Tribune India

THE main pillars of Punjab’s rural economy are the farmer, the landless labourer, the small-time traders and those involved in dairying and poultry. All these pillars have been hit hard by the prolonged curfew imposed amid the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Times Of India

Farmers of the state are reaping benefits of timely measures adopted by the Yogi Adityanath government for their welfare. The 21-day lockdown declared by the government to check spread of Covid-19 had come as a rude shock for farmers whose rabi crop was ready for harvesting. In western UP, lakhs of cane-growers, who had prepared fields for sowing of saplings, too, were facing an uncertain future as they did not know how to reach their fields as ban was imposed on the people’s movement because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Indian Express

In the midst of the Covid-19 outbreak and a nationwide lockdown, Telangana is gearing up for a bumper paddy harvest. As the unprecedented lockdown led to non-availability of agricultural labourers, the state opted for complete mechanization of the paddy harvest.

For this, the government will employ nearly 14,900 harvesters across the state. These will be “crowdsourced from the civil society”, said a top official in the Department of Agriculture and Co-operation.

Deccan Herald

India’s hinterland is suffering silently. Coronavirus may have spared it thus far but the sudden loss of income triggered by job losses of those who migrated to cities, is taking its toll. Those who chose to stay back in the countryside and are earning their livelihoods through agriculture, are forced to feed their produce, especially the perishables, to the cattle as the lockdown has halted their fruits and vegetables from reaching the urban markets.

Tribune India

THE months of March, April and May are the busiest for the farmers as they harvest the rabi crops, mainly wheat and mustard, and start sowing kharif crops such as paddy and cotton. With a good rabi season due to an extended winter, the farmers of Haryana were expecting that a bumper yield would help them get over past losses.

However, the lockdown imposed by the government in view of the coronavirus outbreak has come as a bolt from the blue for the farmers. The farmers are facing shortage of machinery and manpower for harvesting. The upcoming procurement will also be a tough job this time due to the labour shortage. Already in a tight spot, the ...

Indian Cooperative

The Union Government has granted a slew of exemptions and relaxations for Agriculture and Allied sectors with respect to the 21-day lockdown over the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak so as to ensure that the farmers do not suffer from any adverse fall out. In this regard, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs has issued the 4th Addendum to its notification invoking the Disaster Management Act.

As per the Addendum, shops of Agricultural machinery, its spare parts (including its supply chain) & repairs and shops for truck repairs on highways, preferably at fuel pumps, can remain open in order to facilitate transportation of farm produce. Besides, the tea industry, including plantations can function with a maximum of 50% workers.

The Hindu

Social distancing and living under a lockdown appear to be the only effective ways of dealing with the pandemic. As India lacks the resources to significantly ramp up testing, imposing a lockdown was the government’s preferred option. Although there is limited evidence to suggest that this strategy may be working in containing the spread of the virus, its after-effects on thousands of migrant workers is already out in the open. Distrustful of the government’s promise of providing support, most migrant workers decided to walk back to their home States despite efforts by the state machinery to prevent them from moving out.

Indian Express

The harvest of Rabi crop started on Sunday across Uttar Pradesh, even as instructions were given to officials to ensure that precautions are taken in view of the nationwide lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Principal Secretary (Agriculture) Devesh Chaturvedi wrote to district magistrates, SSP/SPs and police commissioners across the state asking them to ensure that precautions are taken.