Russia and India Report

The Indian government has asked wheat exporters from Russia, France and Ukraine to fumigate their cargoes with methyl bromide, an insect control gas that is formally banned in these countries. Previously, food shipments were fumigated at India’s ports, and now New Delhi has put an end to this practice.

Money Control

India needs to make significant investments in modernisation of agriculture as well as food processing if the country wants to double farmers’ income by 2022, German ambassador Martin Ney said. The German companies could help India immensely in transforming the agri-business in the country, he said.

Money Control

The Maharashtra Government has taken a slew of measures to double farmer income in the next five years and address the issue of agrarian distress, said Governor Vidyasagar Rao. The state remains a preferred destination for foreign investment as it accounted for 50 percent of the total FDI inflow in India in the past six months, he said.

The Hindu Business Line

The Budget was expected to provide agriculture with a shot of intravenous adrenaline. What we got, instead, was familiar lines. The finance minister’s offer consisted in the main of agricultural credit, crop insurance and electronic trading platforms. The farmer would dearly love to see electronic trading eliminate middlemen, but when and how would this happen? What is on offer is not some gritty action but expression of intent, which is already old hat. The farmer does, of course, need credit, but how would he pay it back without a decent price for his produce? Insurance, finally, is a complete no-no.

The Hans India

The Congress found fault with the Minister for Roads and Buildings Tummala Nageswara Rao for criticising the AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh. Speaking to media persons here on Tuesday, Congress Legislature Party Deputy Leader Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy said Tummala who himself hails from agriculture family should not have criticised Singh for pointing out the issues faced by the farming community.

Hindustan Times

In order to give a boost to the farm sector, the Haryana government has announced an increase of 19% in the budget allocation for agriculture and allied sector. An outlay of Rs 3,206 crore has been proposed in 2017-18 against Rs 2,699crore in revised estimates for 2016-17. The allocation includes Rs 1,516 crore for agriculture, Rs 747 crore for animal husbandry, Rs 397 crore for horticulture, Rs 458 crore for forests, and Rs 89 crore for fisheries, finance minister Capt Abhimanyu said, presenting his third consecutive budget in the state assembly.

The Hindu

Breaking the silence on the state of agriculturists, the Supreme Court has stepped in to call for relevant governmental addressal of agriculturists’ issues. The Supreme Court is right in calling for appropriate policies that prevent the epidemic of suicides instead of the post-facto provisioning of compensation. More particularly, what the Court has highlighted is that the institutions that should be catering to the needs of agriculturists have failed to do so, for the very fences that should protect crops have now turned rapacious.

Business World

Mallika Srinivasan stepped into her father’s shoes to become the Chairman and CEO of TAFE and its subsidiary TAFE Motors and Tractors (TMTL) after her father A Sivasailam’s demise. Today, she is known as a thought leader and a strategist and widely recognised for her contribution to Indian agriculture machinery business and academia.

Greater Kashmir

Women constitute about 49% of our population & play multiple roles and responsibilities not only   for food production & processing but also for their household duties. In the present era of agriculture farm women take up an active role in farming, higher farm production and productivity. Women have a bright future in the field of agriculture as it is an evergreen profession & involves much scope for future.