Dr. Mohinder Kumar
Assar village is located in Assar block of Doda district, 45 km from Doda city. Village is famous for vegetable cultivation. This single village fulfils major demand of vegetables for entire Jammu Division comprising 10 districts. It is a hilly village. Land is most fertile and suitable for vegetable cultivation. Village area is 700 acres, of which common land (‘Shamlat’) is 250 acres (36%) and agricultural land 450 acres (64%). Average size of land holding is 0.90 acre per farm household. Population of Assar village is 3000 persons in 500 households. All households are engaged in farming. Farmers own equal sized holdings. Villagers speak Dogri and Kashmiri languages even as some villagers had shifted from Kashmir and settled in Assar long back. Common land allotted to the farmers is used for private cultivation of vegetables. Each farmer is allotted 0.50 acre common land, which is important for their survival.
Village Weekly
All 500 farmers of Assar cultivate mainly vegetable crops as commercial farming. They cultivate wheat and maize for family subsistence. Of total agricultural production in Assar, 70% is marketable surplus and 30% is retained for family consumption. Vegetables are supplied to Jammu city for six months in a year. With average supply of vegetables up to 10-12 trucks per day, it reaches 15 trucks per day during the peak season. Assar village produces these vegetables: Brinjal, tomato, cabbage, ‘khira’, ‘khol-khol’, potato, onion, pea, French-bean, ‘karela’, garlic, ladyfinger, ‘ghiya’, ‘kaddu’, satthu (bean), cauliflower, mooli, etc. Floriculture was experimented and started 10-12 years ago in 2003. For the past two-three years commercial production of flowers was started. Farmers cultivate mainly marigold (gattu), as it has maximum demand for offerings in temples.
History of commercial vegetable cultivation in Assar village started in 1960s. A Punjabi commission agent from Jammu market arrived in Assar. He was a migrant from West Pakistan who settled in Jammu Division after the Partition in 1947; he was very entrepreneurial. Villagers knew him by name of Mulkh Raj. He set up what the villagers termed “Kandheri-wala” tent in village, called all the farmers and distributed seeds for vegetable cultivation. During same time Sher-e-Kashmuir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST) started giving attention to Jatthi village situated opposite Assar village across river Chenab, to start vegetable cultivation on cluster basis. But it could not succeed. That time in 1965, Jatthi and Assar villages were connected though located on separate hills; but today backwaters or stored water of river Chenab (due to hydro-electric project) and a sort of lake created between two hills separates both the villages. Assar got huge success in vegetable cultivation by leadership of a Punjabi migrant entrepreneur who led villagers in vegetable cultivation enterprise and linked them with Jammu Vegetable Market. The migrant entrepreneur created awareness among growers. He introduced them to Jammu market. In 1960s Jammu ‘mandi’ was situated not at its present place called Narwal but at Parade Ground in old Jammu city, near Rani talab, where it was operated for 20 years. Vegetable growers’ exposure to the market at Jammu was the major contribution of the outside migrant entrepreneur. Then Muslim farmers from Kashmir also later arrived and settled in village to start vegetable cultivation with zeal and interest. In this way, entrepreneurship and zeal of human resources and good natural fertility of land resource suitable for vegetable cultivation -both combined to make Assar village a hub of commercial cultivation of vegetables with huge marketable surplus, which was a phenomenon in itself.
