Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Haryana moves to wean farmers away from paddy on 2 lakh acresedit
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 ...
Government buys record wheat crop of over 400 lakh ton at MSP for Rs 79,088 croreedit
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 ...
Impact Of COVID-19 And Lockdown On The Indian Agricultural Sectoredit
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 ...
Government effort essential for smoother flow of priority sector creditedit
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, ...
Dairy Farming
“Milk is in Our Faith,” Amul MD Hits Out at PETAedit
Krishi Jagran – Online
PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) had never imagined in their wildest dreams that their one statement could send ripples over social media and they would be trolled mercilessly. It all started when PETA asked Amul, the milk giant of India, to decide switching to producing vegan milk. The letter was addressed to MD of Amul, R. S. Sodhi and talked of how the diary cooperative society could benefit from the flourishing vegan milk and food market. PETA said this while citing a report of 2018 by Cargill, a global food corporation, which says that the global demand of dairy products is decreasing, as it is, no longer, regarded as an important part ...
Technology in Agriculture
In the changing landscape of Global AgTech, FarmERP scales-up their operationsedit
The Print – Online
In today’s digital age, the world of AgTech has been working towards streamlining a fairly disorganised sector, in the manner of highlighting predictability and formulaic manners of working. Farm management is the next big thing, and technology is being interspersed with daily agronomic processes, worldwide, relatively aggressively post the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. FarmERP, a brainchild of Shivrai Technologies (a 25-year-old formidable AgTech organisation in India) aims to make its services and the platform as a whole exceptionally comprehensive for stakeholders across the agricultural value chain.
The brand has taken its offerings to a multitude of countries, contributing nationally, as well as on an international level. They received their first round of external funding ...
Stubble Burning
Gujarat’s green solution to tackle smoke pollutionedit
The Times Of India – Online
Delhiites may soon enjoy ‘clear’ wintry mornings without choking on smoggy air caused by rampant burning of stubble in farms across Punjab and Haryana. A Gujarat-based biotech firm has come up with ‘multi-microbial consortia’ that will not only put a lid on the environmental mess, but also improve the soil quality as a bonus. Headed by Padma Shri Dr M H Mehta, Gujarat Life Sciences Ltd (GLSL) also recently bagged a national award for ‘Leadership Role in Post-Harvest Stubble Burning Solution’ for its innovation.
“We had been working on solving the stubble burning problem in the northern states for many years. GLSL did research and development to come up with a solution ...
Tractor industry
Sonalika Tractors extends primary warranty on tractors by 2 monthsedit
The Economic Times – Online
Sonalika Tractors has extended primary warranty on its tractors by two months to June 30 owning to the lockdowns and restrictions imposed by several state governments due to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said on Friday.
All customers whose primary tractor warranty is expiring during the period May 1 and June 30 will get two months’ extension from the date of expiry, considering the pandemic is creating challenges on mobility across markets, Sonalika Tractors said in a release.