Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
After Excess Rains, Record Heat Singes Farmers as India’s Wheat Harvest Bears Brunt of Climate Changeedit
Network 18 – Online
Struck by extreme weather events and record-breaking heat, India is facing an onslaught of climate change that has hit the yield of freshly harvested wheat, which has plunged significantly in two major wheat-procuring states of Punjab and Haryana.
The country has witnessed its hottest March in as many as 122 years, marked by an early onset of the heat wave. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the month of March, which is also a crucial time for the growth of Rabi crops, saw the highest-ever average maximum temperature of 33.10℃, surpassing the previous record of 2010.
Punjab govt stares at hefty relief bill as wheat yield drops by 10%edit
Hindustan Times – Online
According to experts, the sudden rise in temperature in mid-March fastened the maturing of wheat crop, causing loss of yield and grain quality. With farmers staring at losses, the demands for compensation have already started resonating across the state.
As the agriculture department is pegging the per acre loss at one to four quintals, it would eventually lead to a case for paying compensation to farmers and put an additional burden on the state’s finances, which are already in dire straits.
ICRISAT invites agritechs to apply for fundingedit
The Hindu Business Line – Online
The Agribusiness Incubator (ABI) at the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) has called for applications from agritech start-ups under the NIDHI-Seed Support Scheme (NIDHI-SSS).
The scheme is backed by the governmental Department of Science and Technology. “We are looking to engage with early revenue stage start-ups with product-market fit and clarity on their value proposition. The seed fund will enable them to accelerate their commercialisation activities,” Aravazhi Selvaraj, Head of ABI-ICRISAT, said in a statement.
Paddy in India
‘Spending So Much Amount on Farming Sector’: Telangana CM Announces to Procure Paddy in Yasangi Seasonedit
Network 18 – Online
Putting an end to the confusion on the procurement of the paddy among the farmers and controversy between the central government and state, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Tuesday announced that the state government will directly procure the agriculture produce in the Yasangi (summer season) whatever the quantity it may be. A committee under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary will be formed in three days for the same.
Stubble Burning
As harvesting picks pace, farm fires back in state: 21 in 11 daysedit
The Indian Express – Online
With the beginning of wheat harvesting, incidents of wheat stubble burning have also returned in Punjab. Till Monday (April 11), 21 incidents of stubble burning across 11 districts were recorded by the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre (PRSC), Ludhiana. From April 1 to April 11 in 2021 and 2020, there were 15 and 13 field fire cases, respectively.
Most of the farmers who grow wheat, grow paddy after wheat harvesting but do not take a third crop between wheat and paddy. This gives them enough time to manage the wheat stubble. Between wheat harvesting and paddy sowing, farmers get 45 to 60 days when their fields are vacant but still they go for stubble burning ...