The people of Nagaland are not oblivious to the ever-changing market dynamics happening right before their eyes. Many have been shouting their lungs out about the lopsided market scenario in the state, especially in the commercial hub Dimapur, yet nobody has done anything concrete about it for decades, thus allowing a handful of people to have complete control of business. It eventually turned into a system, making it difficult for new entrants to have a clear view of the picture. It took novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic to make the people clearly see the position of the local traders. The Business Association of Nagas or BAN learned that the local farmers were at the mercy of some big business people and felt the need to do something about it. It learned the hard way but it’s better late than never. Sensing the grim reality exposed during the ongoing health crisis, the association initiated a platform where local farmers could sell their produce in Dimapur and benefit the denizens at the same time. On witnessing good response from the public, it is now all set to take their plan to the next level by setting up a dedicated community market place for local farmers with the approval of Dimapur district administration. Dimapur DC Anoop Khinchi had also said that it has come with a set of plans, including introduction of food carts to solve transportation problem faced by the local farmers. BAN executives also said that they were planning to launch e-commerce platform for the farmers, so that people could get local products at their door steps during the lockdown period. They are also planning to do away with middleman to let farmers experience the true nature of market and learn the art of business.
These moves, if materialised, will be a blessing not only for the people of Nagaland but also the neighbouring states. There have been several occasions where farmers incur heavy loss due to lack of market knowledge. Sometimes, their products were sold at throw-away prices to middleman or went rotten with no takers. This discouraged many existing farmers from taking up farming seriously as well as made young people look at the profession as the “last resort”. If supply and market issue is solved, farming is going to be the next “big thing”, especially with economic recession looming large because of the current health crisis and food shortage likely to hit the world in the next few months. Farmers will play a vital role in stabilising the market and ensuring that people get square meals every day. To ensure that the state doesn’t face food supply shortage, BAN should consistently guide the farmers till such time that they can stand on their own feet. Stopgap arrangement just to ease temporary crisis will not help the farmers in the long run. The state government too should come up with a support system and promote agricultural activities. Emphasis should be given in building good communication system, especially good roads and stable telecommunication services in rural areas so that farmers don’t face transportation hurdles. It takes two wings to fly, so farmers need support.
