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Central market to help small traders better their business
Normally, the rural petty kirana shops purchase poor quality commodities at high prices from private suppliers and sell the same to people in villages and earn a pittance of profit.
Gooty (Anantapur): District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) has conceived a scheme to help kirana traders who are members of self help groups to sell healthy and quality commodities and goods in villages and also boost their business volume by selling them at fair prices and making reasonable profits.
Normally, the rural petty kirana shops purchase poor quality commodities at high prices from private suppliers and sell the same to people in villages and earn a pittance of profit.
The DRDA hit upon an idea to help set up a 'central market' at mandal level for supplying healthy food stuff and essential commodities to the village level kirana shops at fair prices and thereby earn reasonable profits.
The DRDA invested Rs 10 lakh for setting up the central market to be run by DWCRA women and asked each member of DWCRA group to invest a share capital of Rs 5,000 each and thereby procure goods and commodities from multi-national companies including ITC, Wipro etc and other wholesale kirana merchants, so that the central market, retail shops at village level and even the consumers are all benefited by sharing profits equally.
This arrangement had given a big boost to the village level retail business and even increased the volume of business thus inducing all villagers to shop in the DWCRA kirana shops in all villages.
Speaking to The Hans India, DRDA project director Venkateswarlu said that 32 villages had been identified in Gooty mandal for implementing the pilot project and 44 women had been selected under the project. This apart, DWCRA women products including paper plates, soaps, ragi malt and other products were being procured by the central market to in turn supply the same to MNC companies by having a tie up with them, he added.
He said that women are now so happy that everything including procuring commodities and selling them are all done hassle-free with no outside interference or fear of losing business or supplies from big traders.
Nethamma, a tribal woman trader from Basinapalle thanda, said that with the central market supplying quality items at fair and wholesale prices, the volume of business has increased due to the hand-holding of us by the DRDA.
She stated that the central market had supplied goods worth Rs 90,000 to her. In March, she earned Rs 5,849, April-Rs 2,497, May-Rs 29,678, June-Rs 52,718 and July-Rs 53,992. The figures suggest a gradual increase in business. She said that apart from the essential commodities, she also sells eggs, milk and millets. As many as 43 other women in Gooty mandal have similar success stories to share.
The DRDA project director said buoyed by the success in Gooty mandal, steps were being taken to set up central markets in 12 more mandals in the district including Nallamada, Uravakonda, Gudibanda, Shinganamala etc.
