New Delhi, Mar 4 (KNN) Trade on the electronic-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) is anticipated to reach a staggering Rs 80,000 crore in the fiscal year 2023-24, as more states facilitate the exchange of agricultural commodities through this digital platform.

During April-February of the current fiscal year, the turnover on e-NAM has already surpassed Rs 70,000 crore, with a noticeable surge in inter-mandi and inter-state trading of agricultural commodities, reported FE.

Officials from the agriculture ministry have emphasised their current focus on enhancing electronic payments to farmers and promoting trade between different mandis and states through e-NAM.

Presently, e-NAM integrates 1,389 mandis across 27 states, signifying a gradual shift to digital platforms for better price discovery by farmers.

While farm gate, inter-state, and inter-mandi trade constitute a relatively small portion of the total turnover at Rs 70,445 crore, there has been significant growth in these areas, indicating the platform's increasing utility.

A notable development is the adoption of the farm gate purchase model, where farmers sell commodities directly without physically transporting them to mandis.

This approach has seen a total traded value of Rs 85 crore during April-February 2023-24, compared to minimal activity in the previous fiscal year.

Several states, including Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir, have embraced this model.

Additionally, there has been a remarkable 145 per cent spike in inter-mandi trade on e-NAM, reaching Rs 1,485 crore in the April-February period of the current fiscal year.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted in her interim-budget speech that e-NAM serves 18 million farmers, with a trading volume of Rs 3 trillion.

(KNN Bureau)