Wed Jan 08 13:10:36 UTC 2025: ## Tirunelveli Farmers Market Faces Failure Due to Lack of Transportation
**TIRUNELVELI, January 8, 2025** – A farmers’ market in the NGO Colony of Palayamkottai, Tirunelveli district, is struggling to attract farmers, hindering its potential to serve the local community. While other markets in the region thrive due to dedicated bus services connecting them to vegetable-producing villages, the NGO Colony market lacks this crucial link.
Opened in 2022 with high hopes, the market’s prime location on Jeba Garden – Reddiyarpatti Road hasn’t translated into success. Instead of farmers directly selling their produce, the market is primarily occupied by traders. This is directly attributed to the absence of special bus services that transport farmers from villages such as Sivanthipatti, Kuththukkal, and others, which successfully supply other markets. These other markets offer a wide variety of produce, up to 51 types of vegetables and 16 types of fruits, directly from the farmers. The NGO Colony market, in contrast, offers a limited selection.
Local residents, like retired government employee A. Swaminathan, highlight the inconvenience, forcing them to travel to other markets to access a greater variety of fresh produce. He expresses hope that extending the bus services before the Pongal festival would benefit both farmers and consumers.
The Department of Agriculture acknowledges the problem, attributing the market’s failure to the lack of transport links. Officials state they will again request the transport authorities, through the Collector, to extend the special bus services to the NGO Colony market. The future of this market hinges on the resolution of this transportation issue.
First Piper 