Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Impoverishment of agriculture sector, loan waiver triggered protests: Expertsedit
The almost deliberate impoverishment of the agriculture sector by successive governments, which has translated into poor returns to farmers, and the recent loan waiver decision by Uttar Pradesh appear to have triggered massive protests in many states, including Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Farmers are struggling hard to meet their input expenses due to a drop in prices of agriculture produce, which agricultural experts attribute to the rising cost of farming, the haphazard use of fertlisers, and failed government policies over the years.
Farmers switch from paddy to pulses for better returnsedit
Like Samuel, 15 other farmers of the village are cultivating pulses after gradually diverting from paddy. The success story of Samuel and other farmers has led the Agriculture department to chalk out plan to increase pulses production by additional 5,022 tonnes during the ensuing kharif season. Pulses, including arhar, mung, biri, kulthi and other varieties will be cultivated on 35,800 hectares of land with a production target of 21,140 tonnes. The target last season for pulses was 16,118 tonnes.
C’garh announces “ 3,200cr interest-free loan for farmersedit
Amid raging farmers’ unrest across the country, Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh on Sunday announced that his government would extend Rs 3,200 crore as interest-free loan to the farmers this fiscal. Speaking at the 22nd episode of his “Raman Ke Goth” telecast on All India Radio, he said his government’s action plan to double the income of farmers included measures to reduce input cost of farming and increasing the yield. “I would like to tell farmers that they should work without any stress or tension,” he added.
Anger brewing among Uttar Pradesh potato farmersedit
Anger is brewing among farmers in this district on multiple scores including the issue of non-remunerative prices for potato and the longstanding dispute with farmers in bordering Haryana over some farmlands. The resentment has been simmering for several years but has flared up recently as Aligarh farmers feel that since both state governments belong to the BJP, there is no reason that it cannot be resolved by the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre.
Agriculture department to promote natural farmingedit
Joint Director of Agriculture, Guntur district, VDV Krupa Das said, “During the kharif this year, we will encourage the farmers to cultivate crops under nature farming in 26 clusters. The farmers have already cultivated crops under nature farming in 10 clusters during the last year. This year, another 16 clusters will be added.” He said apart from the awareness programme being conducted by Subhash Palekar, agriculture scientists too will give suggestions to farmers on natural farming.
Time to take farmers’ fight to national level’edit
Minutes after an inter-ministerial committee and farmer leaders agreed upon a complete loan waiver for farmers in Maharashtra, Swabhimani Paksha MP Raju Shetti, who heads the state’s largest farmer outfit, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana, announced that they would now take the fight to the doorsteps of the Narendra Modi government.
Approving GM Mustard would be wrong decision: Ex-Cabinet Secretaryedit
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Had we been aware of the ill-effects of the Bt Cotton, we would never have approved it, said T.S.R. Subramanian, who had recommended the Genetically Modified (GM) variety of cotton for commercial cultivation as Textile Secretary in the 1990s.