Now, check veggie prices in Punjab on your mobile phones

e-PMB app is available on both Android Play Store and Apple App Store

Checking the prices of vegetables at your local apni mandi is now just a few clicks away with the launch of the e-PMB app by the Punjab Mandi Board (PMB).

City residents can also use the app to check the locations of apni mandis on a certain day. (HT file photo)

Launched by PMB chairman Laal Singh on January 8, the app, which has already been downloaded over 5,000 times, provides a daily list of prices of vegetables and fruits at main mandis in Punjab’s 22 districts and apni mandis in 19 districts, including Chandigarh.

City residents can also check the locations of these markets via a map, with information of the market in-charge’s name and phone number.

The app also aims to keep a tab on the attendance and movement of mandi employees.

PMB vice-chairman Vijay Kalra said the app will also provide information on incoming produce, its quality and quantity, and purchasers thereon.

PUNJABI VERSION NEEDED

Parlad Singh, president of the apni mandis of the city, said he was not tech-savvy himself, but several young farmers had started using the app. “Currently, we are offloading the winter harvest. Through the app, farmers can see the prevailing price for the crop, helping them rake in more profits. However, the app should have a Punjabi version too.”

One of the farmers using the app, Lakhwinder Singh from Tonga village, New Chandigarh, said the app helped him schedule which crop to bring to the mandi. “As the app gets updated in the morning every day, it helps farmers decide which crop will fetch the best price on that day,” he added.

AWARENESS CAMPAIGN UNDERWAY

“The board has launched a campaign to spread awareness about the app. Besides, we have put up banners to educate visitors. I personally inform customers about the app whenever I spot them looking at the rate lists displayed at the mandis,” said Satish Kumar, a mandi supervisor for PMB.

EASY ACCESS

e-PMB app is available on both Android Play Store and Apple App Store

No login information is required to access the mandi rates available under “Mandi” icon on the app’s home screen

Choose between main mandi and apni mandi, and then the city/district

Choose between fruit or vegetable icon, which will present a list of the fruits and vegetables in season and their prices for the day

Another icon “Mandi Locations” will present a weekly schedule of the mandis as per location.