New Delhi, Apr 14 (IANS): Twenty-five key commodities, including wheat, paddy, maize, onion, jowar, bajra, groundnut, potato, soyabean and mustard seed, have been selected for e-trading under the National Agriculture Market e-market platform to be launched from Thursday.

The platform, e-NAM, will be launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital.

The scheme is sanctioned with a budget allocation of Rs.200 crore with the aim to integrate 585 regulated markets with the common e-market platform by March 2018, union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told reporters here.

Singh said that many states and union territories expressed their willingness to join e-NAM.

Singh said of the proposals, 21 mandis from eight states -- Gujarat, Telangana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh -- have been selected for the pilot launch of project.

Other items to be included for e-trading are chana, castor seed, barley, arhar, urad, masoor, moong, red chilli, cumin, cotton, apple, turmeric, shelling peas, mahua flower and tamarind.

Uttar Pradesh with six mandis will have maximum such facilities followed by Telangana with five mandis.