The Hindu

About 15 agriculture regulated markets in the State are expected to join the electronic trading portal of National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) this year.

The New Indian Express

The Centre is likely to make sweeping changes in the upper echelons of the NITI Aayog, the premier planning think tank, in order to sharpen its focus on the economic agenda. This could happen when the Union Cabinet is expanded, which is expected to happen after the monsoon session of Parliament.

The Economic Times

Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh today exuded confidence that India will become self- sufficient in pulses and oilseeds production in the coming years with the government taking steps to boost yields through use of better quality seeds and technologies.

The Indian Express

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Sunday said the state government would invest Rs 4,000 crore in 15 drought-hit districts of Maharashtra to boost agriculture production and provide higher remuneration to farmers. The government also plans to lower the interest rate on crop loans provided by financial institutions to farmers.

India Today

“Farmers having the annual turnover of over Rs 10 lakh are excluded from the loan waiver scheme. The reason behind such bar is that those having higher income are basically earning from non-agricultural activities as well. As they have another source of income, they will be kept out of the loan waiver bracket. We want to offer loan waiver only to those farmers who are totally dependent on agriculture for their livelihood,” Fadnavis said.

The Indian Express

The state government’s decision to extend a fresh crop loan of Rs 10,000 to debt-ridden farmers whose previous loans up to Rs 1.5 lakh have been waived off has not received good response. The total disbursement of loan under the scheme has not exceeded Rs 2,300 crore in the last three weeks. The demand for the loan from the backward regions of Vidarbha and Marathwada has been higher compared to economically prosperous districts of western and north Maharashtra.

First Post

The Maharashtra government is developing a software to prepare the list of farmers eligible for crop loan waiver. The move is aimed at bypassing manual interference in list preparation, keeping a check on malpractices that crop up during the process and ensure that only eligible farmers reap the benefits of a loan waiver.

The Economic Times

India has informed the World Trade Organization (WTO) that it did not breach the permissible farm subsidy limit between 2011-12 and 2013-14. India recently submitted its farm subsidy details for these three years to the multilateral body.

The Times of India

In the 2016-17 budget, the union government’s allocated Rs. 51,000 crore to subsidy for urea alone. In addition, Rs 19,000 crore has been allocated as subsidy on other fertilisers. This 70,000 crore-figure has come down in the last 2-3 years but is still astounding not just as a percentage of GDP but also when compared to other social sector spending.

The Hindu

Dissent has crept in among agricultural scientists of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) over the possible release of genetically modified mustard.

The Hindu

Bt cotton costs more but is high yield and therefore more lucrative for farmers. When a new variety that is advertised as high yield comes, farmers will take to it for profits,” says Lakhwinder Singh, an agriculture expert at Punjabi University, Patiala. Many farmers also took to it as it was advertised as resistant to bollworm, a pest that affected cotton. However, Singh cautions, the pest resistance is only for three-four years.

The Hindu

Mr. Kesavan emphasised that using genetically-modified technology to produce hybrid seed varieties was a “failed experiment” as evidenced by the experience of Bt cotton. Though the latter occupied 95% of India’s acreage, its yields were on the decline since 2006, largely due to insect resistance, and that it nearly tripled the cost of producing cotton between 2006-2013, he argued in his letter, a copy of which was sent to the PM as well.

The Times of India

Farmer representatives from six states came together for a day-long discussion on how the scientist-farmer interface could be strengthened. The discussion was held at M S Swaminathan Research Foundation on behalf of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

Business Standard

Data furnished by the department of agriculture showed that till Friday, kharif crops have been sown in around 56.31 million hectares of land, which is almost 8 per cent more than the area covered during the same period last year.

The Economic Times

Acreage under kharif crops increased by 39 per cent in the last one week as crop planting picked up pace with adequate rainfall in most parts of the country. As of Friday, the total area under crops stood at 56.32 million hectares, up 8 per cent from 52.18 million hectares achieved a year ago, the agriculture ministry said.

The New Indian Express

Regional centres of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) at Mumbai and Pune gave wrong monsoon forecasts causing a grave loss to me and several other farmers across the state. This amounts to cheating and hence a case needs to be registered against the IMD, Thawre said in his complaint.

SME Times

Highlighting the importance of biofertilisers, the trade body said these are manufactured primarily by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and also provide farmers an option towards sustainable agricultural practices like organic farming. Besides, biofertilisers are highly beneficial as they are an alternative to chemical fertilisers that tend to spoil both soil and environment