The New Indian Express – Online

Upset over officials delaying the procurement of their paddy produce by nearly 20 days, 30 farmers burnt their paddy at Regode mandal headquarters on Saturday. In the light of their protest, officials have promised to clear the stock in three days’ time.

Around 20 days ago, the farmers had brought their produce to a purchasing centre set up by the primary co-operative society at Regode mandal headquarters. The society officials, however, were only purchasing paddy from a few farmers who had brought large quantities of produce, which were easier to transport. As they did not have gunny bags on them, the officials couldn’t purchase paddy in small quantities. Apart from this, there was ...

The Times Of India – Online

The acute shortage of agriculture workers has adversely affected the first paddy crop replanting from nurseries in the district, known as the ‘rice bowl’ of the state. The replanting from the nursery should start from the first week of June but the guest workers, who are mainly engaged for it, have not returned from home states like West Bengal, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, etc. The guest workers of West Bengal and Assam went to their native states for assembly elections and could not return due to lockdown because of a surge in Covid-19 cases. Another major problem is that for the guest workers to enter Kerala they have to produce an RT-PCR test certificate, ...

The Indian Express – Online

At a time when India is meeting over 60% of its edible oil demand through imports at high prices and when Punjab’s farmers are targeted for growing only two crops, wheat-paddy, that are supported by an assured MSP, can not the Punjab government, which is blaming the Centre for interfering in agriculture being a state subject and had negated the three farm laws by passing its own three legislations, not frame some policy/law and take initiative to encourage farmers to grow oilseeds, that once used to be its traditional crop but has now been forgotten to a large extent.

Also, a little push from the state will ready buyers for oilseeds crop because of ...

Financial Express – Online

During the economic downturn of the past year, agriculture’s performance was a saving grace. But continued growth cannot be taken for granted. Erratic monsoons, groundwater stress, soil degradation, and unmet nutrition demands exert stress. If the pandemic has taught us anything, we must use good times to prepare for the bad. The maxim is equally true for judicious use of resources in agriculture.When the economy shrank by 24.4% by June 2020, agriculture grew 3.4%. By Q3, against barebones economic recovery (0.4%), agriculture grew 3.9%. The trend, however, is of slow agri-growth, at half (or less) than the economy’s average. This year’s foodgrains production target is 307 million tonnes (MT) compared to 301.92 MT last year. ...

Money Control – Online

Farmers will observe June 5 as ‘Sampoorna Kranti Divas’ by burning copies of the Central farm laws in front of the offices of BJP MPs and MLAs to mark the day when these legislations were initially promulgated as ordinances last year, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha said on Saturday. After being promulgated as ordinances, Parliament in September last year passed the proposed legislations and were later made law following presidential assent.

Scores of farmers have been camping at Delhi’s borders since November last year demanding the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020 ...

The Print – Online

India’s agricultural exports soared to a six-year high of over $19 billion in 2020-21. According to the Agricultural and Processed Foods Exports Development Authority, the national agricultural commodity export grew by nearly 25 per cent over $15.9 billion in 2019-20.

According to the advance foodgrain estimates by the agriculture ministry, the total production of rice in 2021-22 is estimated at a record 121.46 MT against 118 MT last year. This is also higher by 9 MT than the average production of 112.44 MT in the last five years. Until 24 May, 77.2 MT of rice had already been procured by government agencies. Similarly, the production of wheat in the country is estimated at a record ...

The Times Of India – Online

Farm agitation has completed six months. Season of paddy cultivation has started in north India. Another round of drawing groundwater in huge quantities is set to start. Story of over-exploitation of groundwater in Punjab, largely for paddy, has been told so many times with data that it does not require any repetition. However, it is important to note that the area under paddy cultivation has jumped from 11.83 lakh hectares in 1980-81 to 29.20 lakh hectares in 2019-20. It is ominous that Punjab stares at a dark future. The state may derive its name from water — Punj-aab (the land of five rivers), only around 30% of its irrigation needs are met with ...

The Indian Express – Online

The Manohar Lal Khattar-led government aims to wean farmers away from the water-guzzling paddy on two lakh acres this year. Last year, it had convinced them to steer clear of paddy on one lakh acres. Haryana Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister JP Dalal told The Indian Express that the government will provide an incentive of Rs 7,000 per acre to farmers who opt for pulses, cotton, maize and horticulture crops in place of paddy under the ‘mera pani-meri virasat’scheme.

Farmers, however, said the incentive was not attractive enough to make them move away from the lucrative paddy. The state government will also offer an insurance cover ranging from Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 per ...

The Economic Times – Online

The Centre on Friday said it has procured a record 400.45 lakh tonnes of wheat in the current marketing year that started in April, costing exchequer Rs 79,088 crore. The record procurement of wheat has been achieved amid farmers’ protests at Delhi borders since late November 2020. Farmer unions are demanding a repeal of three new farm laws and a legal guarantee of the Minimum Support Price (MSP).

Procurement of Wheat in ongoing RMS (Rabi Marketing Season) 2021-22 is continuing smooth in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu & Kashmir at MSP, as was done in previous seasons. Till May 27, a quantity of 400.45 lakh tonnes of wheat ...

YKA – Online

India is home to 140 million farm households and approximately 120 million smallholder farmers who contribute close to 40 percent of the country’s grain production and more than 50 percent of its fruits, vegetables, oilseeds, and other crops. A significant section of the global share such as wheat and rice comes from India where almost half of the population relies on agriculture for their livelihood.

Now for a second, keeping the ruthless challenges this sector has been experiencing aside, reports show that low rainfall, price volatility, and rising debts are the three primary risks this sector grapples with year after year. COVID-19 brought along a major challenge in the form of domestic and international travel restrictions ...

Mint – Online

The central bank’s efforts to address regional disparities in the flow of priority sector credit must be complemented by the Union and state governments to increase credit absorption capacity in underserved areas for sustainable change, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said in its 2020-21 annual report. RBI said regional disparities in credit flow have arisen from multiple factors and that it would take a multi-stakeholder approach to increase flow of credit in underserved areas.

Priority sector lending (PSL) was formalized in 1972, and RBI advised PSL targets to banks in 1974, which ensures that the lenders compulsorily lend 40% of their total credit to specific sectors. These include agriculture, small businesses, export credit, education, ...

The Hans India – Online

BC Welfare Minister Chelluboina Venu Gopala Krishna Stated that the government is studying the impact of partial lockdown on the livelihood of people engaged in traditional occupations. He received inputs from the agriculture workers, paddy porters, traditional toddy tappers on the impact of the partial lockdown on their daily life and the occupation. The Minister also met the handloom weavers to examine the existing marketing system and impact on the daily work and trade in Ramachandrapuram of East Godavari district.

Telengana Today – Online

Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar directed District Collectors on Thursday to expeditiously complete paddy procurement exercise within the next six days. He also directed the Collectors to meet the shortage of labour and gunny bags from the local market, and advised them to ensure sufficient availability of vehicles for transport of paddy. “Keep a check on unwarranted cuts being imposed by the millers,” the Chief Secretary said, and directed the Secretary, Civil Supplies, to ensure smooth and seamless procurement operations.

Qrius – Online

For six months now, images of Indian farmers protesting on Delhi’s roads have been beamed around the world. Farmers have been protesting changes to India’s agricultural laws they say would undermine their autonomy as cultivators. The new laws would create monopolies in the grain markets and trap farmers into contract farming arrangements with corporate buyers. But after six months of protests, has anything changed? The farm unions have had 11 rounds of talks with representatives of the central government, but the stalemate continues. Farmers hope if they keep the pressure on, the government will be forced to concede to their demands. But perhaps their biggest achievement so far has been putting farming back on the national ...

Money Control – Online

Rising household debt as a result of higher health costs, decline in touch-based non-agricultural work and much lower wage growth across the board is expected to puncture rural consumption demand in FY22 as highly mutant strains of the Covid-19 virus infiltrate India’s large rural hinterland, India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has said.

This is expected to reduce demand for FMCG products, automobiles especially tractors and two-wheelers. However, demand for agricultural credit and agricultural inputs such as fertiliser and pesticides could remain strong in view of third consecutive year of near normal monsoon, the ratings agency pointed out. Even if agricultural output and resultant income remains intact, rural households are expected to cut down on their ...

