Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Supreme Court panel submits report on agriculture lawsedit
The Tribune – Online
As agitating farmers refuse to let go of their demand for withdrawal of the three farm laws, a Supreme Court-appointed three-member panel has submitted its report to the court in a sealed cover on measures to end the deadlock.
The panel comprising Pramod Kumar Joshi (Director, South Asia international Food Policy), Shetkari Sanghatana president Anil Ghanwat and former chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices Ashok Gulati submitted the report on March 19, sources said.
The fourth member of the panel, Bhartiya Kisan Union president Bhupinder Singh Mann, had recused himself.
Shift from industrial to small-scale farmingedit
The Tribune – Online
A few weeks ago, French farmers hung suicide dolls on trees outside parliament to draw attention to the devastation brought about by continuously sliding market prices. In a country which follows modern agricultural practices, it is disturbing to know that while three farmers on an average commit suicide every two days, growing indebtedness is resulting in the closure of at least 1,500 farms every year.
That such a grave tragedy should afflict the biggest farm producer in the European Union (EU), and ironically, which also happens to be the topmost recipient from the $100 billion agricultural subsidy kitty that Europe provides for every year, shows clearly how markets are tightening the noose, leaving the struggling farmers ...
Seeding The Future Of India’s Agricultureedit
Businessworld – Online
By 2050 India will need to feed more than 10 billion people, requiring a 70% increase in global food production. India is among the world’s highest producers of food, and has the opportunity to substantially improve crop yields to meet both domestic and international demand through modernization. An estimated 40% of local produce is lost due to a lack of storage infrastructure and the forward distribution chain, signaling a massive opportunity to improve the efficacy of Indian agriculture end-to-end.
There is a phenomenal opportunity and need right now for a technology-aided approach to food production, in making our food supply chain more resilient and in making our farmers more self-reliant.
Mechanization and digitization of farms is transforming ...
Dairy Farming
Mapping Cow Health, Brainwired Valued At Rs 5 Crore In A Bridge Roundedit
BWDisrupt – Online
Agritech start-up Brainwired, which aims to revolutionise dairy farming, has raised an undisclosed amount in its bridge funding round from Agility Venture Partners. Top angel investors Dhianu Das and Nandi Mehta, Mumbai Angels and Agility Venture Partners participated in this valuation round. They valued the tech start-up at Rs 5 crore!
Brainwired has recently won the Agri India Hackathon conducted by ICAR, Pusa Krishi and Govt. of India. The start-up, which is presently raising its bridge round, closed its pre-seed round at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic last year (May 2020). This Kochi-based start-up hopes to track the health of dairy cattle through IoT and ML algorithms.
“We’re thrilled at the amount of investor attention we’ve ...
Technology in Agriculture
‘Hop-Shoots’: Bihar farmer grows vegetable that costs Rs 85,000 a kg, used in treatment of cancer, TBedit
Times Now – Online
With the help of modern technology, many farming communities in India are boldly taking risks in increasing productivity and also adopting new methods of agriculture.
Modern equipment allows farmers not just to yield better crops but also to grow new ones that have a significant medical and market value.
That’s what a farmer from Bihar’s Aurangabad district has been doing.
Amresh Singh, 38, who hails from the Karamdih village, has been growing the world’s costliest crop in his farmland in Bihar’s Aurangabad, after having invested Rs 2.5 lakhs in the production process, according to a New Indian Express report.
Tractor industry
Mahindra & Mahindra’s tractor sales jump 128 per cent year-on-year in Marchedit
The New Indian Express – Online
Mahindra & Mahindra on Thursday reported a 128 per cent y-o-y jump in total tractor sales to 30,970 units for March.
Its total sales in March 2020 had stood at 13,613 units, the company said in a statement. Tractor sales in the domestic market grew 122 per cent to 29,817 units in the previous month, compared with 13,418 tractors sold a year ago.
Sales in the overseas market surged 491 per cent to 1,153 units, from 195 tractors in the year-ago month, it added.
Mahindra & Mahindra President (Farm Equipment Sector) Hemant Sikka said, “We sold 29,817 tractors in the domestic market during March 2021 with a growth of 122 per cent over last ...
Escorts tractor sales surge 126% YoY in Marchedit
Business Standard – Online
Escorts Agri Machinery Segment (EAM) in March 2021 sold 12,337 tractors, its highest ever March sales, and registered a growth of 126.6% against 5,444 tractors sold in March 2020.
Sequentially, the company’s tractor sales have increased by 9.86% last month from 11,230 units sold in February 2021.
Domestic tractor sales in March 2021 stood at 11,730 tractors, registering a growth of 124.4% from 5,228 tractors sold in March 2020. Escorts said the tractor demand is expected to continue to be strong led by higher Rabi output, favourable crop prices, and initial positive forecast of 2021 monsoon season, all supporting rural customer sentiments. “The rising inflation however continues to be a worry,” the company said in a ...