By Kamlesh Tripathi- Positions held: General Manager-Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., Head Operations Mahindra Shubh Labh Services Ltd., Head Agri and Head Engines Escorts Ltd., Vice President Reliance Retail. (Writer and Author)

Before we discuss Rural Marketing and look for a solution in e-commerce let us also understand the complexity and demanding physical features of India as you need to strap the rural marketing to the physical features of India as it won’t work in a vacuum.

India happens to be 10th largest economy of the world in terms of nominal GDP and 3rd largest in consumption or (PPP) purchase power parity and therefore a huge market even domestically. 60% of our population lives in the rural areas. Our population density is 380/sq km and we are the 7th largest country by area, 2nd most populous country after China with over 1.2 billion people. Our per capita income by PPP is 5777$ and by income it is 1626$.

Let us also understand the geographical spread where our supply chain has to deliver. It has 656 districts, 5379 taluks an over 6 lakh villages and a land area of 33 lakh sq km which is five time of Pakistan and one third of China approximately. The terrain is an an assortment of both plains and snow peaked mountains.
Though we talk of one India the divide is deep that makes it two in terms of habitat, requirements, challenges and even family cash flows. And, last but not the least the literacy rate has grown to 74.04% with a decadal growth of 9.21%. And this is something to cheer about.

CURRENT SCENARIO OF RURAL MARKETING

In the current scenario most products, be it FMCG, Engineering, Industrial, Farm Machinery or Farm inputs are all sold through a network of distributors, dealers and retailers who share the channel margin. While they do provide peripheral and ancillary services to the rural folks especially farmers; they make better profits than rural folks and therefore the cost of goods to the end user increases accordingly. And a majority of them are more sales oriented than concern for after-sales-service; which is more because of lack of skill. Net-net this is not a very cheering situation. Even distribution costs rake up, because the goods are first sent to the resellers godown and then to the final user; instead of despatching it straight to the end user.

WHAT IS E-COMMERCE?

In very simple terminology e-commerce is selling through internet; as many global and Indian companies are doing such as Amazon, Flipkart, Snadeal to name a few. And, it has been extremely successful in the cities and with that rationale there is no reason why it shouldn’t be a success in the rural areas.

SO HOW WILL RURAL MARKETING THROUGH E-COMMERCE HOLD OUT?

With the increase in literacy levels especially of females going up to 65% and males to 80%, e-commerce in rural markets appear to be at arm’s length now. But, literacy needs to be converted in to skill of handling computers and operating INTERNET to enter the domain of e-commerce and this should not be difficult. Even in the arena of connectivity much has been achieved barring the speed of the INTERNET and availability of power. Some other major deterrents in ramping up e-commerce could be as follows:

• Current purchase system of farm machinery through subsidy has many leaks and only a fraction of what is spent by the Government actually reaches the beneficiary. This problem can be arrested by making DBT (Direct Bank Transfers) through Jan Dhan Scheme of the Prime Minister.

• Major sustenance of livelihood in rural areas is through farming, and therefore the government should promote e-commerce for purchase both farm machinery and inputs. But it won’t happen unless there is a monetary push by the government in providing cash incentives for orders through INTERNET out of the subsidy amount.

• Marketers will soon have to open INTERNET kiosks for selling their products at rural centres as some companies are already planning. These centres can either be managed by companies themselves or they could out source it.

• And after e-commerce catches up as a concept in Rural Marketing, companies will have to plan for service dealers aggressively for product demonstration, installation and after-sales-service. As one can only procrastinate e-commerce for a while and not reject it.

By Kamlesh Tripathi, positions held : former General Manager, Mahindra &Mahindta Ltd., Head Operations, Mahindra Shubh Labh Services Ltd., Head- Agri & Engines, Escorts Ltd., Vice President Reliance Retail (Writer and Author)

Yes it is; and may be for some more time to come, till the takeover of ‘farm mechanization’ is complete from end-to-end. And while reminiscing, admiring and complimenting the age old traditional asset of Indian agriculture- the devoted farm labour that worked generation after generation in the farmland, but is now scaling down the path let us understand the table below, etched out of the latest Indian Agriculture Census 2011 report. While the table is simple the message is all about a paradigm change.

CENSUS 2011 REPORT

PERCENTAGE SHARE OF DIFFERENT FARM POWER SOURCES IN INDIAN AGRICULTURE
YEAR AGRICULTURE WORKERS DRAUGHT ANIMALS TRACTORS POWER TILLERS DIESEL ENGINES ELECTRIC MOTORS POWER/KW/HA
1971-72 10.64 52.86 8.45 0.11 17.16 10.79 0.424
1981-82 9.2 33.55 18.46 0.11 22.85 15.82 0.592
1991-92 7.22 20.5 26.14 0.16 21.14 24.84 0.907
2005-06 5.39 9.97 38.45 0.44 20.09 25.66 1.498
2009-10 5.12 8.55 41.65 0.52 19.01 25.13 1.658

• Since 1971-72 the percentage share of agriculture work force has gone down from 10.64 to 5.12% which means a big chunk of 50% has moved away to either cities and or employment in other sectors. The figures, post 2010 are not out and therefore ascertaining the impact of MNREGA may be a miscalculation as of now. And the major impact however, has been between 1981 and 2005.

