e-NAM Integrates 1,656 Mandis, Benefits Over 1.80 Crore Farmers with ₹4.82 Lakh Crore Trade Since Inception

India’s digital agriculture marketplace, the National Agriculture Market or e-NAM, has grown into one of the country’s biggest farm-trade platforms, with the government saying it has now integrated 1,656 mandis across 23 states and 4 Union Territories since its launch in 2016. Designed as an online trading platform linking physical wholesale agricultural markets, e-NAM aims to make farm trade more transparent, competitive, and wider in reach by connecting farmers to buyers beyond their local mandis.

According to the latest figures placed in Parliament, the platform had, as of 28 February 2026, registered 1.80 crore farmers, 2.72 lakh traders, and 4,724 Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs). Since inception, the total trade carried out through e-NAM has reached 13.22 crore metric tonnes of agricultural produce, with a cumulative trade value of ₹4,82,350 crore, underlining the scale at which the digital market has expanded in a decade.

The core promise of e-NAM is better price discovery for farmers. By enabling transparent online bidding and opening access to a larger pool of buyers across states, the platform is meant to reduce the limitations of localised markets and improve price realisation for agricultural produce. The government has also said that the system supports direct transfer of sale proceeds into farmers’ bank accounts, which adds a layer of efficiency and transparency to the trading process.

Infrastructure support has played an important role in this expansion. Under the e-NAM scheme, the Centre provides grant assistance of up to ₹75 lakh per mandi to states for strengthening the marketing and allied infrastructure needed for digital integration. This includes facilities such as quality assaying laboratories, electronic weighing systems, computers, printers, grading and cleaning units, packaging facilities, software support, and compost units.

The platform is also beginning to absorb newer technologies. In Rajasthan, for instance, 134 e-NAM mandis are now using AI- and ML-based machines for quality assaying of agricultural commodities, significantly reducing testing time. That is an important step because quality assessment has often been one of the most time-consuming and disputed parts of mandi trade, and faster, more reliable assaying could strengthen trust in digital transactions.

State-wise data in the official release shows that e-NAM’s footprint is both wide and uneven, reflecting different levels of adoption across India. Tamil Nadu leads with 213 integrated mandis, followed by Maharashtra with 181, Rajasthan with 173, Uttar Pradesh with 162, and Punjab with 156. In total, the platform has now linked markets across a broad national geography, from large agricultural states to smaller regions and Union Territories.

The trade data also shows where much of the activity has been concentrated. Rajasthan alone accounts for agricultural trade worth ₹1,30,772.69 crore on the platform, while Haryana has recorded ₹1,23,474.09 crore, making them among the biggest contributors by value. Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra also show large participation in terms of farmer registrations, volumes traded, or overall value, suggesting that e-NAM is becoming deeply embedded in several major farm economies.

What emerges from these numbers is that e-NAM is no longer just a policy experiment in digitising mandis; it is steadily evolving into a major layer of India’s agricultural marketing system. The real test, however, will be whether this scale continues to translate into better incomes, quicker transactions, and fairer market access for ordinary farmers. For now, the government is presenting the platform as a strong example of how digital infrastructure, when tied to physical markets, can reshape farm trade at a national level. The figures were shared in a written reply in the Lok Sabha by Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Bhagirath Choudhary on 17 March 2026

source: PIB