Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal to repeal the Odisha Agricultural Produce Markets (OAPM) Act, 1956 and replace it with a new, comprehensive agricultural marketing law aimed at creating a liberal, competitive and farmer-centric marketing system across the state.

The proposal, moved by the Cooperation Department, seeks to modernise Odisha's agricultural marketing framework by removing long-standing restrictions, encouraging private investment and providing farmers with greater freedom to sell their produce.

The existing OAPM Act, which has been in force since 1957, was originally enacted to protect farmers from exploitation and ensure fair price discovery. However, the government said the present system has become restrictive over time, limiting competition and private participation while leading to inadequate market infrastructure and inefficiencies in agricultural trade.

According to the government, the new legislation is designed to align Odisha's agricultural marketing system with current market requirements and national best practices.

Major Reforms Proposed

The new law proposes several structural reforms, including:

• Removal of geographical restrictions on the sale and purchase of agricultural produce and livestock, making Odisha a single unified agricultural market.
• Promotion of direct marketing, e-trading and electronic auctions to improve market access for farmers.
• Introduction of a single-point market fee and a statewide single trading licence.
• Facilitation of inter-state trade and greater participation by private market yards, processors, exporters and bulk buyers.
• Recognition of warehouses, cold storages and silos as market sub-yards to strengthen supply chains and reduce post-harvest losses.
• Greater integration of small and marginal farmers through Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), cooperatives, self-help groups (SHGs) and aggregators.
• Separation of regulatory and developmental functions, democratic governance of market committees, enhanced participation of women and development of modern market infrastructure in line with the Government of India Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2017.

Expected Benefits

The government expects the new law to provide farmers with greater marketing freedom and improved price realisation by expanding their options for selling agricultural produce.

Officials said the reforms would increase competition, transparency and efficiency in agricultural markets while reducing transaction costs and the role of intermediaries in the supply chain.

The legislation is also expected to attract higher private investment in agricultural marketing, improve logistics and storage infrastructure, reduce post-harvest losses and strengthen farmers' access to both state and inter-state markets.

The government believes the legal reforms will significantly boost farmers' incomes, encourage innovation in agricultural marketing and contribute to the overall growth of Odisha's rural economy.