Punjabi migrant entrepreneur used to prepare ‘chalaan’ (forwarding) of vegetables of farmers in his own name, as it was the malpractice traditionally in vogue in marketing system of the day. Thus he would himself operate as ‘primary seller’ and supplier and also charge commission from small gullible growers of Assar. In Jammu ‘mandi’ the commission agent, which had a great role in bringing Assar on vegetable map of the country also operated as supplier of household goods purchased from wholesale grocery merchants of Jammu to supply ‘aata’, pulses, spices, salt, cooking oils, etc. to the vegetable growers. This economically exploitative system of “interlocked markets” of vegetables and grocery goods supply worked smoothly and was continued by entrepreneurial commission agent for 20 years, from 1965 to 1985. It is not clear whether commission agent gave advance money or not but it is reported that seeds, inputs and technology were provided to the vegetable growers. Over a period of time, these vegetable growers became indebted to commission agents through the mechanism of “interlocked markets” as they purchased grocery goods on credit basis and costlier from same commission agents or through them from grocery merchants and supplied vegetables to them at throwaway price every season. Each grower is indebted with at least Rs.50000 credit outstanding against him since so many years. Some growers are under indebtedness of commission agents to a greater extent of debt. Later after 1985, the same system of selling, buying, lending and borrowing continued from ‘Narwal mandi’ in Jammu. Currently on an average 10 trucks (minimum 4 trucks, maximum 15 trucks) full of vegetables per day are supplied from Assar village to Narwal Jammu market. Challan is still prepared in the name of “seller” (not grower) who is intermediary.
With average 100 tone per day and 2500-3000 tonne per month of vegetable supply to Narwal market Jammu, it may be expected that Assar would be a very prosperous village. But reality is just the opposite. Village presents a grimy picture of underdevelopment. Farmers are poor who made commission agents and wholesalers rich and prosperous. If for some reasons of general strike or ‘bandh’ or any agitation problem or curfew, the supplies of vegetables are choked and stopped completely as happened for about a week in 2012-13, traders of ‘Narwal Mandi’ are the first who are adversely affected since losses due to choked supply of vegetables would be substantial. It was reported that losses -real or potential- could induce suicides by some traders as they earned crores of rupees from vegetable trading. Villagers reported based on accounts of Narwal Traders’ Association that due to general strike in 2008, traders suffered loss of Rs.1000 crore by way of business turnover/ profit. Over 250 commission agents operate in ‘Narwal Mandi’. As market functionaries their role in providing marketing services to the vegetable growers is marred by supernormal profits as self-indulgence rules the roost and outweighs their role of marketing service. While growers of Assar have grown poorer from being poor, wholesale traders and commission agents have grown richer and wealthier.
A major problem faced by Assar growers relates to delayed payment -sometimes up to six months for vegetables by Commission Agents of Narwal Fruits & Vegetables Market (FVM) -and low price paid by them. Growers would be asked to come tomorrow or next day. But since these growers are located 150-200 km from Jammu, they cannot make repeated visits. So they would be forced to request Commission Agents to buy household items and grocery for kitchen use (oils, salt, spices, aata, rice, etc.) and supply these items to their village house. Even from these grocery items supplied to the growers Commission Agents would earn some extra profit. Out of compulsion, vegetable growers would be exploited on account of purchasing vegetable seeds also from/ through Commission agents. Most of the times certified seeds are not provided. Moreover these agents charge higher price for seeds sold to the captive growers of Assar. Commission Agents charge 10% commission on value of vegetables sold by growers, in blatant violation and contravention of APMC Act-1997 of State Government. Besides, vegetable growers pay 15% extra (commission) for handling, unloading, stationary, computer, temple charges (“dharma”) and deduction for wooden boxes supplied by Commission Agents.
During August-2013 general strike in Jammu Division that continued for seven days, Commission Agents nevertheless got wholesale supplies of vegetables from Assar, took advantage of strike and artificial shortages, sold vegetables at exorbitant prices, but told innocent vegetable growers that they were compelled to throw vegetables in wastage. Not only did they sell vegetables at higher price and did not pay fully for the entire quantity purchased by them, they also charged from growers the fee of wooden boxes supplied to them. Transportation charges for truck at the rate of Rs.100/- per quintal were also charged from these small growers. In 1990, transportation charges were Rs.50/- per quintal vegetables (from Assar/Doda to Jammu Narwal FVM). Illiterate growers of Assar village were also subject to cheating and fleecing by Commission Agents. If Commission Agents sold a “nug” (bundle) of vegetables for Rs.500/- he would show it to grower as Rs.350/- (remaining amount of Rs.150/- per bundle was misappropriated). Though vegetables were sold by Commission Agents by auction method, it was secret. Vegetable growers did not know the rate at which his produce was being sold. Cheating is perpetrated on small vegetable growers of Assar village on account of weight/ quantity also by Commission Agents.
