Maharashtra to milk Aarey to help farmers sell produce

The weekly farmer-to-consumer vegetable market in Mumbai is set to be expanded with​ the​​​ agriculture department and the marketing department planning to launch 100 such centres across te city.
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The state government is also planning to put to use some 5​,​000 Aarey milk booths across Mumbai to sell fairly-priced vegetables to consumers.

Minister of State (MoS) for Agriculture Sadabhau Khot met with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday to discuss the issue.

Khot ​said ​that there are 19 locations across the city where vegetable​s are made available by providing space to farmers on a weekly basis. ​

He added that there are 64 proposals for such markets under consideration and, if all goes as planned,​ Mumbai, along with Navi Mumbai and Thane, would have 100 such middleman-free markets  by December​.

Khot informed that New had utilised Mother Dairy milk stalls to sell other products and that he would take up this subject with the Minister for Dairy Development Mahadev Banker to allow Aarey stalls across Mumbai to be harnessed for the weekly direct market.

He said that government is going to approach housing societies to provide space for the markets.