SHIMLA: Shimla District Committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) strongly condemns the government's decision to close the fruit market at Bhattakufar and demands that the repair work of this fruit market should be completed before the start of apple season.

Relief should be provided to the farmers and growers by starting Dhalli market at the earliest.

The government is taking the decision to close such terminal markets in a planned manner under pressure from private corporate so that farmers are forced to sell their products to companies at cheap prices by eliminating alternative agriculture, vegetable and fruit markets, CPM claimed.

In the year 1994, the government started the work of developing Dhali Mandi as an alternative vegetable market in Shimla to facilitate farmers selling vegetables and other products, Chauhan said.

The government made many plans for the development of this market, but they were not implemented at the ground level, he said.

The farmers who had to sell their products in the mandis outside the state and did not get reasonable prices had an option to sell their products in local Mandis.

He said Dhali Mandi became first such market in the state since 1990s.  To some extent Dhalli Mandi gave relief to the farmers who otherwise used to pay hefty commission to arhtiyas in Delhi and other Mandis.

As the business grew, the Dhali market was expanded and the fruit market was developed in Bhattakufar.

 Farmers from Shimla, Kinnaur, Mandi and Kullu adopted this market by selling their products in Dhalli Mandi, Chauhan said.

Today Dhalli market is the leading market of the state where about 400 people visit this market daily and generate about Rs  500 crores turnover.

APMC has around Rs 100 crore deposited as market fee in the bank. This amount has to be spent on mandis and other infrastructure and facilities.

The party demands that APMC should use this money to repair the market and should resume operation before the apple season starts.

CPM said the government will have to develop and expand modern agriculture, vegetable and fruit markets on priority, if the government does not expand these markets in time, then only Adani and other corporate houses and businessmen from outside the state will be benefited.

Chauhan said the government will lose a good revenue and in turn it will hit farmers and state economy as well, aggravating the agrarian crisis in the state.