High level of economic exploitation of Assar vegetable growers can be gauged from the fact that daily up to 10 truckloads of vegetables are supplied from Assar village to the Narwal Fruit & Vegetable Market, Jammu. In peak season, it could be up to 15 truckloads per day. Growers have grown poorer; Commission Agents have grown prosperous, particularly over the past 30 years. Each of the 500 small growers is indebted to Commission Agents and indebtedness has persisted and recycled for the past 20-30 years. For six months of winter, growers are dependent on Commission Agents for supply of household ration items. They have economic relations over the past couple of generations. Commission Agent adjusts his winter loan during next six months of summer as and when vegetables would be supplied.
The American concept of “economic ladder” of development operates and attracts these gullible growers though only miniscule proportion of them can obviously get chance to rise up on this ladder. Out of 500 small vegetable growers of Assar, 10% or 50 growers have succeeded in taking up the neo-rich profession of Commission Agent cum wholesaler 10-15 years back. All gullible growers cannot succeed in that way. Successful ones have set up shops and auction platforms in Narwal Fruit & Vegetables Market of Jammu. Assar villagers report that converters to commission business have earned money through wholesale business and bought new “kothi” (palatial house) and car after leaving vegetable growers’ profession. They now buy vegetables in wholesale and deduct commission from erstwhile fellow growers. These neo-rich growers turned Commission Agents signify a limited and narrow solution to the larger problem of small vegetable growers generally affecting 450 other remaining small growers in village.
These seven-fold problems are yet to find a viable solution, particularly for the past 20-30 years, even as Assar growers’ exploitation at the hands of Commission Agents has increased year-after-year: (i) Low price & delayed payments; (ii) economic exploitation in intermediated “inter-locked” grocery market and vegetable market; (iii) economic exploitation in “inter-locked” inputs market and vegetables market; (iv) charging commission of 10% (which is illegitimate and illegal as per APMC Act); (v) charging other high rates of authorized/ unauthorized deductions of 15%; (vi) charging “hidden” deductions; and (vii) economic exploitation in “inter-locked” informal credit and vegetable market.
Gullible small growers of Assar feel happy that wooden boxes are provided by Commission Agents. But they are totally unaware that an amount of Rs.40-50/- is deducted each time they supplied vegetables to the market. Therefore, there is lack of awareness on the part of small growers. Marketing problem of small vegetable growers of Assar is intact for the past 30 years. As individual isolated growers, they are helpless and no government support or organizational effort to associate them in cooperatives, groups, producers’ companies, etc. has come up so far.
A majority (60%) of the vegetable growers of Assar are unable to buy certified vegetables seeds from Agriculture Department. The problem relates to the fact that either growers do not have cash at right time or Agriculture Department often approaches them late (after season started). Therefore, these 60% growers are forced to depend on private dealers through Commission Agents as intermediaries in Jammu. Commission Agents place themselves in-between private input supplier and vegetable growers because the latter is ruthlessly over-dependent on them for cash money. The problem of delayed supply of vegetable seeds from Agriculture Department could not find solution. Only 40% of them have cash to buy seeds in time from Agriculture Department. Assar growers have to visit Batote town to purchase bags of chemical fertilizers.
