Media Monitor
Agriculture Industry
Kharif sowing period almost over, but huge deficit for paddy and pulsesedit
Down to Earth – Online
Acreage for paddy and pulses is lagging far behind last year’s levels even as the 2022 Kharif sowing period is drawing to a close. Paddy plantation is over 2 million hectares less than last year’s. Jharkhand has been affected the most. Paddy plantation has been done in less than half of the target area and most farmers have given up on being able to transplant it this season. Paddy was planted in 1.75 million ha through the first week of September last year in Jharkhand. This year, 0.77 million ha were sown by September 2, 2022 — a deficit of 55 per cent. The state government had set a target of sowing paddy on ...
Domestic drone industry in Uttar Pradesh gets ‘Make in India’ pushedit
Business Standard – Online
The nascent domestic drone industry in Uttar Pradesh has received a Make in India shot in the arm with the state planning to deploy drones for agricultural purposes. The drones will be used for spraying pesticides, fertilisers, and farm nutrients in the cultivated land. Considering that Uttar Pradesh is among the top agricultural and horticultural producers with a cultivated area of almost 17 million hectares, there is a huge potential for local drone units, service providers and allied industry. According to reports, India’s drone sector is projected to clock a turnover of Rs 12,000-15,000 crore by 2026.
Govt. Policies
Govt imposes 20% export duty on non-Basmati rice from Sept 9edit
Business Standard – Online
The government on Thursday imposed a 20 per cent export duty on non-Basmati rice except for parboiled rice to boost domestic supplies amid a fall in area under the paddy crop in the current Kharif season. According to a notification by the revenue department, an export duty of 20 per cent has been imposed on ‘rice in husk (paddy or rough)’ and ‘husked (brown) rice’. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs further said the export of ‘semi-milled or wholly-milled rice, whether or not polished or glazed(other than Parboiled rice and Basmati rice)’ will also attract a customs duty of 20 per cent.
21 lakh ineligible UP farmers benefitted under PM Kisan schemeedit
The New Indian Express – Online
Around 21 lakh UP farmers have been found ineligible of receiving benefits under the PM Kisan Nidhi scheme but they have got the money already transferred to their bank accounts. Now, the state government is proceeding with the recovery of the money as per the rules. -ADVERTISEMENT- Ads by A total of 2.85 crore farmers were selected under the Centre’s Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme in the state, out of which 21 lakh beneficiaries have been found ineligible. UP Agriculture Minister Surya Kumar Shahi said that among the ineligible beneficiaries are those farmers who pay income tax, do not own any land or husband and wife both are taking benefits of the ...
Agriculture ministry along with FICCI launches PMU on PPP projectsedit
Livemint – Online
Union Minister for Agriculture and Family Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar on Thursday launched the Project Management Unit (PMU) on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in Agriculture. Addressing the occasion, the minister said that the PPP model can be an ideal model for growth in the agriculture sector and the projects must focus on benefiting the farmers by enhancing their income. Tomar added that the empowerment of the agriculture sector is very important for the country and the society. “If the Government alone continues to do all the work, this is not an ideal situation; better things can be done only with public participation. For the progress of any sector, the Government can deliver better with the cooperation of ...
Monsoon + Indian Agriculture
Prayagraj on verge of drought, gets just 42% rains this yearedit
Hindustan Times – Online
Due to less rainfall this monsoon season, Prayagraj district is now on the brink of drought. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath has asked the district magistrates of all the districts including Prayagraj to review the drought conditions and submit a report within a week. In this sequence, agriculture production commissioner Manoj Kumar has sought a complete report from all officials concerned through video conferencing held on Wednesday, informed officials of the district administration. The situation in Prayagraj meanwhile continues to remain very dry. Normally, the district during the monsoon season should receive 704.8 mm of rain while this time only 297.8 mm ie mere 42.37% of the total rainfall has been received, officials concede.
Stubble Burning
Stubble burning fine set to be notified; between ₹2,500 to ₹15,000 per incidentedit
The Economic Times – Online
The Centre is set to notify a new rule to specify penalties for stubble burning, ahead of the National Capital Region’s high pollution season and a year after the Commission of Air Quality Management for NCR was backed by a central law. While financial penalties against farmers who resort to stubble burning will be imposed, the new rule will ensure that no criminal cases would be imposed. The hefty fine of ₹1 crore proposed in 2020 also would not be imposed. The draft rule to the CAQM Act, 2021, proposes 2,500 ‘environmental compensation’ per incidence of stubble fire for a farmer owning less than 2 acres, ET has learnt. The amount per incidence will ...
Why Punjab farmers are reluctant to bank on two key stubble management machinesedit
The Indian Express – Online
Two aggressively promoted crop residue management machines by the government — Happy Seeder and Super-Straw Management System (S-SMS), have become the most neglected ones among farmers. While the government pushes them as the ones most useful for stubble management, farmers are not impressed. Current situation At present, Punjab has 13,540 Happy Seeders (HS) and 5,972 S-SMS attached Combine harvesters. According to the law, no combine harvesters can be run in the fields without S-SMS attachment. Punjab has around 18,000 combine harvesters out of which nearly 50% are suitable for the attachment of S-SMS because some are quite old. The state could not even get at S-SMS attached to even these 50% harvesters in the ...