The Print – Online

Haryana Congress on Wednesday alleged that farmers are not getting adequate price of bajra in the state, with former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda claiming that the crop is being sold at “throwaway” prices in the mandis once again. “The minimum support price (MSP) of bajra has been fixed at Rs 2,350 per quintal, but farmers are hardly getting the rate of Rs 1,700-1,800. In the last season too, bajra was sold at almost half the rate of MSP,” Hooda, who is Leader of the Opposition, said. At that time, the state government announced that if the crops were sold below the MSP, it will protect the farmers under the ‘Bhavantar Bharpayee Yojana’. “But neither ...

Livemint – Online

Last week, the Indian government imposed several restrictions on rice exports. It banned the export of 100% broken rice, which is predominantly used as cattle feed, and imposed a 20% export duty on several other grades of rice. This was seemingly in response to both a rise in domestic prices and decreased sowing in several key rice-producing states because of a sluggish monsoon.

The Economic Times – Online

India’s food production industry is worth over $400 billion, the primary source of livelihood for over nearly half of the country’s population but the level of food processing across categories is significantly low, said a recent study. India’s share of agri-production is 9.5% globally, while its share in the export of overall food products is 2-3% – with share in export of processed food category even lower at 1-2%, according to a report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in association with Federation of India Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). “We live in an increasingly connected world, where consumers can access products from across the globe. With fundamental shifts in consumer behavior owing to ...

The New Indian Express – Online

The cabinet has approved the setting up of a Value-Added Agriculture Mission aimed at increasing the farmer’s income, enhancing agricultural production and raising the income of agricultural value-added products. The chief minister will be the chairperson of the mission and the agriculture minister is its vice-chairperson. The ministers of Local Self Government, Cooperation, Finance, Water Resources, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, Electricity and Food and Civil Supplies will be its members. According to a note from the chief minister’s office, sub-working groups/resource support groups will be formed to submit sub-action plans to the mission. An official from the agriculture department will be appointed as the chief operating officer and sub-working group resource persons will be ...