ABSTRACT
Around 700 million people, or 70% of India's population, live in 6,27,000 villages in rural areas. 90% of the rural population is concentrated in villages with a population of less than 2000. Rural marketing is as old as the civilization. Surplus of agro - products are exchanged in earlier days in the barter system. The introduction of currency, transport, and communication has increased the scope of rural market. This paper discusses the present scenario of rural marketing especially rural produce, and its importance, current trends, and highlights certain problems related to rural marketing. Further it highlights the improvements that make the rural marketing system most effective.
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RURAL AGRI - MARKETING IN INDIA - WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE IN INDIA
RURAL MARKETING
Rural marketing facilitate flow of goods and service from rural producers to urban consumers at possible time with reasonable prices, and agriculture inputs/ consumer goods from urban to rural. Marketing as a function has started much earlier when civilization started but not recognized as marketing. All economy goods are marketed in terms of goods and services (Barter system). Now money is being practiced as a good exchanging medium. The market may be a street, or a small town/ metropolitan city, Developments in infrastructure, transport, and communication facilities has increased the scope of the rural market.
Environment
The difference between rural and urban markets on the basis of various socio – economic factors, most dominant among them being the source of income, the frequency of receipt of income, the seasonal nature of income and consumption. Rural markets are small, non- contiguous settlement units of village relatively low infrastructure facilitates, low