Indian retail market to touch $ 590 bl by 2012

Bangalore, Sep 25 (UNI) International Food Policy Research Institute Director (South Asia) Ashok Gulati today said Indian retail market was expected to grow at 13 per cent annually touching 590 billion dollars by 2012.

Stating it was really a great opportunity for the retail sector, particularly for organised players, to flourish, he said market had grown to 322 billion dollars in 2007.

Delivering the keynote address at a three-day annual conference of Indian Society of Agri-Business Management, organised by the University of Agricultural Sciences here, Dr Gulati said organised retail, accounting for just four per cent of the total retail pie at present, was estimated to grow at 50 per cent per annum and gain 16 per cent of the market share by 2012.

''Though the share of organised retail in total retail business was quite small compared to that in other countries, the pace of growth has been tremendous.

''While the other countries took decades to transform from traditional to organised retail, it might take the country a much shorter duration.

''Total food and grocery retail accounts for nearly 60 per cent of the aggregate retail. The organised segment accounts for less than one per cent of total retail,'' he added.

Urging amendment to the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee Act throughout the country, he said this would pave the way for organised retail and promote private marketing of agriculture produce.

It would also serve as an incentive to induce huge private investment and in turn, generate competition and benefit the farmers.

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