The wholesale market will branch out to accommodate commodities such as fish, flowers and sugarcane
If all goes according to plan, the wholesale Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) in Vashi might soon get some new markets for commodities, including fish, flowers, sugarcane and banana. Officials at the APMC board revealed that they are mulling over the introduction of these new markets and have sent proposals to the state government. Apart from this, they also plan to build more hygienic markets, of international standards.
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In July, the Navi Mumbai Merchant’s Chamber presented a foreign trade concept in APMC. FILE PIC
Sudhir Tungar, secretary of APMC Vashi, said, "We have been thinking of developing new markets under APMC since a few years. We had held talks with the state government, but nothing has been finalised yet. The project would take some time as it is a very long process and requires long-term planning. However, in the near future, people can expect these markets in Navi Mumbai.”
The City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) plans to lend land for these new markets near JNPT, Tungar revealed. In July this year, the Navi Mumbai Merchant’s Chamber (NMMC) had presented a foreign trade concept to the traders of the market with an aim to transform the existing wholesale agricultural produce market into an international trading hub.
As per the concept, the new APMC market would include advanced infrastructure with buildings, both hardware and software facilities such as Wi-Fi, improved logistical efficiency, better working conditions and practices for food hygiene, increased and stricter food safety assurance, adaptation of full cold chain operation, IT applications and additional warehouses for storage of the commodities.
In its current shape and size, the APMC market at Vashi is Asia’s largest regulated market for agricultural produce and is spread across 70 acres of land, has 3,700 godowns, 1,500 commercial blocks and five major wholesale markets, including fruits, vegetables, grains, spices and onion and potato.