Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Ramdas Athawale, today laid a foundation stone for Naga Mandi at Seithekema-A under Chumoukedima district, in the presence of Chief Minister of Nagaland, Neiphiu Rio.

The Naga Mandi is an agricultural initiative of Rural Agro Farms Limited Liability Partnership (RAF LLP) in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture.

RAF LLP has received a government permit to develop and operate a comprehensive agricultural mandi in Nagaland under the Build-Operate-Maintain Public-Private Partnership model. The facility, covering 10 acres, will include designated areas for grain (Anaj) and vegetable (Sabji) markets, aimed at enhancing agricultural trade, providing modern amenities, and boosting the state’s agrarian economy.

Key features of Naga Mandi include a fair and transparent marketplace for farmers to sell produce at competitive prices, improved market access, reduced post-harvest losses through efficient procurement, storage, and distribution, and infrastructure supporting economic growth in Nagaland, contributing to the state’s GDP.

The Mandi will feature 110 retail outlets for traders, 10 warehouses with a total capacity of 4,000 metric tonnes, 2 auction yards for transparent trading, 2 cold storage units with a capacity of 500 metric tonnes each, and Kisan Bhavan with both air- conditioning.