TRADE AND COMMERCE

WHOLESALE TRADE

Cotton, groundnut and banana are the important commercial crops in jalgaon district, while mug, udid, coriander, chillies, gul, jowar and bajri are supplementary cash crops. Jalgaon, Amalner, Chalisgaon, Pachora. Bhusawal and Bodwad are the important wholesale markets for groundnut and cotton, Savda, Nimbhora. Bhusawal and Shendurni are large exporting centres of banana. Jalgaon, Amalner and Pachora are famous for wholesale trade in mug, udid and coriander, while Amalner, Varangaon, Bodwad and Mehunbare are markets for chillies.

Agricultural produce is generally brought by the agriculturist in the assembling markets wherein commission agents purchase it on behalf of outside traders or local traders, owners of oil-mills and gins.

The following chart shows the way in which transactions in agricultural produce in this district take place: —

Agriculturist                                                              Petty Trader
|_______________________________________________|
|
Assembling Market
_______________________|________________________
|                                        |                                         |
Wholesale Trader                      Mill or Gin                 Commission Agents
______|______                                                                        |          
|                      |                                                                                   
Retail                Semi-                                                          Outside Trader,
Trader             whole-saler                                                   Mill or Gin Owner

The table below shows the volume of various commodities handled at important trade centres in the district in 1956-57: —

TABLE No. 16

VOLUME OF TRADE HANDLED AT WHOLESALE TRADE CENTRES

MARKET PLACES.

Periodical bazars are held at the places mentioned below. These bazars are usually attended by villagers from the neighbouring villages and commodities such as grains, spices, vegetables, etc., are exchanged. The following list shows the taluka-wise distribution of places where periodical bazars are held: —

VILLAGE TRADERS

Most of the trade in rural areas is handled by village shop-keepers. Every village has more than one shopkeeper supplying day-to-day necessaries of villagers. The table below shows the estimated number of shops in the district: —

TABLE No. 17

TALUKAWISE DISTRIBUTION OT RETAIL SHOPS IN RURAL AREAS OF JALGAON DISTRICT

Chalisgaon taluka with a total of 772 shops has the highest number. Next comes Yawal taluka with 688 shops. The average for the district comes to about 4 shops per village. Yawal taluka has an average of 8.6 shops per village which is the highest in the district. Raver has the lowest average of 1.2 shops per village.

Except grain, which he buys from local producers, the village shopkeeper draws his stock-in-trade from the neighbouring towns on credit basis. His stock-in-trade includes grain, spices, cocoa-nuts, washing soap, tea, coffee, tobacco, betel-nut, chillies, gul, sweet oil, cocoanut oil, salt, match-boxes, bidis, kerosene, petty medicines and other miscellaneous commodities. Shops in larger villages sell cloth, medicines, stationery and cutlery goods. Transactions are generally made on a cash basis. But credit facilities are also given. Dues are usually paid at harvest time. Village shopkeepers also act as moneylenders.

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