Corporatisation of agriculture is here to stay and it is futile to stage agitations against corporates engaged in the business of agriculture, according to farmers in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Erode and Kanyakumari districts.
The chain of super markets owned by Reliance or M A Yousuff Ali, the expatriate Indian businessman who is adored by the Chief Minister of Kerala as well his comrades in the CPI(M) spot this statutory notice prominently in their retail outlets, “All Fruits and Vegetables sold in our Stores are sourced directly from farmers and not from APMC or localMandi”.
The customers to these high-profile retail stores range from millionaires to Marxists. “Thanks to these stores, we get quality fresh fruits and vegetables ferried from Coimbatore to Ernakulam on a daily basis,” said Shaji Kumar, a CPI(M) activist in Perumbavoor whom this writer came across in one of the super markets on Tuesday morning.
While the CPI(M) and other Left organisations are staging demonstrations against Ambani, Adani, ITC etc, the proprietors of these groups laugh all the way to Banks on a daily basis. “The unsold commodities are purchased by local shopkeepers to be sold in their standalone neighbourhood shops,” said Joemon, branch manager of one of the super markets in Ernakulam.
Customers in Kerala get fresh bananas and plantain leaves cultivated in Nanchinadu region in Kanyakumari because of these super markets. Refrigerated vans, popularly known as reefer vans rush from Nagercoil to district headquarters of Kerala ferrying with them fruits, vegetables and even plantain leaves which the corporates procure directly from the farmers.
Farmers like Edwin Jayaraj and Stanly of Nagercoil have made it big through deals they have made with retail giants who are prompt in paying them without the interference of middle men, said M Ramasubramaniam, chief executive officer of National Agro Foundation headquartered in Chennai.
“We have helped the farmers in identifying the market as well buyers. Some of the farmers groomed by us have graduated to the big league cultivating fruits and vegetables ordered by the corporate groups,” said Ramasubramaniam.
Ravi and Arumugham , hailing from Thiruvallur district cultivate muskmelon which is procured by star hotels in Chennai. Interestingly, Ravi was on the verge of suicide having lost all his savings because of “successive” crop failures. Not anymore. He drives around in a Maruti Omni to supervise the fields where muskmelon is cultivated.
“Is there any law
which bans the corporates from dealing directly with the farmers? I am only bothered about the quality of the fruits and vegetables sold in these outlets. What I have found is that they sell fresh and safe crops,” said Thrissur based Sudheer K Damodaran, a Left fellow traveller, who had participated in many anti-corporate agitations.
Ramasubramaniam said the corporates started procuring fruits, vegetables and agricultural commodities directly from the farmers as early as 2000.
“It has been going on quite well for the last two decades and the farmers are a happy lot,” he said. Corporatisation remains a good term at least for the farmers who sell their products to the corporate groups.
“We get the price we ask for and we never pay any commissions to anybody,” said Sundar of Mettupalayam in Coimbatore district.
His requirement is that more and more corporate entities should enter the field with high speed reefer vans and liaison agents who could help them with banking and insurance formalities.
This could be the reason why farmers in Tamil Nadu and Kerala stay away from the ongoing agitation across the country. Corporatisation and corporate farming are here to stay,
Stupid.