Hindustan Times – Online

India’s agriculture sector, which employs nearly half the country’s working population, appears to have been unscathed during the second national wave of Covid infections, just as it was during the first outbreak in 2020. The resilience will, in all likelihood, keep the farm growth rate in positive territory, cushioning rural incomes, even as the pandemic weighs on the broader economy, analysts said. Less stringent lockdowns, better rain, uninterrupted credit flow, and functioning rural supply lines for inputs such as fertilizers, kept farmers going, although rural India saw a surge in infections, several experts said. The country is projected to produce a record 304 million tonne of foodgrains in 2020-21, 2.66% more than the previous year, ...

The Wire – Online

Thousands of farmers gathered at the borders of Delhi for “Kaala Diwas” or Black Day on May 26. The day marks six months of their agitation against the three controversial farm laws enacted by the Centre. So far, 11 rounds of talks between 40 farm leaders and the government have failed to resolve the crisis. Both the government and farmers called off the series of discussions on January 22, citing a lack of progress. It is not a protest in isolation – the agitation in India resonates with US agriculture. Rural economies in the Midwest were devastated by the farm crisis from many decades ago and researchers fear the same could happen in India if ...

Odisha TV – Online

According to reports, several hectares of farmlands were swept away by the high tidal waves in coastal regions while incessant rains induced by the cyclonic system also played havoc on farming sectors in the northern parts of the State. Several roads and river embankments also suffered damage due to rain and wind in Balasore, Bhadrak, Keonjhar, Kendrapara, Mayurbhanj, and Jagatsinghpur districts. Baitarani river continues to swell since last night due to cyclone-induced heavy rains in the upper catchment. A medium flood loomed in the river as it touched the dangle level at Anandpur in Keonjhar district. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is scheduled to conduct an aerial survey of the affected areas today.

India Today – Online

Farmers took out protest marches and raised anti-government slogans in Delhi, Punjab on Wednesday as the protesters observed ‘black day’ to mark the completion of six months of agitation against the three Central agri laws. Joining the call given by farmers’ unions against the Centre’s three contentious farm laws, farmers at several places in Punjab put up black flags atop their houses on Wednesday. Farmers on Wednesday put up black flags and burnt effigies of government leaders at Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri in New Delhi to register their protest against the three laws as well as the Centre.

The Times Of India – Online

Civil supplies corporation chairman Mareddy Srinivas has said that the state government would purchase rain soaked paddy with a maximum of 17% moisture, as per central government guidelines. Of the total 80 lakh metric tonnes of paddy targeted to be procured, 60.50 lakh metric tonnes vealready been procured at a cost of Rs 11,414 crore.

Business Standard – Online

Data suggests the following four worrying factors:

Productivity growth of Indian agriculture is tapering. After a phenomenal growth in 2020, tractor sales are getting on to the slow track. Share of rural Covid-19 cases is rising late into the second wave. Government schemes may be reaching smaller share of beneficiaries due to lockdowns and restrictions. But at the same time, the government seems to be acting with a sense of urgency, as the following four developments suggest:

Close to 100 million farmers are set to receive their cash support for the April-July period in May/June itself. A higher share of insured farmers are benefitting from the national insurance scheme. Fertiliser subsidy has been hiked 140% ...

BW Disrupt – Online

The Covid-19 pandemic, right at its onset disrupted supply chains across agriculture and its allied sectors. A similar situation grips India as the country battles with the second wave of the deadly virus. How has the impact been on the agri sector this time around? The nation-wide lockdown last year took a heavy toll on all its financial resources, causing enormous losses to the agriculture sector, an integral part of the Indian economy that reached a valuation of INR 56,564 Billion in 2019.

Undeniably, the impact on horticulture was the highest during the nationwide lockdown as wholesale prices of the produce collapsed in April despite witnessing a sharp reduction in their mandi arrivals. However, disruptions ...

Krishi Jagran – Online

The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare has released the Third Advance Estimates of production of major agricultural crops for 2020-21. The total foodgrain production is estimated at 305.44 million tonnes. Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Agriculture Minister said, “This positive situation is the result of tireless efforts of our farmer brothers & sisters, contributions of agricultural scientists, policies of the Government of India & better cooperation and coordination from State Governments. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus is on the development of the agricultural sector.”

CNBC TV18 – Online

India’s foodgrain production is projected to rise 2.66 percent and touch a record 305.43 million tonne in the current crop year 2020-21, the union ministry of agriculture announced on May 25. This rise is due to the increased output of rice, wheat, and pulses. The monsoon rains have also been bountiful last year. In the crop year 2019-20, the output of food grains stood at 297.5 million tonnes. Compilation of data shared by various states to the ministry of agriculture reveals that under the food grain category-rice production is 121.46 million tonnes in the 2020-21 crop year as against 118.87 million tonnes in the previous year.

Telengana Today – Online

About 2.66 lakh tonne of paddy has been procured against the target of 3.75 lakh tonne in Yasangi season in the district, Transport Minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar said on Tuesday. The Minister directed the officials to complete the procurement of remaining 1.9 lakh tonnes in the next 10 days. In the current season, paddy crop extent was increased and there was a little delay in the procurement due to Covid situation. However, the farmers need not worry as every grain of paddy would be procured. Since there were not enough parboiled rice mills in Khammam district, rice mills in Nalgonda, Peddapalli and Karimnagar district were engaged to lift the paddy in the district, he said.

The Times Of India – Online

All India Kisan Congress members, along with farmers, will hold a protest programme wearing black badges in all the districts on Thursday against the injustice being meted out to the ryots in procurement of paddy, they said. The working committee of the Kisan Congress, which discussed the issue on Tuesday, demanded that the government purchase even the rain-soaked paddy at minimum support price (MSP) from the farmers. “The government should take action against the officials and the rice millers harassing the farmers citing moisture and lack of quality in paddy,” said Sunketa Anvesh Reddy, state president, Kisan Congress. The Kisan Congress also demanded that the state ensure that an adequate number of vehicles ...

Financial Express – Online

The government of Maharashtra has set higher production targets for the coming kharif season of 2021-22 by increasing the state’s sowing area to 157 lakh hectare (ha) from last season’s 140 lakh ha, following predictions of a higher-than-average monsoon by the Met Department.

The state had utilised 151 lakh ha for kharif crops in 2020-21, despite setting a 140-lakh ha target. The state is also expecting a record 1,285.2 lakh tonne of production this year from kharif season, officials of the agriculture department said.

News18 – Online

India is expected to produce a record 108.75 million tonnes of wheat this year, the farm ministry said in its third forecast for the crop year to June 2021, marginally lower than its previous estimate of 109.24 million tonnes. Rice output in the world’s biggest exporter and the second largest producer is estimated at a record 121.46 million tonnes compared to a forecast of 120.32 million tonnes in February. The farm ministry forecast this year’s total grains output to be at a record 305.44 million tonnes, up from its previous estimate of 297.5 million tonnes. The efforts of India’s farmers, scientists and the government has paid off, said Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar.

Financial Express – Online

Siraj Hussain spent 18 years of his career handling agriculture, food and allied sectors in Centre as well as Uttar Pradesh, out of which 10 years as joint secretary, additional secretary and secretary in the Union government. He was also chairman and managing director of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) during 2010-12. Currently, he is a senior visiting fellow at the Delhi-based Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (Icrier). Hussain spoke to FE’s Prabhudatta Mishra on several issues in Indian agriculture — from surplus food management to the impact of Covid-19 cases in the rural areas and from growing alternative crops of paddy to achieve self-sufficiency in edible oils.

Down to Earth – Online

Agriculture, the only sector to clock a positive growth of 3.4 percent at constant prices in 2020-21, during the first wave of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), could be severely impacted due to the ongoing second wave. The primary reason is that COVID-19 is running riot in the country’s rural hinterland, where most agricultural activity takes place, during the second wave. The second wave has had an impact on the just-concluded Rabi season. It could also impact the upcoming Kharif season, depending on the trajectory of the pandemic, experts said.

Times Now News – Online

COVID Second wave is slowly spreading in rural areas, where the threat is even graver as it is home to nearly 70% of the population. With a lack of proper healthcare infrastructure, human resources and medical resources, the hinterlands are fast becoming the epicentre of the outbreak. What is the impact of the pandemic on the Agri sector? Will a normal monsoon outlook make things better? Are higher product prices boosting realisations? Siraj Hussain, Former Agriculture Secretary and Dr Sachchidanand Shukla, Chief Economist, Mahindra & Mahindra discuss the impact of COVID Second Wave on India’s hinterland on The Market.

Scroll – Online

Farmers protesting against the three new agriculture laws began their journey from different parts of Haryana and Punjab on Sunday to join those agitating at the borders of the national Capital. The farmers plan to observe May 26 as a “black day” to mark six months of their protest against the laws, NDTV reported, adding that thousands of farmers left Karnal on Sunday morning for Delhi.

