Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Set up paddy drying machines and temporary huts at paddy procurement centers; Sixty B. Marriage letter to the firstedit
Sixty P. Kalyanam, general secretary of the Cauvery Delta District Federation of Agricultural Associations, has demanded that steps be taken to set up temporary huts and install wet paddy drying machines to facilitate unrestricted paddy procurement at paddy procurement centers .
This is stated in the letter he sent to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu today:
“In the Cauvery delta districts, the pre-harvest season, which was planted in April and May through drainage pipes, has started in full swing. Therefore, we need to open more direct paddy procurement centers to facilitate the completion of paddy procurement without delay. To date, there are very few purchasing centers.
Modi’s free food grain scheme reaches doorsteps of poor, migrant labourers amid unprecedented crisisedit
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana’ is successfully reaching the doorsteps of the weaker sections of society. While the states have lifted about 118 LMT (99 per cent) food grains from FCI depots or the central pool, they have distributed over 111.52 LMT (93.5 per cent) of allocated food grains during April-June 2020, according to the Food Corporation of India. On the back of an unprecedented crisis led by the coronavirus pandemic, the Modi government rolled out a special scheme to provide free food grains to about 81 Crore National Food Security Act (NFSA) beneficiaries covered under Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and Priority Householders (PHH) in March 2020.
The government pledged to provide 5 kg ...
Karnataka shows signs of recovery in some areas of economyedit
With Karnataka stepping out of the lockdown, signs of recovery were witnessed in some areas of the State economy such as registration of vehicles, e-way bills and consumption of electricity.
50% farmers fail to renew loan accountsedit
About 50% farmers from Nashik district are losing the prompt repayment interest (PRI) subvention as they fail to clear the interest amount in their accounts annually. “With the central government announcing 3% interest waiver on crop loan of upto Rs 3 lakh if the farmers renewed the accounts with the banks on annual basis in which they just have to clear the outstanding interest amount. But, the farmers are losing this valuable input from the government,” pointed out a senior banking officer after emerging out from bankers’ meeting called by the district collector Suraj Mandhare
Centre says up to 75 crore beneficiaries got free grains undedit
Dairy Farming
Milk co-ops to the rescue of marginal farmersedit
Milk procurement prices have fallen by at least 10 per cent since the start of lockdown in end-March, delivering a blow to this key source of additional income, in both good and bad times, for marginal farmers. What is more, further down the year, supply is likely to go up with animal calfing and higher lactation marking the flush season.
India’s COVID-19 Crisis Has Placed Its Dairy Farmers at a Crossroadsedit
Last month, videos of Maharashtra dairy farmers dumping their milk on the streets went viral.
If the milk producers, who have been hit badly by COVID-19 and the lockdown, had not protested, it appears likely that the country would have taken little note of the problems being faced by them. Much like poultry farmers, who are also similarly hit by low prices, they would have also perished.
However, thanks to the symbolic protests, their travails have been covered by mainstream media and some relief may be under consideration by the government.
Technology in Agriculture
Telangana to take enumeration of mechanised farm implementsedit
Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao has asked officials to undertake enumeration of the mechanised farm implements so that efforts could be made to procure more mechanised implements, if required for the farming community. The Chief Minister has also asked the officials to ensure completion of the Rythu Vedikas in all the farmers clusters in the State. Chairing the State Cabinet here on Wednesday, the Chief Minister also asked the officials to name the Rythu Vedika structures as per the suggestions of the farmers who donate money or lands for the construction.
Stubble Burning
Punjab ready to sell 23,500 stubble mgmt machines on subsidy, farmers unenthusededit
With paddy harvesting set to begin from end of September, the Punjab government has invited the applications from individual farmers, farmers groups, co-operatives for the sale of 23,500 subsidised machines for managing paddy stubble.
But an overwhelming majority of the farmers said that these machines are beneficial only if the government provides compensation of Rs 100 per quintal paddy over and above the MSP to the farmers particularly small and marginal farmers.