• And, similarly, but with a more aggressive intensity the percentage of draught animals has also come down from 52.86% to 8.55%. Most draught-animal farmers are small and marginal in the <2ha category or maximum medium. Therefore, maintaining these animals without proper land holding is becoming an extremely expensive proposition. For the cost of animal feed is constant or only going up but the work is seasonal and so the proposition is becoming less remunerative. And therefore the above table points to the reality of draught animals being gradually replaced by mechanization of the small and micro variety.

• And so the moot point that emanates out of the Indian Agriculture scenario is of coming down of life factors and up trending of mechanization.

• The usage of tractors has also gone up but the figure doesn’t talk of horse power trends where, 60, 45 and 35 HP category markets have largely been replaced by smaller HP categories such as 25 and 16. In fact states with high HP category industry such as Punjab, Gujarat, Maharastra, AP, TN, Karnataka and Kerala have also taken a switch to smaller HP category on account of reduction in land holding sizes. But where you have black cotton, clay soil that requires extra lugging power, the markets have continued in the domain of 35 HP and above. And also where you have sugar mills, and tractors are required for pulling double trolleys loaded with sugar cane; 35, 45 and 60 HP still rule the roost.

• The trends are also upward in case of Power tillers, which has grown quite insignificantly from 0.11% to 0.52%. The restricted growth has primarily been due to conservative marketing by small and medium players, no precise farmer training on farm economics and availability of alternative products, lack of industry cartel and even lack of focussed Government promotion to encourage micro equipment. But with the changing farm-profit trends this will catapult into a major industry by grabbing industry share from the tractor industry.

BUT WHERE IS THE WORK FORCE HEADING TO:

The major chunk of farm labour are the land less peasants who do menial yet critical farm operations such as weeding, transplanting, pesticide spraying, fertilizer application in row crops and are paid in kind.

With the percentage share of Indian agriculture declining in Indian GDP to fifteen percent, the ongoing high pressure of population’s dependence on agriculture and increasing fragmentation of land holdings leading to decreasing availability of cultivated land area per household; the availability of such seasonal jobs is becoming more and more, scarce.

Job opportunities in factories, infrastructure projects and services are becoming more lucrative. And also the advent of MNREGA that guarantees 100 days of work per annum has smothered the charm of working as a farm labourer.

India still spends almost half of her/his total expenditure on food while roughly half of India’s work force is still engaged in agriculture for its livelihood. Being both a source of livelihood and food security for a vast majority of low income, poor and vulnerable sections of society, its performance assumes greater significance in view of the proposed National Food Security Bill and the ongoing act of MGNREGA. And with this decrease in the availability of farm labour the cost of labour has also gone up. And also the cross country movement of labour for example from Bihar to other states such as Punjab has dried down.

The decrease in agriculture’s contribution to GDP has not been accompanied by a matching reduction in the share of agriculture in employment. About 52% of the total workforce is still employed by the farm sector which makes more than half of the Indian population dependant on agriculture for sustenance but the trend may change in times to come. However, within the rural economy, the share of income from non-farm activities has increased.

65% of India’s population is below 35 years of age: Knowledgeable and ambitious. They do not have the wherewithal to do donkeys work in the farm as their ancestors did. They, therefore, would like self- operated micro farm mechanization and would like status tag to be added to agriculture as an industry and end-to-end mechanization.

Trained labour shortage also encourages use of excessive weedicides and herbicides by farmers less trained in the activity that gets into the food chain resulting in increased health issues, like in some districts in Punjab groundwater is no more potable and cases of cancer rampant.

THE WAY FORWARD

The inevitable pressures of the Indian agriculture are only going to increase and the government needs to have a four cornered policy that takes care of the environment, farming viability, farm labour and productivity

• There is immediate need to have a cropwise, areawise farm profitability review. In this review each cost should be ascertained for the marginal and medium farmer.
• There is need to introduce micro cropping equipment to marginal and medium farmers for diversified critical cropping activities, more for self-farming, cost control and increase in productivity.
• Environment concerns should be addressed forthwith even it requires changing of cropping pattern. Like paddy in Punjab which requires heavy water consumption should be replaced with some other crop requiring less water and farmer profitability should accordingly be addressed
• Skill training to be imparted to farm labour for better farm economics, environmental concerns and certainty of employment for farm labourer.

BY KAMLESH TRIPATHI

‘Global’ is more muscle than ‘National’ and National more defining than the Local. ER (E-Rickshaw) is far becoming a global phenomenon. But for some, it is still the Galileo’s belief; however, its scintillating attributes have already started caressing nations to include it in the developing arc of their local confines.