Gurnam Singh Charuni, a leader of the farmers’ union Bharatiya Kisan Union (Charuni), tweeted photos of a procession of farmers in Haryana’s Karnal. The Twitter handle of Bharatiya Kisan Union Ekta Ugrahan also posted photos of protestors on their way to Tikri from Khanauri border in Sangrur district of Punjab.

Millenium Post – Online

The Bengal government has ensured that agriculture and its allied sectors should continue unhindered at a time when a set of restrictions have been imposed in the state to curb the rise in Covid cases. All activities relating to agriculture, horticulture and floriculture including transportation and storage have been allowed. At the same time, there are also no restrictions on sale of seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and agri-machineries or equipment. Rural development works including emergency flood control and pre-monsoon essential works have also been allowed. However, in all cases maintenance of physical distancing and health and hygiene protocols is mandatory.

Scroll – Online

Climate change in Uttarakhand will increasingly force people to abandon farming at high altitudes and move to the plains over the next 30 years. A new study on the state in the middle of the Himalayan range by the Germany-based Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and The Energy and Resources Institute in New Delhi has forecast the worst impacts will be in higher elevations. This may accelerate the trend of people migrating and leaving land fallow.

Uttarakhand, which covers an area bigger than Costa Rica, maybe 1.6 degrees Celsius-1.9 degrees Celsius warmer by 2050. Its residents are already experiencing the impacts of climate change, such as changing temperatures, upward-moving snowlines, receding glaciers, erratic rainfall, reduction ...

Telengana Today – Online

Eliminating hunger is one of the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, but with 690 million people still going hungry, our agricultural heritage has plenty to teach us about how to feed our growing population without destroying the planet. That’s the principle behind the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) programme which highlights ways of farming which have proven resilient in the face of political and climate change to deliver food security.

The Economic Times – Online

Will this health crisis in rural India have an effect on the country’s farm production? What will be the impact on the export of agricultural and allied products, a segment that grew 24% in 2020-21 over the previous year, mainly on account of good monsoon and a surge in global commodity prices? The farm export growth was impressive against the backdrop of a drop of over 27% in leather exports, 10% in textiles and 7% in machinery, just to name a few, during the pandemic-hit fiscal.

ET spoke to government officials, farm experts, weather forecasters and exporters to piece together this story. When the dots are connected, early indications suggest, India will see yet ...

Hindustan Times – Online

As cotton sowing is in full swing in Punjab, questions have been raised on the state agriculture department’s previous claim that in 2020 more than one lakh hectare area was diversified into cotton from water-guzzling paddy. Sources admit that the official claim that last year’s area under cotton was enhanced from 3.9 lakh hectares in 2019 to 5.01 lakh hectares across the semi-arid region of southern Punjab does not hold water. Officials said it is surprising that no clarification has been issued by the agriculture department, the portfolio held by chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on an overstretched claim of record cultivation of cotton last year.

CNBC TV18 – Online

The coronavirus pandemic has caught on in rural areas. The number of districts it is covering in rural areas is increasing. Ramesh Iyer, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Mahindra and Mahindra Financial Services; Nitin Chugh, Managing Director and CEO, Ujjivan Small Finance Bank; and Anuj Sethi, Senior Director of CRISIL shared their views.

MMFSL’s Ramesh Iyer said, “I would think post-September, you will see a rural bounce back. There will be a spurt of demand coming back.” He believes that one has to live through this for a couple of months. “Once the pandemic comes into some control post-June and given another a month or two, sentiment should return to normal.”

Krishi Jagran – Online

Biostadt India Limited, a leading company in the agriculture, aquaculture and biostimulants sector, has rolled out special COVID care compensations for its employees across India. During these trying times, human lives have seen more hardship to last a lifetime. As a company with a mission to serve the farming community and with people at the heart of its business culture, Biostadt has announced these important initiatives for the benefit of the employees and their families.

Biostadt believes it has a duty to stand by its employees especially during times of hardship. This could be physical, mental or even emotional challenges, at which time, the support of family and loved ones is paramount. Enabling close to ...

Hindustan Times – Online

Rising agricultural exports from India, which shipped out a record 20 million tonne of foodgrains in 2020-21, have breathed new life into agribusinesses, but farmers say they have hardly gained because they had to sell cheap. Agricultural trading firms have benefited at the expense of farmers, export prices show. In the financial year ended March 2021, the country exported farm produce worth nearly $42 billion, a growth of about 18%, on the back of a rise in global commodity prices, official statistics show.

The current boom is nearly of the same level seen in 2013-14, when exports peaked. India’s farm exports grew five times from just $8.7 billion in 2004-05 to $42.6 billion during 2013-14. ...

The New Indian Express – Online

The University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bangalore, started an ‘Agri war unit’ to assist farmers by providing information about agriculture inputs and the market for their produce. Farmers from 10 South Karnataka districts that come under the UAS-B jurisdiction can call the war room (18004250571) to speak to experts. They can also send pictures related to their queries on WhatsApp (9482477812) to get assistance, said Dr K Shivaramu, head of the unit at University of Agricultural Sciences -Bangalore.

Kaumudi – Online

Johnson Olippuram (55) from Kerala was an English teacher in Andhra Pradesh and Uttarakhand for 13 long years. However, after putting in this many years into teaching, Johnson decided to call it a day and turn to his real calling – farming – in his home state.Journo, teacher and now a minister; Johnson took to farming like a fish to water and his resilience and never-say-die attitude even during the Covid-19 pandemic helped him excel in this field. He has been preserving various rice varieties and has 28 varieties in his kitty. That’s not all. To promote farming, especially organic farming, among the youth, he created a huge symbolic image of a lighted lamp (‘dia’) in ...

Telengana Today – Online

Civil Supplies Corporation Limited Chairman M. Srinivas Reddy said despite Corona pandemic, lockdown and unseasonal rains, over 50 lakh metric tonnes paddy procurement was completed with a cost of over Rs.9,800 crore in this Yasangi season. As per the instructions of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao procurement was being expedited across the State, he said.

The Times Of India – Online

With paddy cultivation about to start in Punjab, stress is being laid on motivating farmers to opt for direct seeded rice (DSR) technique and use crop residue management (CRM) machinery for clearing the stubble. The state agriculture department wants the area under DSR paddy to be doubled from the previous year. It has targeted paddy transplantation under DSR technique over at least 1 million (10 lakh) hectares. The department is also going in for increasing the scope of insitu crop residue management to minimise the stubble burning after paddy harvest. The department claims that so far over 76,600 CRM machines have been provided to custom hiring centres (CHC) and individual farmers at subsidy ...

The Times Of India – Online

A group of farmers has urged Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh to ban puddling for paddy cultivation – which makes it a water-guzzling crop – and ask the paddy growers to adopt tried and tested alternative techniques like direct seeding, which also lead to reduction in input costs. The group, in its letter to the chief minister and memorandum to Jalandhar DC and chief agriculture officer, has pointed out that it has already been proved that direct seeding techniques or transplanting paddy on ridges without puddling are successful, so puddling should be banned to save groundwater. The farmers said the use of alternative techniques resulted in equal or slightly less output, but led ...

The New Indian Express – Online

Recent strong winds and heavy rain triggered by the recent cyclone destroyed crops, but farmers couldn’t sell even whatever they could salvage because of the triple lockdown. As a desperate measure, WhatsApp groups have been formed by agricultural officers to help farmers sell their produce

My banana cultivation in 75 cents of land was completely destroyed in the recent strong winds and heavy rain occurred due to Cyclone Tauktae in the state. From the 520 plantains that I planted, more than 200 were completely destroyed. Some plantain bunches, which were just a few months old, were also lost with no option for replanting and these had to be thrown away,” said Jayakumar P, ...

The Economic Times – Online

“Point-to-point rate of inflation based on the CPI-AL (Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers) and CPI-RL (Consumer Price Index for Rural Labourers) decreased to 2.66 per cent and 2.94 per cent in April 2021, from 2.78 percent and 2.96 per cent, respectively, in March, 2021,” the labour ministry said in a statement.

Another positive factor is the good monsoon forecast and, if this materialises, this will the third consecutive good monsoon season. This bodes well for the agriculture economy, and will help revive rural demand faster, they said.

“Overall, we expect good recovery in the second half of the financial year, albeit lower than what we had anticipated before the second wave,” they ...

