India to offer price forecasting mechanism to neighbouring countries

livemint.com:

Mint on 29 October reported that the government was planning to create an AI-based real-time supply and demand prediction model for agricultural commodities that will factor in externalities like weather and trade-related measures. The move came after a patchy monsoon disrupted kharif crops, impacting the sowing and vegetative seasons, amid a forecast by economists for farm output growth in 2023-24 to be slower. The tool makes use of previous data, which makes it “so effective that if we want to see the price pattern of mustard oil in Hooghly for the last 10 years, it can be done in just three clicks", Singh said.

As of now, the government collects price data for 22 commodities from 550 places and three data sources daily. The government's price monitoring cell which runs this technology is being merged with price stabilization fund (PSF), the consumer affairs secretary said. The PSF is aimed building up buffer stocks of key food commodities, which are then selectively released into the open market in order bring down prices.

“Price monitoring cell and PSF are being merged because they are part of the same paradigm. Before stabilizing prices, you must know prices. This is in line with the PM’s ‘whole-of-government’ approach that merges small things to have logical verticals.

To manage the price, you need to know the price first." “Price monitoring cell will be part of PSF, and the fund will be allocated under this. It will also give us more flexibility. Suppose I want to make a big shift in terms of the use of high-tech, I go to the finance department again.

Here is a pass to a big basket. So, we can be more independent, and more flexible. It is just an integrated approach," Singh added.