from the traders.
He said that traders would purchase the chillis from the chilli growers and would pay the rest of money deducting the loan amounts earlier given for investment purpose.
He said that traders are offering payments to the chilli growers in 15 days of time and depositing the amounts in their bank accounts. He said that under e NAM traders are directed to clear payments within 10 hours which is cannot possible to them. Mr Sambi Reddy said that their Association taken the issue to the notice of the government and would start trading after resolve of their issues.