The Times Of India – Online

Civil supplies minister Kodali Sri Venkateswara Rao (Nani) has assured farmers that the government will procure the entire paddy produced in the state from the farms. The minister said that the government will buy paddy by issuing coupons and make payments online. He said other states including Telangana were following the AP model of farm gate procurement. Speaking to the media here on Wednesday, the minister said that they have made arrangements for procurement of about 45 lakh metric tonnes of paddy from farmers for the current season.

Hindustan Times – Online

Farmers in Punjab are staring at a severe shortage of labour for transplantation of paddy amid the Covid-19 lockdown that has forced thousands of migrant workers to return to their native states, particularly Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. The same trend was witnessed last year when restrictions were imposed for the first time in the wake of the pandemic. Since the majority of paddy growers opt for transplantation of paddy, the conventional and labour-intensive method of sowing of the crop in Punjab, they need lots of manpower besides water for irrigation. Though local workers are roped in for the task, they alone are not enough to fulfill the required need. Paddy transplantation is expected to begin ...

The Indian Express – Online

Once a part of Malwa’s cotton belt, the farmers in Moga district of Punjab, slowly and steadily weaned away from this cash crop and drifted towards water guzzling paddy over the past two decades. The result was that last year in 2020, miniscule 150 hectares were under cotton cultivation in Moga, of overall 5 lakh hectares on which cotton was sown across the state.

In an effort to revive cotton cultivation in Moga and more so, to reduce pressure on water resources by weaning away farmers from paddy, the Punjab agriculture department has now started a unique project in the district under which farmers are being encouraged to sow cotton using ‘bed plantation technique’ ...

The Times Of India – Online

Locusts are likely to enter the state from Pakistan again soon. According to the bulletin issued by the FAO of UN, there is a possibility of locust attack from Pakistan in May-end or beginning of June. Jaisalmer district collector Ashish Modi has issued orders to eliminate locusts at the start and directed locust control officer, agriculture department officers, revenue department officers and personnel, CAZRI, agriculture science centre scientists to coordinate and maintain continuous communication regarding information related to locusts.

According to the order issued by Modi, locust control unit Jaisalmer has been directed to immediately inform about possible arrival of locust groups and will keep minimum 10 modern sprayers with vehicle, technical staff ...

Krishi Jagran – Online

Indian Agriculture sector has always been sensitive and facing crises at multiple levels, which will exacerbate the food security crisis, the environmental crisis and the farm crisis being faced by all of us. This year again, the prices of tomato and capsicum have crashed drastically at the time of harvest, leading to massive losses for Haryana farmers. A lot of farmers have chosen to destroy the crop in the fields itself, to minimize their losses. As per sources, last week itself, a group of farmers in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district spoiled their harvest of tomatoes and other green vegetables to demonstrate their protest against low prices which are not even covering their total cost of production. ...

The Times Of India – Online

According to the preliminary assessments of the Gujarat government, Tauktae has caused a loss of over Rs 1,085 crore to horticulture and agriculture in the state. The bulk of the damage to agriculture and horticulture has occurred in four districts of Saurashtra — Gir-Somnath, Junagadh, Amreli, and Bhavnagar. However, other districts have also reported significant losses. Government sources said, “A detailed survey of the losses to agriculture and horticulture is ongoing.” “However, estimates as of now suggest that the loss to the horticulture sector is about Rs 710 crore and the loss to the agriculture sector is about Rs 375 crore.”

Hindustan Times – Online

Rural unemployment shot up to 14.34% in the week ended May 16 from 7.29% in the week ended May 9, data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) showed. Rural unemployment has nearly doubled in a week as lockdowns and surging Covid infections in villages brought economic activity to a halt. A lull in farming is adding to joblessness. Economists said the high infection rate and lack of employment opportunities in urban clusters due to lockdowns forced people to leave for their villages. But in rural pockets, there aren’t enough income opportunities.

The New Indian Express – Online

Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd (TAFE) on Tuesday said it has donated Rs 1 crore to the Tamil Nadu government for procurement of oxygen cylinders as part of efforts to aid COVID-19 relief measures in the state. The company has also offered 500 oxygen concentrators to the state government, it said in a statement.

Senior officials called on Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Monday and handed over a cheque for Rs 1 crore for the procurement of oxygen cylinders, it added.The distribution and installation of the oxygen concentrators in small hospitals and primary healthcare centres of Ranipet, Trichy, Madurai, Kanyakumari and Virudhunagar have been commenced by the Tamil Nadu government, ...

Hindustan Times – Online

The government has procured 36.6 million tonne of wheat so far in the current season, which is nearly 30% more than the quantity bought from farmers during the corresponding period last year, food ministry data shows. This trend suggests that foodgrain stocks are poised to be more than what is required for subsidised distribution among the poor through the public distribution system or PDS. The government’s procurement operations have covered nearly 3.7 million farmers, who have been paid a total minimum support price (MSP) of ₹72,406 crore, the government figures show. Procurement operations refer to the state-run food agencies’ buying of farm produce at federally fixed floor prices.

The Indian Wire – Online

According to a new research, one-third of global food production in under critical risk by the century end, if greenhouse gas emissions continue to register unbated growth at this current rate.

This will happen as many food bowls of the world will see temperature and precipitation variations, making it difficult for vegetation to survive if temperatures rise by about 3.7C.

Researchers from Aalto University in Finland involved with the study, have concluded that about 95% of current crop production takes place in areas categorized as “safe climatic space”, or conditions where temperature, rainfall and aridity fall within certain limits.

Hindustan Times – Online

The Punjab agriculture department has decided to advance the start of paddy transplantation in the upcoming kharif season. The decision to begin the sowing on June 10 came considering the shortage of labour due to ongoing pandemic. The decision will also facilitate staggered paddy sowing so that social distancing protocols could be maintained. The state authorities are cautious as the virus has spread its tentacles in the rural areas of Punjab.

Krishi Jagran – Online

It is very important to understand the dynamics behind production of agricultural commodities, in addition to economics and marketing. These aspects will be used regularly in relating with fundamental analysis of agricultural commodities. Therefore understanding these aspects will make the fundamental analysis activity quite relevant in near future. Production of Agriculture crops requires many skills including biology, agronomy, mechanics, and marketing, apart from covering a variety of operations throughout the year. As known to the majority, agriculture in India is a major economic sector and it also creates plenty of employment opportunities. Speaking in terms of agricultural production, India holds the second position all over the world. In 2020, around 41.49 percent of the workforce ...

India Education Diary – Online

Global agriculture both is one of the major drivers of climate change and strongly affected by it. Rising temperatures are among the main reasons for yield reductions. Therefore, the agricultural sector is faced with the major challenge of adapting to climate change in order to ensure food security in the future. According to a new study carried out by international researchers, the use of locally adapted cultivars can significantly contribute to achieve this goal. The study was led by LMU geographer Dr. Florian Zabel.

For four different climate scenarios, he and his colleagues simulated the impacts of climate change on the global production of maize, rice, soy and wheat and investigated how locally adapted ...

The Times Of India – Online

Expressing concern over rising price of fertilizers, state cabinet minister Subhash Desai on Monday said the government was contemplating to provide fertilizer subsidy to the farmers. “There is considerable rise in price of fertilizers that will affect the farming community at large. The state government has decided to hold discussion with the Centre with a demand of slashing the prices. In the meantime, we are thinking to offer subsidy at the level of the state government,” he said.

The Economic Times – Online

The Reserve Bank of India said on Monday that the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India has had a bigger impact on aggregate demand than on aggregate supply, and it believes the economic slowdown was not as severe as a year ago.

RBI said the impact of the second wave is appearing to be U-shaped with agriculture and technology forming the shoulders of the letter U and most vulnerable being blue collar groups and these will warrant a priority in policy interventions.

The Tribune – Online

Decline in underground water table and management of paddy residue are the major issues associated with paddy cultivation in the state. The increased incidence of biotic and abiotic stresses under changing climate necessitates utmost attention. Besides this, declining agricultural labour availability is also becoming an important issue.

Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has modified its breeding strategies towards development of short-duration varieties with higher per day productivity, low paddy residue load, good milling quality characteristics and tolerance to diseases.

The Indian Express – Online

Last fiscal – the year ended March 31, 2021 – a record 92 million tonnes (mt) of rice and wheat was distributed from the central pool. That included 60.32 mt under the National Food Security Act and other regular welfare schemes, besides 31.52 mt under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), Atmanirbhar Bharat Package (for returning migrant labourers) and assorted programmes launched in the wake of the Covid-19-induced lockdown.

Mint – Online

The Punjab Mandi Board on Sunday said now state farmers will have an option to take print or download digital copies of their crop sale receipts.

Punjab Mandi Board Chairman Lal Singh said this step will pave the way for ensuring real-time access to authentic digital sale receipt of their agriculture produce.

