CONTEXT AND IMPLICATIONS OF E CHOUPAL IN INDIA

e-choupal was formed in a context when ITC experienced inefficiencies and delays due to
the long chain of intermediaries involved in traditional procurement of crops from the
farmers. Due to the involvement of too many middlemen, goods often deteriorated in quality.
The middlemen were using unscientific means to gauge the quality of the product to set the
price
  e‐Choupal enabled ITC to create an alternate procurement channel to buy directly from the
farmers and reduce dependence on its commission agents.
 Online access enables farmers to obtain information on mandi prices, and good farming
practices, and to place orders for agricultural inputs like seeds and fertilizers.
 This helped farmers improve the quality of their products, and helps in obtaining a better
price.
 ITC could get higher quality products in a timely manner.
 The exploitative power of the middleman was eliminated
 The e-Choupal platform helped the farmers gain access to critical agriculture-related
information, and could also support online market transactions.
 By enabling control over price and quality e choupal helped to increase operational
efficiency.
 It created product and process differentiation
 It increased entry barriers for new entrants