Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Evaluating The Trends In Socio-Economic Development Through Rural Agribusiness Studiesedit
In the past few years, rural agriculture has emerged as one of the niche fields in the business world. Several entrepreneurs and organizations are now exploring agriculture from the business point of view to improve its production and facilities, allied sectors and quality of life of farmers.
Wheat import duty increased to 40%edit
The government has increased the import duty on wheat to 40% from 30% in a bid to boost offtake of domestically produced grain.
The decision, announced on Friday, comes in the backdrop of the government’s plan of sell wheat in the open market to offload excess grain from the storage units of Food Corporation of India and state agencies.
Farm production: Are we growing enough pulses?edit
Are we self-sufficient in pulses?” Peter Carberry, the director-general of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the Hyderabad-based institute, asked Narendra Pratap Singh, the director of Kanpur’s Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR), during his presentation earlier this month. Singh replied we are moving “towards” self-sufficiency. Although there has been a step up in the production of pulses to an average of 24 million tonnes in the past three years, Singh estimates the demand at about 32 million tonnes, which is why we import 5.5-6.5 million tonnes annually.
Revamping fertiliser-subsidy targeting will build on earlier reformsedit
The government has come a long way on fertiliser-subsidy reforms. Linking fertiliser sales to farmers’ Aadhaar—fertiliser companies are to be paid the subsidy amount on the basis of quantity sold to an Aadhaar-authenticated farmer—and the neem-coated urea scheme have taken care of, respectively, ghost beneficiaries and diversion of subsidised urea for non-farm purposes. But, the last mile of reforms—de-linking the subsidy from industry and adopting a targeted, direct transfer to farmers—needs to be walked. To that end, the NITI Aayog, along with the finance ministry, are working on a way to do this is a significant step forward.
Training to 2000 dairy farmers under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY)edit
It was under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal VikasYojana (PMKVY), a flagship scheme of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Government of India, for providing training to 2000 dairy farmers on job role dairy farmer/ entrepreneur to farmers of Punjab. This information was shared by Dr HK Verma, Director of Extension Education GADVASU. He informed that Vet Varsity organised 10 RPL training at GADVASU Ludhiana, Regional Research and Training Centre, (Talwara) and at village: Barsana, Jagraon and more than 300 farmers, have been trained till date.
Rahul promises ‘kisan budget’, law to prevent farmers going to jail for failing to repay loanedit
Congress president Rahul Gandhi Friday promised to introduce a separate “kisan budget” and bring a law to prevent farmers from being jailed for inability to repay farm loans.
Farm activists allege illegal Bt brinjal farmingedit
A crop survey has shown an Indian farmer has planted his field with an unapproved variety of genetically modified (GM) aubergines, an environmental voluntary group said Thursday.After years of trials, India in 2010 decided not to introduce the GM eggplant, or Bt brinjal, the Indian word for aubergine, following opposition from activists.
Technology in Agriculture
Govt mulls farmer groups for buying costly machinesedit
The agriculture department is in the process of organising farmers into groups, who can purchase expensive farming implements together using a government subsidy, said agriculture minister Vijai Sardesai. The groups can share the implements like automated harvesters, and also rent them out as a means of making additional income.
Stubble Burning
Elections 2019: Pollution becomes an issue with promises made in manifestosedit
Promises to fight the world’s most toxic air have made it to the manifestos of major political parties for the first time in Indian elections. Major political parties such as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, the opposition Indian National Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party have pledged to combat the crisis by taking measures ranging from setting deadlines, introducing new emission standards to promoting electric vehicles in a bid to fight toxic air.