The Sentinel – Online

State Agriculture Minister Atul Bora has said that around 12.50 farmers’ families of the State will get the benefits of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme. Talking to The Sentinel on Sunday, Bora said, “The Central Government has already sanctioned Rs 404-crore PM-KISAN funds for the farmers of Assam recently. The amount is being deposited directly to the bank accounts of the farmers. I thank the Centre for the sanctioning of the funds.”

Mint – Online

In the winter of 2019, Chamkor Singh, a well-to-do farmer from Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan, fell for the words of a local trader and commission agent. That year, Singh decided to bet big on malt barley, a cereal that is used to manufacture beer. After all, Singh was promised a bonus of ₹100 over and above the minimum support price (MSP). The high returns prompted him to take over 30 acres of land on lease. Four months later, his hopes came crashing down.

Punjab News Express – Online

In a yet another pro-farmers’ initiative besides promoting e-governance, Punjab became the first state in the country to launch a Digi-Locker facility for farmers. Now, the farmers have an option to take print or download digital copies of their J-Forms in the state, as the Punjab Mandi Board has made the electronic format of J-Forms available, from this Wheat Procurement-2021 season onwards.

Disclosing this here today, Chairman Punjab Mandi Board Lal Singh said that this step would digitally empower farmers paving a way to ensure real time access to authentic digital sale receipt of their agriculture produce. He said that with this digital endeavour nearly 10 lakh J-form holder farmers registered with Mandi Board during ...

Krishi Jagran – Online

Agriculture now accounts for 19.9% of the gross domestic product (GDP), up from 17.8% in 2019-20, according to the Economic Survey 2020-2021. This is good news not only for India’s more than 150 million farmers, but also for industries that depend on a healthy harvest to stay afloat.

The Free Press Journal – Online

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has attacked the Centre for the increase in the prices of fertilizers and demanded its immediate rollback. On the other hand, state agriculture minister Dadaji Buse claimed that the farmers will hit hard. Bhuse in a letter to the Centre said it will be difficult for the farmers to buy high-priced fertilizers due to natural calamities and the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic.

The Hindu Business Line – Online

India has one of the highest arable lands globally with over 155 million hectares and is one of the key agricultural producers. In 2019, the agricultural…

Daily Excelsior  – Online

The century’s most valuable innovation in farm management is based on using Information and Communications and technologies. An information and technology based farm management system identifies, analyses and manages variability in fields by conducting crop production practices at the right place, on right time and in right way for optimum productivity, profitably, sustainability and protection of land resources.

Krishi Jagran – Online

The Union government anticipates increased sowing and demand from the agricultural sector. It has provided instructions to ensure that essential inputs such as fertilizers, seeds, pesticides, and machinery are always available and supplied in a timely manner.

Millions of farmers have worked tirelessly to keep agricultural operations running during the pandemic, helped by a waiver of Covid-related restrictions for the farm sector. Another reason why the farm sector has outpaced other sectors of the economy is that the pandemic has been particularly hard on cities and small towns, sparing farming activities in the countryside.

Global Government Forum – Online

In 2014, at the end of his second term as India’s prime minister, Manmohan Singh addressed members of the Planning Commission, a hallowed institution with origins in the early years of Indian independence.

Singh, who built a reputation as an economic reformer as finance minister in the early 1990s, told staff that the institution – an in-house policy body, established in 1950 to help shape economic strategy – should “subject itself to a critical review”, reshaping its approach around “an increasingly open and liberalised economy with greater reliance on market mechanisms.”

Legal Desire – Online

India is an agricultural country. Over 70% of India’s population is directly or indirectly concerned with agriculture-related work. Because of the diligence of these farmers, we can sit and eat in peace. These farmers sustain the whole country; however, it’s a tragic truth that they’re grappling with starvation. The Indian law on Farmers’ Rights is considered successful at least partially by many stakeholders. Now, farmers’ rights are being acknowledged as a global concern, yet a consensus on implementing Farmer’s Rights remains vague. Internationally, it is accepted to a certain extent that farmers are crucial for our nation’s social and political fabric of society and need the Government’s support. India is among the first countries in the ...

The Hindu Business Line – Online

Never before in the history of Indian agriculture, paddy worth ₹1.73 lakh crore and wheat worth ₹75,060 crore were procured from farmers, during the marketing season 2020-21, at minimum support price (MSP). This is what the Union Budget for 2021-22 had underlined. At first sight, these figures look good. But are the increased procurements of crops benefiting farmers of different States?

In India, the procurement of crops at MSP has undergone a massive evolution over time. As on 2020-21, a total of 39,122 procurement centres for paddy and 21,869 for wheat are operating in India.

India Today – Online

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday released Rs 920 crore to the bank accounts of 42 lakh farmer families in the state under the Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA) scheme.

Through the Direct Benefit Transfer Mode, financial assistance was transferred to the bank accounts of 37 lakh small and marginal farmers and approximately 5 lakh landless agriculture households (LAH).

“KALIA scheme is the best scheme for farmers in the entire nation. This plan has brought a smile to the faces of farmers. It has also helped lessen the debt burden of farmers,” Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said, congratulating farmers on the eve of Akshaya Tritiya, an auspicious occasion that coincides with the ...

DownToEarth – Online

Punjab has successfully paid the lion’s share of price due to wheat farmers for their produce via the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) route as the Rabi marketing season nears its end. However, farmers are unsure about what it will mean for their equation with the aarthiyas or commission agents, who have been their financial backbones till now.

The state has transferred Rs 21,010 crore as minimum support price (MSP) to farmers till May 10, 2021, state officials said. This means that it was able to pay 83 per cent of the Rs 25,280 crore owed to wheat farmers within one month, starting from April 10, when wheat procurement began in Punjab.

Punjab and Haryana were the only two states in the country ...

The Free Press Journal – Online

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the Centre has transferred around Rs 1,35,000 crore so far under the PM-KISAN scheme with the payment of eighth instalment on Friday and is also procuring higher quantity of paddy and wheat at MSP to boost farmers’ income.

Out of the total amount disbursed since the launch of the scheme in February 2019, Modi said around Rs 60,000 crore has been transferred during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is helping farmers in these difficult times.

The Indian Express – Online

The year 2020-21 was exceptional, where the farm sector expanded by 3 per cent, even as the Indian economy as a whole contracted by 6.5 per cent. Agricultural exports also grew 17.5 per cent, despite the value of the country’s overall merchandise shipments falling by 7.2 per cent. There were three drivers behind this unusual dichotomy. The first, of course, was Covid-19 cases being very low in rural areas last year and the government exempting agricultural activities from lockdown restrictions. The second was excellent rains and favourable winter temperatures that helped farmers harvest a bumper crop. The third was a spike in global agri-commodity prices from around October, the benefits of which were reaped by soyabean, mustard, ...

Indian Education Diary – Online

District Magistrate, Ramban, Mussarat Islam has ordered to keep the Zonal Seed Store in Agriculture Complex at Maitra in Ramban open on all days and exempted it from lockdown restrictions.

Even during the J&K wide ongoing Corona curfew, the supply of agriculture inputs from this store remains available on all days from 10 am to 5 pm including the Sundays and Gazetted holidays so that the farmers get uninterrupted and timely seeds and other things.

According to Chief Agriculture Officer, Ramban, Farooq Ahmed Bhat more than 100 Qtl seed has been sold out on subsidized rates to the farmers from this zonal store till date.

CNBC – Online

The second COVID wave that India is currently grappling with is believed to be far more aggressive and infectious than the first wave and this time it has badly affected the rural areas.

In the data analysed by SBI’s Chief Economist Soumya Kanti Ghosh– nearly half of the new cases in India are coming from rural areas. The share of rural districts in new cases increased to 45.5 percent in April and 48.5 percent in May compared to around 37 percent in March.

Another appalling data depicts the lack of healthcare infrastructure in rural India. For instance, there are only 61 beds available for one lakh people in India. That number goes down to just 17 beds ...

Mongabay – Online

When women put in extra hours on farms in peak seasons of sowing, transplanting, and harvesting, it may impact their food preparation time and reduce nutrient intake, a study finds. The research draws attention to the consequences of increased time burdens on farms and the adverse effects on women’s nutrition.

Women-friendly, labour-saving devices on farms and at home can support the growing participation of women in agriculture, but a stronger policy response is needed in India where women constitute over a third of the farm labour force.

