Himachal: HPMC cuts prices of organic fertilisers, farm equipment

Shimla, December 20

The Horticulture Produce, Marketing and Processing Corporation (HPMC) has decided to reduce the prices of farm equipment, organic fertilizers and pesticides it sells through its outlets by six per cent. In its Board of Directors meeting held in Dharamsala today, the HPMC decided to cut down its profit margin from 15 to 9 per cent on the sale of these products.

As per the HPMC spokesperson, the corporation has signed MoUs with 38 manufacturers and importers for direct supply of these products. “These products would now be available to the horticulturalists at market prices or even lower than that,” he said.

The HPCM offers these products to the horticulturalists in lieu of cash payment for apple procured under Market Intervention Scheme. The growers complain that these products are priced higher than market rate. Yet, many of them end up buying these products as the cash payments are released late.

In another major decision, the cash-strapped HPMC decided to conduct a Technical Economic Feasibility Study of its properties (cold stores and land) in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai for their optimum commercial utilization. The HPCM has cold stores in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai and 2.88-acre land in Kundli (Haryana). As for its land in Salt Lake City, Kolkata, the Board of Directors decided to hire a consultant for developing Information Technology infrastructure on public-private partnership on this land.

Besides, the newly constructed fruit processing plant at Parala in Shimla district is all set for inauguration. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu will inaugurate the plant at Parala on December 26.