In a charter of demands prepared by the Delhi Flower Cutters Growers and Suppliers Welfare Society to be presented to chief minister Shiela Dixit this week, the association has asked for a well-protected market place and modification of rules to suit the particular needs of this high-value perishable commodity.

Despite the fact that flowers from various parts of the country including Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Karnataka pour into the capital every morning, there is no arrangement to ensure the safety of this delicate cargo, says association president KL Yadav.

Speaking to The Financial Express, Yadav said that in the absence of a proper market place, the flowers find their place in the hot and dusty footpaths of Connaught Place, Mehrauli and Fatehpuri sub-yard. "Almost half of the flowers which come to the marketworth lakhs of rupees are destroyed everyday because of the heat."

Yadav says that the development of a well-covered flower market near the railway station can solve a lot of problems in one go. Firstly, because of cover from sun and rain, flowers would stay fresh for a longer time.

Secondly, proximity of the market to the railway station would minimise loss in transit as consignments could be unboarded from the trains and immediately sent to the market place without loss of time.

The problem with the government, according to Yadav, is that it focuses all its attention to growing of flowers but does nothing to promote its marketing. "Because of government's numerous incentives to farmers, a large number of farmers take up flower cultivation. But when they find out how difficult it is for them to sell their produce, they back out".

Yadav says that the government keeps harping about increasing flower exports but does noting to improve the domestic market. "The authorities don't understand that withouta strong domestic base, exports cannot rise."

Rajiv Kapoor, another flower trader, says that the government officials bring farmers to the flower market in the peak winter months and paint a false picture to them about the profitability of the business. "It is only when the farmers actually enter the line they find out how hard it is for them to eke out a living."

Kapoor says that when flowers start rotting in the heat in the open markets, farmers are forced to offer their produce at prices much below their cost of production.

Flower traders, who sell their wares on the footpaths, should be allowed to build kiosks at the very places they presently occupy so that their business gets a new direction and farmers get an assured supply of income, says Yadav. "The Delhi government too will benefit from the move as increased sales would result in increased tax collection for them."

The decision to grant licenses to wholesale flower sellers has further complicated matters, says Yadav. "We are not against thelicense system. But we don't want to be judged against the same parameters that are being used for grain and vegetable merchants. We are dealing in commodities which have a very short shelf life. This fact should be taken into consideration while framing rules for us."

Harassment by railway and traffic police is another problem which flower growers and traders have to face. Yadav says that the railway police don't allow the release of consignments till their palms are greased. "Unnecessary delay at the railway stations causes immense loss to the business as flower trading lasts for only 2-3 hours," says Yadav.

As flowers are not brought into the market by individual farmers in a large quantity, the ones who bring it by road prefer to use their own vehicles instead of trucks, says Mukesh Tyagi a flower trader in Connaught Place.

"The police stops the vehicles and asks unnecessary questions just to harass them."

Yadav says that the government should come out with regulations that would prevent thelaw-keepers from engaging in malpractices.

Though the picture painted by the association is grim, flower growers and traders have not lost heart. With the chief minister of Delhi willing to lend a sympathetic ear to their problems and promising to provide support, traders are optimistic that things would improve.