Village Assar is the hub of vegetable production for Jammu division. It supplies 10-15 trucks on daily basis to Narwal Mandi Jammu where 500 small growers are being economically exploited by commission agents and wholesalers over the past 50 years or so. Therefore, they demand setting up of a wholesale vegetables market at Assar (block head-quarter) town, 1 km from village, to get rid of their ruthless over-dependence on Jammu wholesale market. However, they are unaware that setting up of wholesale market at Assar cannot be a surety of their economic emancipation from marketing problems, since 50-100 new commission agents and wholesalers emerging from among themselves (‘growers-turned-traders’ as in case of apple in Kashmir valley) in the proposed Assar market would start doing same malpractices and economic exploitation of their fellow farmers; and this vicious process of exploitation by private traders-based market shall be continued, by mere shifting from Jammu to Assar. These small vegetable growers of Assar could be made better off in surest way by educating and organizing slowly into the cooperatives, collectives, groups or companies of vegetable producers. Capital, not commission agent, exploits growers. Growers must create and save their own ‘social capital’ by collectivizing, cooperating and organizing themselves after making up their minds to get rid of commission agents in Jammu market. Growers must not feed population at the cost of self-exploitation. Growers can serve better population alternatively by organizing themselves for fresh line of supply from Assar on cooperative basis, but only if cooperatives are allowed to evolve.
Some homework on thought-process has already been done at preliminary level by Assar growers. In view of a variety of vegetable production (20 types of vegetables produced) and huge production, i.e. up to 15 trucks per day in peak season (average 10 trucks and minimum four trucks per day), growers of Assar have put a demand for setting up of two cold store units at Assar, which would be used by them for storing their vegetable produce for variable periods in order to escape from the clutches of commission agents and traders due to distress selling. Assar village produces on an average 3000 tonne vegetables of different types every month. Potato, onion, tomato, and green vegetables can be stored by these growers in local cold stores at Assar for maximum period of 6 months, 3 months, 2 months and 7-10 days, respectively. Field conditions suggested that it would be better if cold stores are set up in cooperative sector or as producers’ companies.
There is scope of flower cold storage since floriculture is also being taken up as commercial activity by some growers for cultivation of marigold. Its scope is likely to increase in near future. In 2005 Horticulture Department (Planning & Marketing) had purchased land at Assar for setting up cold store though since then there is no further action. Illiterate growers obviously apprehended that either “policy” or “lobby of commission agents” may have stalled this project on public sector cold storage at Assar even though this facility is urgently needed by them. Flower growers face problem of transportation of produce since flowers is a perishable produce. For this reason they did not cultivate flowers in 2013; flower produce got damaged due to hot weather and distance in supply from Jammu (8-10 hours). Therefore, they demand mobile cold van service (private/ public/ cooperative) to carry and transport flowers to Jammu Narwal Mandi. But they are at loss to find clue to the source of funding. Growers tend to feel that after 2000 somehow government is less sensitive to the critical issues of farmers as compared to the situation in 1960s. Earlier they used to get certified mini kit, HYV seed varieties (“rungarung seeds”), fertilizers, etc. They demand that such inputs should be made available. They also suggest that interest of agriculture officials should in agriculture should be more visible as it has declined. They want policies and implementation which really benefits and uplifts agriculture. It is their general response to the generally existing situation of agriculture as well as specific to the state of agriculture in Assar. They are aware that a few developmental measures (cold store, cooperative society) were initiated in Assar but somehow got scuttled without progress.
A cooperative society of vegetable growers was formed in 2005 in Assar. But villagers were not allowed to get it registered. From entire area of Assar (block), only 62 members came forward. Nevertheless these 62 members deposited fee of Rs.125/- per member to the Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies (ARCS) of Assar Block. This amount is not yet returned to the members even as cooperative is still not (allowed to be) formed and registered. It is felt by villagers that since the beginning many attempts were made to keep small growers of Assar as mere producers of vegetables in separated existence to feed Narwal Wholesale Market. Any form of organization or infrastructure is not allowed to be created by negative politics in Assar. They informed that farmers in hilly Jatthi village across river Chenab (where vegetable cluster failed in 1960s) have got a cooperative society that distributes fertilizers, kerosene oil and ration goods. But Assar was not allowed to have cooperative society. Villagers wish to have a cooperative society in Assar that looks after their varied interests and difficulties in organized way.
(Author works for NABARD; views expressed are personal)
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