AgriculturePost – Online

As the world is grappling with an unprecedented health crisis, countries are forced to strengthen the most fundamental resources. Other than healthcare facilities, sustainability in food and nutrition has taken precedence over all other human requirements. It is befitting to remind ourselves of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that India has committed itself to. Responsible production and consumption, clean water and sanitation and good health and well-being are some of the key priorities laid down in the SGDs. Water conservation is a key input in achieving these priorities.

Receding ground water levels is a critical challenge that India is facing today. According a to report, 256 out of 700 districts in India have reported critical ...

The Times of India – Online

Thousands of farmers who raised maize and jowar (sorghum) crop are worried as there is no word from the government on procuring their agricultural produce this season. Though the state government is procuring paddy from the farmers and has set a target of purchasing 80 lakh metric tonnes of it through procurement centres, the government has not made any announcement on procuring other crops this season.

 During the lockdown in 2020, the TRS government had procured paddy, maize, jowar, sun flower among other crops from the farmers. This season maize has been cultivated in 4.66 lakh acres and jowar crop was raised in 1.19 lakh acres.

The Economic Times

Lawrencedale Agro Processing India (LEAF), on Wednesday said it is bringing in Rs 500 crore worth of organised cost-effective credit to marginalised small land-hold and tribal farmers to overcome the COVID-19 crisis. LEAF, an integrated agri-service provider, said it is aligning with new-age financial technology non-banking financial companies (NBFC) to funnel in the much-needed organised credit for the marginalised farmers.

SME Futures – Online

If you are visiting a village during the sowing season, hunching women planting seedlings is one of the most common sights. But thinking of a farmer always brings to our mind the image of a man. Probably that is why we often fail to see the plight of the women working in the fields. Despite being one of the biggest contributors to the gross domestic product (GDP), agriculture is still an unorganised sector and women working in the sector are the biggest casualty. They bear the twin responsibility of performing well both in and off the field, much like any other women professional in India. But unlike her, women working in the fields never get their ...

The Indian Express – Online

India’s agricultural exports grew 17.5 per cent to cross $41.8 billion in 2020-21. This came even as the country’s overall merchandise exports fell 7.2 per cent to $290.8 billion, from $313.4 billion in 2019-20.

The farm sector’s standout export performance, the best since the $43.25 billion of 2013-14, was thanks to a good monsoon, agriculture production being relatively unaffected by the Covid-19-induced lockdown, and a steep surge in global commodity prices. It is also in line with GDP numbers: Agricultural growth for 2020-21 is estimated at 3 per cent, even as the Indian economy contracted by 6.5 per cent.

The Hans India – Online

Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy said that the government has established 1,000 Agro Rythu Seva Kendras (ARSKs) across the State of Telangana to provide quality fertilisers, seeds, agriculture machinery under one roof to the farmers. Speaking after inaugurating the Telangana State Agro Industries Development Corporation Limited (TSAIDCL) new office at Red Hills here on Tuesday, he said, that the TS Agros has registered a turnover of Rs 123 crore during the financial years 2019-20 introducing several innovative programmes. And, the ARSKs will help to provide the services to farmers at their doorstep.

Deccan Chronicle – Online

Taking advantage of Covid-19 pandemic, big traders and middlemen are looting farmers in paddy procurement in connivance with a few primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS), rice millers and transport operators.

Impact of the second wave of Covid-19 and unseasonal rains created troubles to farmers in selling their produce. Paddy bags were piled up either at primary agricultural societies or on rice mills premises as no authorities came forward to complete the procurement process. Allegedly, a few revenue and civil supplies officials ignored the plight of farmers and supported errant transport operators, rice millers and societies chairmen.

Horti – Daily – Online

Gurugram-based agritech startup Eekifoods on Monday announced it has raised pre-Series A funding from GSF Accelerator. Other investors in this round include Naho Shigeta, founder, and chief executive officer, Infobridge Holdings; Shalin Sanjay Shah, director, Core91 VC; and a Gulf-based Syndicate. Existing Eekifoods investors; Sumit Jain, country head, BirdEye; and Dipesh Palodalso participated in the round. The startup said the funds will primarily be used for further technology development, scaling operations, and team building.

“Eekifoods is borne out of two years of research and development of a unique technology, which focuses on inculcating agricultural techniques that are both sustainable and economically viable. Today, we are able to grow tomatoes, bottle gourd, eggplant, cucumber, and other vegetables ...

Daily Excesior – Online

Dr. Banarsi Lal, Dr. Pawan Sharma Public-private partnership (PPP or 3P) is said to be a long-term cooperative agreement between two or more public and private sectors. Through this agreement, skills and assets of each other (public and private) are shared in delivering a service or a facility for the use of general public. In order to make more development such kinds of initiatives are essential. Such arrangements are used by the Governments in late 20th century and early 21st century across the globe. Hundreds of different types of long-term contracts with a wide range of risk allocations, funding arrangements and transparency requirements are covered under the public-private partnerships. This concept is closely associated with concepts ...

Moneycontrol – Online

When India was hit by the first wave of COVID-19 from January to June 2020, agriculture turned out to be a bright spot. The Economic Survey estimated that India’s GVA for the entire economy will contract by 7.2 percent in 2020-21, primarily due to a steep decline in the first half of the FY.

In this mayhem caused by the nationwide lockdown, agriculture was the only bright spot and it is estimated that the GVA for agriculture clocked a positive growth of 3.4 percent at constant (2011-12) prices.

 Can the agriculture sector be a saviour again when the second wave of COVID-19 has hit India with much more intensity than the first wave? This time, it seems ...

India.com – Online

Rs 49,965 crore has been transferred directly into farmers’ account across India under Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) programme. Around 18.3 Crore portability transactions under One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) were made during the Covid-19 period of April, 2020 to April 2021, the Central Government said today.

Meanwhile, around 34 states or UTs have lifted more than 15 Lakh MT of food grains from FCI depots for the month of May 2021 under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY-3). Over 1 Lakh MT of food grains distributed to over 2 Crore beneficiaries by 12 states or UTs so far under PMGKAY-3. All total 26.3 Crore portability transactions have been recorded since inception of ONORC scheme, the ...

Mint – Online

In 2015, the first Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) central government unveiled an ambitious reform to overhaul India’s land acquisition laws that would have enabled corporations easier access to land across the country. But faced with intense protests from Opposition parties, the changes were rolled back.

The Times of India – Online

Procurement of paddy has been badly hit due to Covid-19 and unseasonal rains in Telangana. Against a target of procuring over 80 lakh metric tonnes of paddy this season, only 25 lakh MTs have been purchased from the farmers so far. The procurement has slowed down as several staff and procurement centres were infected with Covid-19.

 Even the rice mills are not accepting paddy from the procurement centres as a large number of workers for loading and unloading of paddy have not returned from Bihar and other states in view of the surge.

Qrius – Online

In what is believed to be the biggest protest in history, in late November 2020 farmers from across India drove 200,000 trolleys and tractors towards Delhi’s borders in a mass protest against agricultural reforms. This was followed a few days later by a general strike involving 250 million people in both urban and rural areas of India as workers joined together to support the farmers.

The strike continues, despite the global public health crisis, which is hitting India harder than any other country in the world. Fear of COVID-19 has not deterred farmers, who have emphatically stated that regardless of whether they contract the virus, the “black laws” will kill them anyway.

Orissa Diary – Online

Keeping in view the huge potential and role of the horticulture sector in increasing farmer’s income, the Government of India has allocated Rs. 2250 Crore for development of horticulture sector during 2021-22.

To further promote and for holistic growth of the horticulture sector in the country, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has provided an enhanced allocation of Rs. 2250 Crore for the year 2021-22 for ‘Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture’ (MIDH), a centrally sponsored scheme. The Ministry is implementing MIDH with effect from 2014-15, for realizing the potential of the horticulture sector covering fruits, vegetables, root and tuber crops, mushrooms, spices, flowers, aromatic plants, coconut, cashew and cocoa. The allocation is significantly higher ...

The Better India -Online

In 2018, S Venkateswara Reddy from Hyderabad retired as a banker from the State Bank of India. As he relieved himself from the first innings of life, he planned to try his second stint with farming. But things didn’t turn out to be as easy as they seemed.

Venkateswara returned to ancestral land in Mallepalle village, only to find that the prospects looked bleak. The Ville fell in the Rayalaseema region, a drought-affected region of Andhra Pradesh.

“I had decided to grow vegetables and other crops on the 10-acre land. But when I reached the village and spoke to the farmers about procuring resources, I faced a massive challenge. The villagers informed that there had been ...

