| |AUGUST 20219for end-to-end streamlining of the industry. All parties with vested interests rely upon an efficient supply chain and require sustained yields and high quality processes. The need for an equitable pan-India infrastructure has become glaringly obvious. Technological innovations, as always, seem to be the best solution to modern-day problems. Having already advocated for AI aided climate-resistant farming, agritech firms are now making a push for digital mandis, which they hope can revolutionise a sector in dire need of advancement.Digital mandis propose a comparatively simpler national, warehouse-based trading module, which puts the power back in the farmer's hands. A local producer can upload his inventory to a digital portal, which can be accessed by interested buyers all over the country. This B2C format eliminates farmer exploitation by facilitating real-time displays of market prices and offers seamless and secure online payments, thereby maintaining his bargaining power.This new `e-mandi' system not only alleviates the pressure on farmers but greatly increases their productivity and yield. By eliminating long-drawn travels and auctions, food wastage is greatly reduced, and this has a positive impact on pricing, allowing for greater profits. A digital solution simplifies the sale process, and empowers farmers at the grass-root level, paving the way for future agricultural frameworks to be built towards the overall uberization of agriculture. Additionally, it highlights the factor of `traceability' which is essential in today's COVID-struck world.Along with bringing much-needed transparency to the sector, digital mandis offer the exciting prospect of quickening the farm-to-fork journey while promoting fair trade and price discovery based solely upon real-time supply and demand and produce quality.Of course, e-mandis come with their own set of challenges, for instance, mobilising a population of professionals who may not be tech-savvy. Education in regional languages at the most basic level is the first step toward aggregating farmers on such a large platform, a basic need for the bolstering of their self-sufficiency. Additionally, the kinks of logistical factors of storage and transportation while maintaining sustainability and proper social distancing, need to be worked out.While still being rolled out, the digital mandi concept fits perfectly into the government's Digital India movement and is a step toward the future of agriculture where it is inextricably linked to technology for its betterment and growth in the face of climate change and other challenges. DIGITAL MANDIS PROPOSE A COMPARATIVELY SIMPLER NATIONAL, WARE HOUSE-BASED TRADING MODULE, WHICH PUTS THE POWER BACK IN THE FARMER'S HANDS
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