But the two extra zeroes also include producers, the sexiest of which are small and marginal farmers. Sexiest because it is this seductive banner all politicians carry into plush 5-star conferences in Delhi and across the world, to be used as a mascot for keeping the status quo — and the farmers poor. In fact, the small and marginal producers are an acutely exploited lot. Study after study has shown just how high the mark up is between the price of a farm tomato and one that the vendor sells. Again, one can’t accuse the vendor of gobbling all the profit but the series of middle men who mark up on the way. The price of tomatoes grows at the rate of 30-50 per cent per transaction. In a movement from farm to the market, if there are five middle men, the price can rise by five to seven times. Which are great returns, but on risk taken by the farmer — of crop failure, of no access to credit, of lack of cold storage to protect his produce.

Examine this argument from the political arena and it gets even more illogical. If voter well being is a good enough starting point for any politician (I’m not excluding caste, religion, community, colour, language), politicians across all hues should be rushing to turn their constituencies into hubs of huge retail outlets. That way, their farmers will get better prices through the reduction or exclusion of the middle men and their consumers will get cheaper goods. In the bargain, the one monster that has been chasing politicians for the past 18 months — inflation — would not only rise slowly, but in many cases fall.

... contd.