UNI – Online

Anger, agitation and unrest are not uncommon when farmers’ interests are at stake in Punjab. It has been over seven months since Parliament enacted three laws, deemed as “anti-farmers”, evoking a strong reaction from the farming community across the country. The passage of these bills had been opposed tooth and nail in Punjab and Haryana as according to farmers’ leaders, the legislations “do not address the concerns of farmers” vis-a-vis the Minimum Support Price. The laws are regarded as pro-corporates who would “dominate Indian food and agriculture business”, they say. The Government, however, has repeatedly claimed that the bills that replaced ordinances, are aimed at the transformation of agriculture and raising of farmers’ income. The legislation will ...

The Hindu Business Line – Online

Bharat Patil, Baba Sawant, Sammad Kanwade and many other farmers in the Sangli district of Maharashtra are still not able to understand the hullabaloo over “resilience” and “growth” in the agriculture sector during the Covid-19 pandemic.

India’s agricultural sector was touted as a silver lining amid the adversities of Covid-induced lockdowns last fiscal, with farming and allied activities clocking a growth of 3.4 per cent during 2020-21 (first advance estimate).

YourStory – Online

The village of Kharakdi in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district is like many others in India. According to the 2011 census, there were 330 households in the village and the majority of residents are smallholdings farmers who depend on their harvest and on agricultural labour to make ends meet. Among them is Laxmiben Dabhi, who comes from a family of farmers.

Now in her early 50s, she lives in a joint family of eight that owns five bighas (three acres) of land. Despite owning land, the produce was seasonal and there was not enough money to feed her family. “I decided to look for jobs outside farming. I worked as a casual labourer and as a diamond polisher for six months at ...

The Tribune – Online

To relax the lockdown for shops selling fertilisers, pesticides, agriculture machinery and tools have come as a respite for the agriculture community which these days is busy planting nursery for paddy crop. The farmers stated that due to the closure of markets they were facing trouble in getting seed, chemicals and machine parts.

The paddy transplantation is scheduled to start from the first week of June. With around a month left, the farmers are busy planting nurseries and preparing fields for the next crop.

“The agriculture machines and tools often need repairs and service before they are put to use in fields. Usually such works are done after the harvesting of wheat. But by the time, ...

DownToEarth – Online

What does it take to sustain an experiment like this for almost two centuries?

Broadbalk is one of the several agricultural field experiments established by John Lawes and Henry Gilbert between 1843 and 1856. Lawes supported the experiments with funds from his fertiliser-manufacturing business and eventually established the Lawes Agricultural Trust to ensure that the experiments continued after his death.

The management of the experiments was subsequently taken over by the British government as part of their support for agricultural research and development.

Some of the experiments continue today and are supported by the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (part of UK Research and Innovation) and the Lawes Agricultural Trust, under its experimental facility, the ...

Krishi Jagran – Online

Syngenta & Valagro submit non-binding expression of interest for SICIT Group

Syngenta Crop Protection AG together with Valagro S.p.A. would like to confirm that the two companies have submitted a non-binding expression of interest to the Board of Directors of SICIT Group S.p.A,  listed on the MTA, Star Segment, of Borsa Italiana. Their non-binding expression of interest is submitted on an open, transparent and friendly basis to SICIT Group and its key stakeholders.

Safex Chemicals acquires Mumbai-based chemical manufacturer Shogun Organics

Safex Chemicals India Limited, announces acquiring Mumbai-based Shogun Organics Limited. The acquisition will provide Safex a platform to backward integrate into the agrochemical technical segment and enter the Home Care & Agrochemical Technical Manufacturing segment. Meanwhile, the promoters of Safex, Mr. SK Chaudhary, Mr. Neeraj Jindal, Mr. Rajesh Jindal and Mr. Piyush Jindal will join the board of Shogun Organics.

The Nation – Online

Subsidies in the agriculture sector are used as a tool to encourage a positive behaviour shift among farmers, leading to sustainable and structural changes in agriculture.

The Punjab Government is cognisant of the need to make subsidies supportive and targeted for the agriculture markets to facilitate growth while ensuring transparency. Historically, the subsidy programmes introduced for the farmers of Pakistan and around the developing world created market distortions and inefficiency. These interventions reduced other investments required to enhance agricultural productivity and assigned unsustainable fiscal burdens on the governments.

Yahoo FInance – Online

India is a country where agriculture is the go-to profession for a majority of the population. We are talking of a hefty percentage — about 60% to 70% of Indians are farmers. This sector also provides additional employment to about 52% of people working as labourers on farms. The sector is one of the most significant contributors to the country’s GDP, at 14-15%.

Climate conditions, cheap labor, and solid infrastructure support the inherent desire to grow food make farming a viable business in the country. In India, becoming a farmer means you will have to take care of certain aspects, starting from land acquisition, managing agricultural material like soil, fertilisers, grains, livestock, and subsidiary support systems ...

The Better India – Online

Growing up in Boraj, a small village in Rajsamand district, Rajasthan, Narayan Lal Gurjar and Puran Singh Rajput had watched their families struggle with water scarcity while farming their entire lives.

After school, Narayan pursued a degree in agricultural engineering, while Puran proceeded towards a standard B.Tech in electrical engineering. Despite undertaking different courses, both men understood that their education and interest in science would one day lead them towards finding solutions to problems that their families had faced.

EET India – Online

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations predicts that the world population will grow by more than 30% by 2050, reaching some 9 billion people. It is essential to provide food for everyone. Farmers need to adopt new precision farming processes that enable them to produce more crops and more efficiently. The variability of the environment and its interpretation require tools that can manage all biophysical and productive factors in their complexity.

Remote sensing techniques have exponentially evolved thanks to technological progress with the spread of multispectral cameras. Hyperspectral imaging is the capture and processing of an image at a very high number of wavelengths. While multispectral imaging can evaluate the process with three ...

S&P Global – Online

The US Department of Agriculture’s India attaché sees the country’s wheat exports reaching 2 million mt in the 2021-22 trade year, 26% lower on the year, as output is also forecast to decline.

 The trade year begins in July for all countries. India’s wheat production will be 105 million mt in the 2021-22 marketing year, the New Delhi attache said, down from 107.86 million mt a year earlier, according to the report published on the USDA website on May 4. India’s wheat marketing year runs from April through March.

The New Indian Express – Online

The Covid-19 pandemic has shut down many businesses, but it has been an opportunity for online service providers to strive. As distancing is the mantra, more and more people, including farmers, are looking towards the internet for their daily needs.

Madhapur-based Kisanwala was launched last year to make farmers self-reliant. This startup, incubated at T-Hub, is the brainchild of Parag Modi and Suresh Atluri. It has over 1,000 registered users in Telangana, Maharashtra and Haryana, and they plan to make inroads into more states after the pandemic eases.

The New Indian Express – Online

The Covid-19 pandemic has shut down many businesses, but it has been an opportunity for online service providers to strive. As distancing is the mantra, more and more people, including farmers, are looking towards the internet for their daily needs.

Madhapur-based Kisanwala was launched last year to make farmers self-reliant. This startup, incubated at T-Hub, is the brainchild of Parag Modi and Suresh Atluri. It has over 1,000 registered users in Telangana, Maharashtra and Haryana, and they plan to make inroads into more states after the pandemic eases.

 

ABC News – Online

Agyakar and Sam Grewal’s family farming business is thriving during COVID-19, but as the pandemic ravages India and devastates their homeland, it is taking a toll on the family.

The Grewal family has been involved in agriculture for generations in India, so when the cousins moved to Australia, they wanted to continue farming and using traditional stone grinding methods learnt from their ancestors to create specialty flour.

They now run a number of farms in Victoria at Mildura where they run a flour mill and grow table and wine grapes, and also at Kinglake where they grow a variety of fruit and vegetables.

Hindustan Times – Online

The Union government is anticipating an increase in sowing and higher demand from the farm sector. It has issued instructions for the seamless availability and supply of critical inputs, such as fertilisers, seeds, pesticides, and machinery.

Millions of farmers have worked hard to keep agricultural operations going throughout the pandemic, aided by an exemption of the farm sector from Covid-related restrictions.

The pandemic has hit urban centres and smaller towns harder, relatively sparing farming activities in the countryside, another reason why the farm sector has outpaced other spheres of the economy.

Genetic Literacy Project – Online

The potential of genetic engineering is immense, with gene editing opening up the possibility of cures to hereditary diseases. Similarly, genetically modified (GM) crops are making big strides in bringing about improvement in crop productivity across farming nations.

Following approval for GM cotton, several organisations invested resources and efforts in new crop biotech traits, hoping for similar transformational changes in Indian agriculture. Bt brinjal was one such technology recommended for commercialisation in October 2009, after it completed regulatory evaluation in seven years, and is still under moratorium.

