Date:25/01/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/01/25/stories/2007012502210500.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Trading comes to a standstill

Staff Reporter

Strike in protest against amendment to APMC Act

MEAL TIME: Lorry crew take time off on Wednesday after traders closed shutters at the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee Yard in Bangalore. — Photo: K. Gopinathan

BANGALORE: Trade in foodgrains, pulses, oils, fruits and vegetables at all Agricultural Produce Marketing Yards (APMC) in the State came to a standstill on Wednesday as traders and their employees, lorry owners, hamalis and mini transporters launched an indefinite strike in protest against the Union and State Governments' move to amend the APMC Act. The amendment will allow multi-national companies (MNCs) to enter both the wholesale and retail sector.

Nearly 4,000 traders and around 15,000 employees at the Yeshwantpur APMC yard shut their shops in the morning and participated in a demonstration condemning the decision of the Union and State Governments to allow MNCs such as Wal-Mart, Reliance Retail and Metro not only for doing wholesale business within the cities but also retail business.

The roads in the yard, where lorries usually wait for hours due to congestion, wore a deserted look. The service road and Tumkur Road were also free from congestion.

According to R.C. Lahoti, president of the Bangalore Wholesale Foodgrains and Pulses Merchants Association, and Bharat Kumar, secretary, and D.A. Prasanna Kumar, treasurer, Bangalore Grain Merchants Association, said that they would intensify the strike from Thursday, if the State Government did not invite them for negotiations for postponing the amendment till they were heard. They said that the strike has been peaceful and total.

Competitive prices

Mr. Lahoti alleged that the MNCs would offer competitive prices only to see that the business in the APMC yards was destroyed and increase it later hitting the consumer hard. He said wheat, which used to be sold at Rs. 7 a kg, was now being sold at Rs. 17 because of the MNCs' presence in the wholesale business.

He said the people used to buy poppy seeds at Rs. 12 a kg. The Union Government banned its production fearing supply of narcotics under pressure from the United States but imported it from Pakistan forcing consumers to buy it at Rs. 180 a kg.

It was surprising that the Government, which denied even minimum facilities to traders within the APMC yards, was spreading red carpet for the MNCs.