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TRADE |
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TRADE
CENTRES
THIS DISTRICT PRODUCES mainly gul, chillies
and turmeric as cash crops while paddy and jowar are grown as staple
crops. Fruits and vegetables are also grown in the vicinity of
Kolhapur city as it serves a good market for sale of such produce.
Operators in the market play an important role in trade.
Dalals and adatyas are a connecting link between
buyers and sellers and they serve as good middle-men between
traders. Commodities are brought for sale in the market by the
sellers and kept with their approved dalals. These
dalals try to sell the produce either to their fellow-traders
or they purchase it themselves. Bills and vouchers are prepared and
the amount due is paid to cultivators after deducting all charges.
Hours of busines are generally in the morning and in the evening.
The delivery of produce is given either at shops of commission
agents immediately after sale or at the shop of the traders. These
traders generally take delivery after a couple of days. Groundnuts
are sold at so many seers a rupee and an atki or eight maunds
of 16 seers each for a particular sum of rupees.
Agriculturists themselves bring their produce for
sale. Commodities like tur, gram, etc. are imported from
villages through commission agents or the agents themselves go to
the villages for purchase. Transport is provided to a considerable
extent by trucks, and bullock-carts, though railway wagons are also
utilized often.
Generally, adatyas, co-operative societies
and banks provide finance. Even though the rate of interest charged
by adatyas is exhorbitant as compared to that charged by
co-operative societies and banks, the cultivators prefer to borrow
from the former because they get advances quickly without going
through too many formalities. The terms and conditions involved in
borrowing from private agencies like the adatyas are that the
producers should bring their produce to the shop of the
dalals and execute the sale through them.
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