But, for this to happen leaps and bounds, someone needs to sight the lodestar and steer the volatile ship of change. Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi in no uncertain terms has taken up the mantle of bringing about such a change; where he talks and talks about ‘Acchey din’ for one and all. But this will not happen in a vacuum.

For this humungous population of 1.3 billion you require at least one crore jobs each year to stay the course. And mind you 65% percent of our population is below 35 years of age where very few are brilliantly educated; and not many pull through the level of secondary education, and most certainly the majority is not skilled. So, you need a plethora jobs for such profiles of your population. And, with these loaded rudimentary statistics even the increased spin offs by existing behemoths and corporations will not deliver any delight. You certainly will require something different, maybe a breed of differently talented merchants, entrepreneurs, to bring about a paradigm shift of the wanted type.

As a concerned citizen of India I feel GOI (Government of India) should move in five thrust areas. One: promote entrepreneurship as all can’t be accommodated in jobs. Two: welcome products that have employment generation potential like the e-rickshaw through aggressive promotional schemes and by throttling resistance if any by vested camps and play it to merit. Three: ramp up eco-friendly products that earn carbon emission numbers. Four: provide convenience to its citizenry residing even in the last mile of connectivity. Five: move on fast pace as time is of essence.

And, therefore by all standards ER does foot the bill. Even though a distant cousin of a cycle-rickshaw, it holds up to human dignity as it moves with the power of an electric motor; and not pulled by human bones and muscles. A sturdy machine built on strong steel pipes, with a battery backup of 90-100 km per recharge and cruise speed of 20-25 km an hour, almost like a fast pedaled bicycle. Noiseless, non-polluting, hence superior to auto-rickshaws, with no clutch, gear and cheap maintenance with a carrying capacity of 4-6 people with a kerb weight of around 350-400 kg. All the three wheels are pulled by an electric motor ranging from 650-1400 watts. The product is a brain child of the dragon- agile China that combats any market with its cost prudent technology, quick responses to customer needs and the scheming competition.

ER is popular in many countries since 2008 and is nicknamed as TUK-TUK. From an eco-friendly green product to a staunch, has-to-be, viable alternative to Petrol-Diesel-CNG auto rickshaws; that pollute in varying and frightening degrees all the way.

Mighty India comprises of 676 districts, 5559 taluks and 638588 villages and a lot of it still remains uncovered, virgin in terms of last mile connectivity- a ‘Corporate Management’ term coined by some business thinkers; is where this vehicle can do wonders with its narrow wheel tread that can touch upon every constricted nook and corner. And in all sanity, these battery run ERs could be a low-emitter complementary transport for the low-income people, who suffer most from lack of transport facility; if introduced in a systematic manner, feel experts. And I also understand.

ER has already given employment to two-lakh e-rickshaw drivers in Delhi and that establishes my lifeline point of product having direct and indirect employment potential. Hailing it as nature friendly, even honourable High Court paid compliments by calling it a non-polluting and a vehicle with human dignity. But what I also gather is rather strange and shifty.

• Every e-rickshaw has to be approved by the government before the vehicle can operate in Delhi. But why every ER, is the big question? Why not the proto-type alone designed by any Company, on laid down specifications? For this is neither done in the case of bullock carts nor high tech automobiles. Sounds puerile and ominously bureaucratic. And then we talk of doing business in India with ease.

• The vehicle has to be insured and registered.

• ER drivers need to have a driving license as per a government notification on e-rickshaws. But then what about a cycle-rickshaw driver or for that matter a person pedalling a bicycle as both move on roads and a cycle rickshaw even carries passengers. A level playing field therefore should be thought of. Moreover, a special camp will be required to issue two lakh driving licences in Delhi alone; double bonanza for RTOs to mess around. What to talk of India.

• Stipulation that drivers should have at least studied till high school is quite a poignant paradox; to become a M.P. or a Cabinet Minister you require no qualification but to become an e-rickshaw driver you need to qualify high school standard.

• To get each e-rickshaw model approved, one has to pay rupees five lakh while the e-rickshaw only costs rupees eighty thousand. Sounds Orwellian. How will the poor owner pay this amount? This stinks and smells of immoral cartel instigation or bureaucratic sadism or even a devilish cocktail. And surely it will hurt manifold the young and poor youth of our country trying to etch out a square meal out of this trade. I am sure GOI is not sleeping and has food for thought.

To solve issues government should invite manufacturers and assemblers and lay down guidelines for ERs, under which they should submit prototypes for approval. This could be done in consultation with eminent players of the industry, automobile institutes, doyens of trade and even bureaucratic amalgamation as this will surely digress into a sensible solution. And, last but not the least I am more than sure.

GOI will make no mistake and will take this controversial bull by the horns as the issue involves and concerns myriads of employment seeking youth of our country; and where there is a will there has to be a fast way out.

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