How to use e-SANTA Platform: Help Aqua Farmers & Marine Produce Buyers

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has launched an e-commerce platform e-SANTA to help farmers. The term e-SANTA means Electronic Solution for Augmenting NaCSA Farmers’ Trade-in Aquaculture. This paperless end-to-end electronic trade platform between farmers and exporters will help aqua farmers get better prices and exporters to directly purchase quality products from the farmer. This article explains the process to use the e-SANTA platform.

Features of e-SANTA

• e-SANTA is a digital bridge to end the market divide and will act as an alternative marketing tool between farmers & buyers by eliminating middlemen.
• Farmers will have the freedom to list their products and quote their price while exporters will have the freedom to list their requirements and choose the products based on their requirements such as desired size, location, harvest dates.
• The Platform is available in many languages, which will help the local population.

Benefits to Farmers

• e-SANTA will raise income, lifestyle, self-reliance, quality levels, traceability, and provide new options for aqua farmers by:
• • Reducing Risk
  • Awareness of Products & Markets
  • Increase in Income
  • Shielding Against Wrong Practice
  • Ease of Processes
• It will enable the farmers and buyers to have greater control over the trade and enables them to make informed decisions.
• The new platform will provide a cashless, contactless, and paperless electronic trade platform between farmers and exporters.
• e-SANTA can become a tool to advertise collectively the kind of products the buyers, fishermen, and fish-producing organizations are harvesting.
• The new portal will help farmers in India & internationally to know about the availability of the product and has the potential of becoming an auction platform in the future.

Prescribed Authority

The National Centre for Sustainable Aquaculture (NaCSA) is an extension arm of the Kochi-based Marine Products Export Development Authority, under the Ministry of Commerce is the prescribed authority.

Trading through e-SANTA

e-SANTA is a paperless end-to-end electronic trade platform between farmers and exporters. Farmers have the freedom to list their products and quote their price while exporters have the freedom to list their requirements and choose the products based on their requirements such as desired size, location, harvest dates.

The platform will provide a detailed specification of each product listing and is backed by an electronic payment system with NaCSA as an escrow agent.

• After crop listing and online negotiation, a deal is struck, advance payment is made and an estimated invoice is generated.
• Once the harvest date is fixed, the buyer goes to the farm gate and the produce is harvested in his presence.
• After the harvest, the final count, quantity of material is verified, the final amount is decided, and the delivery challan is issued.

Once the material reaches the processing plant, the final invoice is generated and the exporter makes the rest of the payment. This payment is reflected in the escrow account. NaCSA verifies it and accordingly releases the payment to farmers.

Eligibility Criteria to Register in e-SANTA

Any Farmer or Exporter who got already registered with Marine Products Export Development Authority can register on the e-Santa portal.

e-SANTA for Farmers

The platform runs completely on an electronic mode and all the payments will be routed to Farmers bank accounts through an administrator.

e-SANTA is flexible to farmers. Farmers can list their crop(s) with estimated quantities and on the harvest date exact quantity will be updated and payments will be adjusted accordingly.

When a Buyer confirms the order they will pay 25% as advance and after the Harvest is completed i.e T+1 (Transaction Day + 1) rest of the payment will be released by the Buyer. NACSA will hold this fund in its escrow account and release the same post verification. Typically in 24hrs from the time, it receives the fund. Excluding Weekends, Government Holidays & Bank Holidays.

Farmers Registration in e-SANTA

The procedure to register Farmers Registration in e-SANTA is listed as follows:

• • The farmer needs to provide the User Name and Password associated with MPEDA to log in to the Portal.he farmers need to access the home page of e-SANTA and click on the Login option. The link will redirect to the new page.
    

    e-SANTA – Homepage

   

  • After login to the Portal, the system will automatically fetch the list of certificates associated with the export of Marine Products.
  • Farmers can select the appropriate certificates and click on submit button to proceed further.
  • Automatically all details will be fetched by the system and the farmer needs to furnish additional details such as Name, agribusiness details, and bank details.
  • After accepting the terms and conditions, the farmer/farmer can submit the online registration form.
  • The system will redirect to the payment section where the farmer can make the payment to complete the registration process.
  • After making the payment, the form will redirect to e-SANTA associates. The associate will verify and approve the registration process.
  • Once the farmer receives the confirmation mail, log in to the e-SANTA portal.

  e-SANTA for Exporters

  • The exporter should have Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) Registration to register in e-Santa.
  • e-Santa provides a 360-degree view of the crop including the lab reports and certifications of the product which gives assurance on the quality of the product.

  Click here to know about the MPEDA Registration Process

  • e-Santa won’t release the payments directly to farmers before Exporter takes over the produce. e-Santa holds the advances and payments in an escrow account till the transaction got settled and accepted by both parties.
  • In case the product quantity is lesser than the quantity specified on the eSanta website,  the Government will do settlement of payments by adjusting the payments as per actual counts Vs Quantity post-harvest. And any excess payments, in this case, will be refunded back to the Exporters Designated Bank account.

  Exporters Registration in e-SANTA

  The procedure to register the exporters in the e-SANTA portal is as follows:

  • The exporters need to access the home page of e-SANTA and click on the Login option. The link will redirect to the new page.
  • As mentioned above, the exporter needs to provide the User Name and Password associated with MPEDA to log in to the Portal.
  • After login to the Portal, the system will automatically fetch the list of certificates associated with the export of Marine Products.
  • Exporters can select the appropriate certificates and click on submit button to proceed further.
  • Automatically all details will be fetched by the system even though the exporter needs to furnish additional details such as Name, export business details, and bank details.
  • After accepting the terms and conditions, the exporter/buyer can submit the online registration form.
  • The system will redirect to the payment section where the buyer can make the payment to complete the registration process.
  • After making the payment, the form will redirect to e-SANTA associates. The associate will verify and approve the registration process.
  • Once the buyer receives the confirmation mail, log in to the e-SANTA portal.