e-NAM has come a long way since the Centre launched it in 2016 with the objective of ‘One Nation One Market’ to give farmers the power to decide where to sell and at what price.

From 585 agriculture market yards (mandis) in 16 States and two Union Territories in 2019, e-NAM has grown to 1,361 mandis in 23 States and four UTs now. This includes one in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The number of farmers using the electronic platform has increased from 1.31 crore to 1.76 crore now and the number of traders on it has more than doubled to 2.5 lakh from 1.2 lakh. Between 2018-19 and 2022-23, the turnover has nearly tripled to ₹74,530 crore from ₹26,290 crore.

e-NAM 2.0

Over the next couple of months, e-NAM 2.0 is set to be launched with the Government planning several changes to create an ecosystem where everyone from everywhere through every way can participate in online agri trade. It will make trading as easy and smooth with flexibility as in physical auctions at mandis.

From having to deal with secret auctions in some mandis and open-outcry auctions in others, farmers today benefit from automated auctions for agri produce at the point of primary sale across the country.

To start with, the Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) was given the responsibility of implementing the project. The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers’ Welfare was charged with the responsibility of funding the States’ expenses with respect to software and giving a one-time grant to each mandi to buy the required equipment and build infrastructure.

By March 2018, the untiring work of SFAC and its implementation partner, Nagarjuna Fertilizers and Chemicals — the company that won the bid to design, develop and maintain the portal — e-NAM saw the markets being connected across the country. This was possible as Andhra Pradesh, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand and West Bengal signed up for the electronic platform.

Tough task

e-NAM’s task to rope in so many States, farmers and traders has not been easy. It was a tough task changing the mindset of thousands of traders and lakhs of farmers and motivating them to move to shift to the “One nation, one market” electronic system.

“During initial days, there were instances of commission agents and traders going on strike and bringing activities in mandis to a standstill. But thanks to the strong will and support of the States, the idea of an electronic national agri market became a reality in two years,” said Dushyant K Tyagi, Chief Business Officer, Nagarjuna Fertilizers and Chemicals in 2019.

The process right from gate entry to auction and then weighing the produce of the farmer and issuing a sale bill, happens smoothly. “Transparency” is a key achievement of eNAM. What makes eNAM stand apart is that it prevents the exploitation of farmers in the name of quality as a physical auction without any lab report lacks the credibility of what traders claim. Also, the use of electronic weighing scales, which are integrated with the portal through Bluetooth, is another factor winning the growers’ hearts.

Sumer Jain, a trader in Merta, Rajasthan, which is the country’s biggest trading hub in moong (green gram), says the eNAM portal does not allow to differentiate the crop the way it is done in physical sales. There are three quality parameters, based on test reports from labs, on which a crop is categorised – superior, medium and lower, said an official of the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) in Merta.

Below potential

“Thousands of FPOs formed across the country could sell through eNAM if a connection is made with direct buyers or end-users or processors through government initiative. The FPO premises will be an additional option for farmers and they will make the right decision on where to sell the crop since it will enhance price discovery for them,” says S Chandrasekaran, a policy analyst.

However, eNAM has been functioning below its potential but Version 2.0, officials hope, will make things better.

The Changemaker awards will take place in New Delhi on November 3. The presenting partner of the event is Sastra University. Associate Partners: Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), Casagrand, Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation, Punjab & Sind Bank, United India Insurance; Banking Partner: J&K Bank; Online Grocery Partner: Big Basket; Tourism Partner: Bihar Tourism; Television Partner: NewsX; Knowledge Partner: Ashoka & Deloitte; Validation Partner: Niti Consulting.

The link to view the event live: https://bit.ly/BLCM23

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