Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Group farming model has not made inroads in Palgharedit
Maini Devja Korda, a tribal resident of Vikrangad taluka, set out in search of work in neighbourhood agriculture land. If she managed work for eight to 12 hours, it helped her earn Rs 250. Otherwise, she would have to rely on the agriculture produce from the village farm.
Community farming to be revived at St Estevamedit
The state’s farming community, which has been on the decline in recent years, has reason to rejoice. Innovating with space, the practice of community farming, wherein multiple members of the farming community join hands to cultivate land together, will soon get a boost.
Creating a national agriculture marketedit
In its 2014 Lok Sabha election manifesto, the BJP promised to evolve a single national agriculture market (NAM) in the country, with a view to enable farmers to get a better price and for consumers to pay a lower price for agri-produce, a win-win situation at both ends of agri-value chains. After four years, it is only legitimate to ask how far the government has moved on this front. The short answer is very little. An overwhelming majority of farmers still rely on the same broken system of markets under APMC, which is monopolistic and rent-seeking, with high commissions, especially for perishables.
Enterprising farmers process, market agriculture productsedit
A group of enterprising farmers in Muktsar have formed farming clubs to make agriculture more profitable by processing and marketing their produce. Now with the support from National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard), 40 local farmers have come together under the banner of SanjhFarmer Producer Company and have opened Sanjh store at Muktsar.
State unenthusiastic about Centre’s new contract farming law, calls it anti-farmeredit
The Centre and state government seem to be on collision course on the draft contract farming and services law, approved by the BJP-led NDA government early last week. Kerala Agriculture Minister V S Sunil Kumar told Express several provisions in the new draft law were against farmers and alleged the law was framed to suit the multinational corporations (MNCs) and big Indian corporate houses. “We don’t think the new contract farming law would help farmers in the state.
Centre has given maximum support to state, says CM Devendra Fadnavisedit
The Centre has provided maximum benefit, both in terms of policy and financial support, to Maharashtra with allocations for irrigation projects alone worth Rs 36,000 crore, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Sunday.He said the financial package to tackle the recurring drought works to Rs 8,000 crore. Whereas, allocations for railway projects for suburban Mumbai alone was Rs 40,000 crore, he added.
Farmers for policy initiatives to mitigate agricultural crisisedit
Farmers from the region have come out with a 10-point agenda for the new coalition government in the State to ensure the welfare of cultivators and mitigate agricultural distress.The Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) and Hasiru Sene have sought to remind the Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy of his pre-election promise of a loan waiver. They sought an immediate announcement in this regard and the implementation of others measures as long-term solutions to the crisis plaguing the agricultural sector.
From Plate to Plough: Pieces of a marketedit
In its 2014 Lok Sabha election manifesto, the BJP promised to evolve a single national agriculture market (NAM) in the country with a view to enable farmers to get a better price and consumers to pay a lower price for agri-produce, a win-win situation at both ends of the agri-value chain. After four years, it is only legitimate to ask how far the government has moved on this front. The short answer is very little. An overwhelming majority of farmers still relies on the same broken system of markets under the APMC, which is monopolistic and rent-seeking, with high commissions, especially for perishables.
Panchayats key to farm incomeedit
Development of suitable mechanism at gram panchayat level to provide agriculture technology and services to farmers will be a vital step to ensure quicker technology transfer for the development of agriculture and allied sectors, according to the Centre’s Department of Agricultural Research and Education secretary Trilochan Mohapatra.
MAX ATTENTION HAS TO BE PAID TO AGRICULTURE: CMedit
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that maximum attention has to be paid on agriculture for the overall development of the state. Keeping this in mind, better implementation of various schemes concerning irrigation, modern farming besides farmers’ welfare is being ensured at ground level. Chouhan was addressing farmers at MP Shreshtha Krishi Kranti programme held at Indore on Sunday.
SC to hear bonded labourers’ plea for grant of landedit
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea filed by 38 families living in bonded labour in Madhubani district of Bihar, seeking direction for grant of ownership and possession of agricultural land for their rehabilitation.The 101 victims of the “Kamiya” bonded labour system — who have been exploited in multi-generational agricultural labour for several years — approached the court, seeking direction to the Madhubani District Magistrate to grant ownership and possession of land to them, in compliance with the Patna NHRC order of September 12, 2017.
