Direct sale of oranges grown by Vidarbha farmers to the district residents sans any middlemen has evoked an encouraging response and is proving to be a profitable initiative for the farmers, officials said.
Amol Pachade, Agriculture Expert, Maharashtra government, said: "It was decided in a review at the start of the year to open such centres in as many as 16 towns and cities of the state. The initiative is being jointly co-ordinated by the Coordinated Agriculture Improvement Project, Sir Ratan Tata Trust and International Agricultural Development Fund (IFAD) to support the farmers in six districts of Vidarbha", he said.
Around 1,200 growers from 70 villages are participating in the project, he said.
In a similar sale in Pune, Mumbai and Bengaluru last year, about 128 tonnes of the citrus fruit were sold and the farmers had earned a profit to the tune of Rs 1.3 million, he said.
This kind of sale would help in avoiding distress sale by the farmers to the merchants who quote a very cheaper price for the produce.
A target of sale of five tonnes of oranges has been set for the current season for each district and efforts are being made to achieve it, he added.
