The New Madhavpura Market, as it is currently called, is the biggest in the state and has a turnover of more than Rs 600 crore. Traders said a big merchant has an annual turnover of Rs 5-15 crore, while small-timers generate a revenue of around one crore.
Traders, whose families have been in the business for three or more generations, say the market at Madhavpura has been functioning for over 100 years and it has grown bigger in the past three decades. Before moving to Madhavpura, the market functioned at Marchi Pol in the heart of the walled city, just beside Manek Chowk.
The place is still known as Marchi Pol because the market at that time mainly dealt in chilly. Traders here said almost all the spices arrive from other states, mainly Maharashtra, Guntur, Karnataka, Punjab and Bihar.
Traders then sell these spices to other smaller wholesalers of the state as well as retail shop owners. Traders said on an average, the combined transaction of all traders in the spice market is between 1.50 crore and 1.75 crore per day.
Almost all spices available in the country are traded at the Madhavpura market. Most of the spice traders have their shops in the Madhavpura area of the city, although many have now opened outlets in the western parts of the city.