Foreign Policy – Online

In 2018, tens of thousands of poor farmers flooded cities all across India calling for government action to ease their difficult lives. Their immediate demands were higher prices for their output and loan waivers for their debts. With elections looming in 2019, pundits predicted serious problems at the polls for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Modi offered the farmers limited price supports but held the line on loan waivers. Instead, he promised to implement structural reforms after the election. The opposition Indian National Congress countered with a promise to “waive all farm loans” across the entire country—an expensive solution decried by economists as a populist magic wand.

Hindustan Times – Online

India has forecast an expansion of agriculture despite a massive surge in Covid-19 numbers, as farmers are projected to raise output to record levels in the oncoming kharif or summer-sown season, following a pandemic-defying performance in 2020.

The Union government is anticipating an increase in sowing and higher demand from the farm sector. It has issued instructions for the seamless availability and supply of critical inputs, such as fertilisers, seeds, pesticides, and machinery.

Millions of farmers have worked hard to keep agricultural operations going throughout the pandemic, aided by an exemption of the farm sector from Covid-related restrictions.

The pandemic has hit urban centres and smaller towns harder, relatively sparing farming activities in the countryside. “We ...

The Times of India – Online

To boost insurance penetration in rural areas, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has mooted the concept of ‘Model Insurance Village’ (MIV). As part of this, IRDAI has asked insurance companies to set up MIVs in 500 villages across the country in the first year and gradually scale this up to 1,000 villages in the subsequent two years.

In these model villages, insurance companies will have to work towards covering the entire populations and their properties, farms, machineries, vehicles and different village-level services, among others.

Live Mint – Online

Rural India has erased gains made since October when the coronavirus infection had begun to decline to record 2.84 million job losses in April for the salaried class alone. This is expected to impact rural consumption.

Salaried people in India’s rural pockets stood at 27.87 million in April, down from 30.72 million in March, and 33.46 million in February, showed monthly data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). Around 5.59 million salaried employees lost their jobs during April and March.

APN News – Online

It is an alarming reality that on average, farmers commits suicide in India due to lack of proper technology, financial investments, etc. Addressing this harsh reality, Mr. Harisharan Devgan realized that this is a humanitarian crisis of epic proportion. The image of the farmer family holds a special place in the heart of Mr. Harisharan Devgan. He had a vested interest in the community and environmental health of the farmers and their families.

Adoption is arguably the most powerful intervention available for children in foster care who are deprived of elementary education. Mr. Harisharan Devgan adopted the school, named “Love A Life” located in Andhra Pradesh bringing unique knowledge and skills to the social system.

Tribune  – Online

While witnessing a significant advancement in the domain of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) in agriculture automation, IIT Ropar has launched a Certificate course today on “AI & CPS for Agriculture Automation.”

The registration started today and online classes will commence from June 2 for six weeks. The course has been launched by Prof. Rajeev Ahuja, Director of IIT Ropar.

At the launch of the course, he said, “We want to transform India’s agriculture sector by developing innovative technological solutions to maximize productivity, improve upon the market linkages and supply chain efficiency, and bolster the country’s startup ecosystem by providing inputs for agro-business. This certificate course is one of the best offerings in the domain ...

Tribune – Online

Despite high concentration of banks in Punjab, credit growth to farm sector is almost stagnant in the past three years.

According to data, it witnessed a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 0.84% from FY18 to FY20. The state has over 6,300 bank branches comprising public, private, cooperative and regional rural banks.

According to National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard), decline in investment credit to agriculture and low offtake to mechanisation are some of the reasons behind low credit growth.

CNBC TV18 – Online

The second wave of Coronavirus has given way to concerns that agriculture could be affected. The COVID cases in rural India are on the rise as per official figures, in many predominantly rural districts, the number of active COVID-19 cases is almost nine to ten times what it was in the first pandemic wave’s peak in the month of September last year.

A CRISIL research report suggests the share of rural districts in new cases in April was 30 percent, up from 21 percent in March. This has led to concerns that India’s agriculture sector could be collateral to this potentially catastrophic surge.

To discuss this, CNBC-TV18’s Manisha Gupta spoke to Uday Deolankar, former Divisional Statistician ...

Krishi Jagran – Online

There has been a lot of development in the agriculture sector at a time when the whole world is fighting against Coronavirus. Let’s quickly check out top agriculture news from all over the world.

Сorteva Agriscience to expand sunflower seed production in Romania

Corteva Agriscience has announced the investment of almost 13 million € to expand its production facility at Afumati, Romania, and to accelerate the growth of its sunflower seed business in Europe.

The Indian Express – Online

Despite the surge in Covid-19 cases and imposition of weekend lockdown in nine districts of Haryana, farmer outfits have announced continuing their agitation like it is going on for the past five months. The Indian Express explains why farmers don’t want to postpone their agitation despite appeal by top BJP leaders.

India Education Diary – Online

In order to ensure the availability of different agricultural inputs (seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc.) and to take on field assessment of different agricultural activities, Director Agriculture Kashmir Chowdhary Mohammad Iqbal today visited different areas of Srinagar district.

During the visit Director Agriculture said special times need special approach.

He asked the officers and field functionaries to work in more professional and coordinated manner during these testing times. He impressed upon the concerned officers and functionaries while following COVID protocol in letter and spirit to reach out to the farmers and address their issues so that their interests could be safeguarded in the best possible manner.

He said that chasing the target of doubling the farmers ...

The Tribune – Online

PROMOTING a free market economy in agriculture in India has been a topic of debate since 1991 when reforms in the industrial and financial sectors were introduced. Then came the WTO agreement in 1995 to which India was one of the first signatories. Under this agreement, quantitative restrictions on agriculture trade were dismantled, bound tariff rates were negotiated for various crops and maximum level of agriculture subsidies were defined for developed and developing countries. It was argued that wide-scale reforms were required to unshackle growth in agriculture. Last year, the Union Government enacted three laws with the avowed aim of making agriculture markets more competitive for better harvest prices to farmers as they would be able ...

Financial Tribune – Online

Although large tracts of Iranian landmass are semi-arid, its key agricultural sector continues to pile pressure on surface and groundwater supplies.

To lift the pressure off water supplies, a local knowledge-based company has offered agricultural technology (agritech) solutions.

Avisa Hydroculture has launched a plan to educate farmers about hydroponics, which is a form of greenhouse agriculture that involves growing crops without soil and with less water, IRNA reported.

Rasoul Rahnamaei, the company’s CEO who is a university professor in pedology, said, “Our experts prepare an analytical report regarding the use of light, type of plants, the greenhouse’s quality and other parameters. Farmers are then taught how to feed their crops as suggested by the hydroponic analyses.”

The Hindu – Online

The National Centre for Organic Farming has approved the Prithivi Indigenous Natural Farmers Trust, Aadhirengam, in Thiruthuraipoondi taluk to function as Regional Council (RC) under the PGS-India programme to promote organic farming.

The NCOF, functioning under the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare of the Union Government, is implementing the PGS-India (Participatory Guarantee System of India) programme, which is a quality assurance initiative that is locally relevant and emphasises the participation of producers and consumers of organic farming products.

The RCs formed under the programme will act as agencies to facilitate capacity-building, training, knowledge/technology dissemination among local farming groups.

Factly.in – Online

India is an agrarian economy and is a major contributor to the global food basket, thanks to the favourable agro-climatic conditions and the rich base of natural resources. As per WTO’s Trade Statistics, the share of India’s agricultural exports and imports in the world agriculture trade in 2017 was 2.27% and 1.90%, respectively. India is among the world’s leading producers of many commodities such as dairy, cereals, spices, fruits & vegetables, rice, wheat, cotton, and others. Apart from fulfilling domestic demand, Indian agricultural produce that includes horticultural produce, and processed foods are exported to more than 100 countries in the world including the US, countries in the Middle East, and the EU. Amidst the COVID-19 ...

The Wire – Online

Estimates of water use by the agriculture sector typically range between 80-90% over India. This is largely consistent with  the rest of the world’s agricultural sector. India however leads the world in groundwater mining for irrigation application as well; especially in the breadbasket of India in the northwest. This is highly unsustainable and a serious jeopardy to the nation’s food, water and energy security.

Seasonal monsoon rainfall has trended down for over 60 years now and despite the conjectures of a recovering monsoon, widespread extreme rainfall events are here to stay interspersed with regional and local droughts. Some of the subsidies such as electricity for pumping water for irrigation are counterproductive to the goal of using ...