The wait for deep agricultural reformsedit
Amidst expectations of a magical transformation of the Indian economy, the Narendra Modi government took over the reins in May 2014. During the election campaign, people were led to believe that the Gujarat model of agricultural development, which delivered 8% growth in agriculture during fiscal years 2003-14, would be replicated in the country. Out of the government’s four years , FY15 and FY16 were affected by drought and it did well to manage the crisis. A number of welcome initiatives have been launched in the last four years, including schemes for crop insurance, irrigation, soil testing, electronic national agricultural market (e-NAM), and use of Aadhaar for the public distribution system (PDS) and purchase of fertilizer. While ...
In Maharashtra’s arid Solapur, many farmers are prospering by growing drumstickedit
Its 8 am on a hot morning in May and Bala Shivaji Patil’s four-acre farm in Uplai Khurd village of Maharashtra’s Solapur district is already teeming with visitors. The 30-year-old dropped out of high school to take up farming and is now known as lakhpati shetkari, the rich farmer. He is showing his guests, many from distant places, around the farm, explaining how shewga (also known as moringa or drumstick) has brought prosperity to his six-member family. It has cost him little effort, investment and little irrigation.
Private firms reap gold from PM Modi’s crop insurance schemeedit
Insurance companies have struck gold with the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) — the ambitious crop insurance scheme meant to help the distressed farmers in the country.While insurance companies earned a gross premium of Rs 22,180 crore, they paid out only about Rs 12,949 crore as claims to the farmers, according to the Ministry of Agriculture’s data for last year.
Rythu Bandhu to bring more area under ploughedit
The Rythu Bandhu scheme will, in all probability, result in increased area coming under cotton and soyabean cultivation which will also mean more area under redgram as it is an intercrop. Agriculture experts are of the opinion that the increase, to whatever extent it is, would be seen more in the Agency and backward areas of Adilabad and Kumram Bheem Asifabad districts where individual farmers would bring under cultivation some extent of their fallow lands.
Despite all efforts, Punjab farmers yet to shun stubble burningedit
Despite the tough stance adopted by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), various courts and persistent efforts being put in by state agencies to curtail crop residue burning, the Punjab farmers are still continuing with the practice. Last year, a total of 13,441 instances of stubble burning during the wheat harvest had been detected using satellite imagery, where an environmental compensation of Rs 61.47 lakhs had been imposed. This year, the state authorities have spotted 11,005 cases of stubble burning till May 22. Fresh figures are still awaited.
Climate-proofing Indian agricultureedit
Climate change has perhaps posed the most extreme challenges that agriculture in India and across the world has to deal with today and in the future. There is now scientific consensus that the world is getting warmer due to climate change and such increasing weather variability and worsening extremes will impact the agriculture sector more and more adversely.
Horticulture output up 2.2 pc at 307.2 MT in 2017-18edit
Horticulture production is estimated to have risen by 2.2 per cent to 307.2 million tonnes (MT) during 2017-18, according to agriculture ministry.Fruits output is estimated to be 2 per cent higher at 94.4 million tonnes, while the production of vegetables is up 2.2 per cent at about 182 million tonnes in 2017-18 as against the previous year, an official statement said today.
Kisan leaders meet Prez, demand Spl Par session over farmer suicidesedit
Raising their concern over increasing number of farmer suicides and other agriculture related problems, Members of the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee(AIKSCC) on Monday met President Ram Nath Kovind and called on him to summon a special session of the Parliament on the serious issue.
No change in the GST law and taxation relating to farmers since July 2017edit
Ministry of Finance has stated that there has been no change in the GST law and taxation relating to farmers since July 2017, when GST was implemented. Support services to agriculture, forestry, fishing or animal husbandry are exempt from GST.
GST alert: No Goods and Services tax on agriculturists; check FinMin detailsedit
The finance ministry today clarified that renting or leasing of land by farmers for agriculture, forestry, fishing or animal husbandry is exempt from the GST. Clarifying on the applicability of GST on farmers, the ministry said support services to agriculture, forestry, fishing or animal husbandry are exempt from the Goods and Services Tax (GST).