Arvind KashyapSolan, Sept. 20 -- As Himachal Pradesh's multi-crore apple harvesting season reaches its peak, systemic flaws in the state's agricultural marketing infrastructure have once again come to the fore.
In what farmer organisations have dismissed as mere "seasonal posturing", the Himachal Pradesh State Agricultural Marketing Board (HPSAMB) has launched an enforcement drive against errant commission agents (arhtiyas), issuing challans to 12 operators across the state.
Of these, seven were issued under the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) Solan and five under APMC Shimla-Kinnaur. However, the action has done little to assuage growing resentment among thousands of apple growers arriving at terminal and regional mandis.
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