Impact Of Socio-Economic Aspects Of Consumers On Their Purchasing Behaviour In Rythu Bazaars Of Andhra Pradesh

Rythu Bazaar, the farmers’ market was a social initiative started by the government of Andhra Pradesh in 1999. The main aim of Rythu Bazaar is to help farmers bring and sell their produce directly to consumers without the involvement of middlemen. On the other hand Ruthu Bazaars help the consumers to purchase quality and fresh vegetables and fruits directly from the farmers who are producing these in their fields. Therefore, Rythu Bazaars allow consumers to have access to locally grown, farm-fresh produce, enable farmers to develop personal relationships with their customers, and cultivate consumer loyalty with the farmers who grow the produce. In this contest this paper aimed to study the impact of socio-economic aspects of consumers on their purchasing behaviour in Rythu Bazaars in general and Andhra Pradesh in particular. For this purpose East Godavari district has been selected and 6 selective Rythu Bazaars in different towns/ cities are considered for data collection directly from the consumers of these markers. Thus, from each Rythu Bazaar 50 samples of consumers on randomly selected and data was collected with the help of a structured questionnaire consist with opinions on facilities at Rythu Bazaars, reasons for purchasing vegetables and fruits from these markets. Thus, the opinions of consumers about various facilities at Rythu Bazaars revealed that majority group satisfied with the updated price list of vegetables at every stall, cleanly maintenance of market area, near to the residential areas, sufficient ventilation for each stall, toilets and drinking water facilities. In addition to this majority of consumers satisfied with sufficient dustbins for keeping garbage and sufficient labour force for carry heavy luggage. With reference to reasons for purchasing vegetables and fruits at Rythu Bazaars, it is found most of the consumers interested to purchase vegetables and fruits from these markets due to reasonable price compare to other markets, location near to the residential areas, scope to purchase directly from the farmers, price fixed by the government, availability of organic vegetables and suitable parking area for vehicles. In addition to the above majority of the consumers preferred to purchase at Rythu Bazaars due to availability of diverse products, less scope to bargain, availability of fresh and high quality products. Thus, it is recommended that the Rythu Bazaars should continue in every city, town and villages to facilitate the consumers to avail quality products with reasonable price.