e-Applications in Indian Agri-Food Supply Chain: Relationship among Enablers

Abstract

Information technology (IT) enablement helps in improving the agri-based Indian economy by focusing on supply-chain systems. This article aims at finding out the enablers of e-Applications in the Indian agri-food supply chain. Enablers were identified using secondary sources. These enablers were checked for relevance using a questionnaire that was surveyed among experts. Mutual relationship was developed among these enablers using interpretive structural modelling (ISM). ISM is applied to present a multilevel hierarchical model of identified enablers and a digraph, which shows their driving power and dependence. The study shows that there are certain enablers having strong driving power. From the hierarchy model, the enabler 'continuously decreasing cost of hardware' was found to have maximum driving power, which will further support other enablers for implementing IT applications in supply chain of Indian agri-food industries. All these enablers have their strategic importance for promoting usage of IT to serve the people and to improve the Indian agrarian economy. The paper is a blend of theoretical and practical applications, which employs structural analysis to draw an interventional roadmap to facilitate e-Applications in a supply chain. This paper provides a useful tool to supply-chain managers to differentiate between independent and dependent variables of e-Application interventions and their mutual relationship, which would help them to focus on those key variables that are most important for effective e-Applications in the agri-food supply chain. The IT enablers presented in a hierarchy model with their driving power and dependence rate is a unique effort made by the researcher in the area of Indian agri-food supply-chain management system. The use of IT is very useful for the common good of the society, which is not possible unless agriculture sector of India uses it for maximum benefit. © 2013 IMI SAGE Publications.