Agriculture Economy

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Thursday that any subsidy given to the farm sector, in any form, must reach the farmer directly. The VP was delivering his address as chief guest at the inaugural event of Amrut Mahotsav and Alumni Meet of College of Agriculture, University of Agricultural Sciences in Dharwad on January 16. Let the farmer decide, even fertilizer subsidy, which is huge... economists in agronomy must think if this assistance has to go directly to the farmer it will initiate the farmer into an alternative to chemical fertilizers. The farmer can utilize these funds for going organic and natural, said Dhankhar. The Vice President also said distress of farmers calls for urgent national attention and that the concerns of peasants cannot be put on the back burner. Farmers need economic security... I would say time is of absolute essence when it comes to finding resolution of farmers' problems. The government is working. We want everyone to be in synergetic mode, to .

SKM, KMM and SKM (Non-Political) hold joint meeting

Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) on Sunday called for tractor marches across the country on January 26 and demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi hold discussions with farmers over their pending demands. The SKM's call comes amid growing concerns over the health of farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who has been on an indefinite fast for 48 days. Dallewal, the convener of SKM (Non-Political), has been on the indefinite hunger strike at the Khanauri border point between Punjab and Haryana since November 26 last year over farmers' various demands including a legal guarantee to Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops. In a statement issued here, the SKM also announced that a meeting with SKM (Non-political) and KMM will be held on Monday for a joint struggle over demands, including MSP and the scrapping of the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing (NPFAM). "SKM called upon farmers to conduct Tractor/Vehicle/Motorcycle Parades on 26th January 2025, the 76th Republic Day, at

PK Mishra says India needs to accelerate hybrid tech adoption in pulses, oilseeds to overcome production deficits

Hybrid crop technology can play a crucial role to address the unique challenges faced by the agricultural sector, particularly in supporting small-holding farmers who comprise 88 per cent of the agricultural workforce, helping India become a developed nation by 2047, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister PK Mishra said on Wednesday. Despite agriculture's share in GDP declining from 42 per cent in 1977 to 18 per cent in 2023-24, the sector remains critical for inclusive growth with 46 per cent of India's workforce still dependent on it, compared to 70 per cent in 1977. "For becoming a developed country, we need to have not only higher rate of economic growth but the growth should be inclusive and sustainable," Mishra said addressing a national symposium organised by Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS) here. "The agriculture sector plays an important role in making growth inclusive and equitable." India's agricultural growth has shown remarkable acceleration, reach

Indian exporters have huge opportunities to increase their share in the global agriculture trade from the current 2.4 per cent, a government official said on Wednesday. The global agriculture trade is about USD 2 trillion. Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) Chairman Abhishek Dev said that given these numbers, "huge opportunities" are there to increase exports from the country. Despite being the seventh largest agri exporter in the world, "our share is 2.4 per cent in the overall world agri trade and immense possibilities are there to increase this share," he said at the inauguration of Indusfood 2025 at Greater Noida. India's agri export was about USD 50 billion in 2023-24 and this year also, the country is looking at pushing the figure to "new record", he said. Dev added that the overall focus now is to promote exports of value-added goods. Talking about exports of organic products, the chairman said India's share in this segment is abo

Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi on Monday said the government will soon take a decision on increasing the minimum support price (MSP) of sugar. The MSP of sugar remains unchanged at Rs 31 per kg, a rate established in February 2019. However, industry bodies have demanded for an increase due to rising production costs and economic pressures faced by sugar mills. "There is a demand. The department is seized of the matter. We will take a decision whether to increase or not shortly," Joshi told reporters on the sidelines of an event here. Indian Sugar and Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA) and National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) are pushing for an increase in the MSP to Rs 39.14 per kg or even Rs 42 per kg to better reflect production costs and support the financial health of sugar mills in India.

UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Sunday expressed interest in collaborating with Pakistan in the mining, minerals, and agriculture sectors. The UAE leader met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the Rahimyar Khan area of Punjab where he arrived on a private visit. According to Radio Pakistan, both leaders during the meeting expressed their shared commitment to deepening economic, political, and cultural ties. They discussed a wide range of issues, including economic collaboration, regional stability, climate change, and the promotion of mutual interests on the global stage. The UAE leader highlighted the UAE's keen interest in collaborating with Pakistan in the mining, minerals, and agriculture sectors. The UAE leader emphasised that this renewed economic vigour has created prospects for enhanced bilateral investment and collaboration. He reiterated commitment to enhancing its longstanding partnership with Pakistan, emphasising the importance of people-to-people connect

Agriculture minister Shivaraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday reviewed various schemes with state agriculture ministers and sought their suggestions on ongoing programmes and budget allocation ahead of the Union Budget. During a virtual meeting, Chouhan expressed satisfaction over the agriculture and allied sector's likely higher growth rate of 3.5-4 per cent in the 2024-25 fiscal year, and urged state governments to work at a "faster pace", according to an official statement. He welcomed the State Bank of India's report showing that the rural poverty rate declined to below 5 per cent for the first time in FY24 from 7.2 per cent in FY23. The minister said the Centre is implementing a six-point strategy to boost the farm sector, including increasing production per hectare through research by ICAR and release of new seed varieties. The government is also focusing on reducing production costs, promoting micro irrigation, farm mechanisation, technology adoption, and new agricultural ...

India's export of organic products is regulated under the NPOP, which has been in effect since 2001 and is administered by the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry

Chouhan says NCEL enters into agreement with Indonesia to supply 1 million tonnes of non-basmati white rice

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has welcomed the decisions taken for farmers at the first Union Cabinet meeting of 2025, saying those will also benefit the farmers of the state. Expressing his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Saini said the thoughtfulness with which these decisions have been taken will benefit lakhs of farmers in Haryana. Referring to the Union Cabinet's announcements as a "New Year gift" for farmers from Modi, the chief minister, in a statement, said the decisions will ensure the availability of key fertiliser DAP to farmers at affordable and subsidised rates. "In addition, a budget allocation has been made to promote the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and enhance technology, which will have a direct positive impact on farmers," he said. The Union Cabinet on Wednesday announced a one-time package to subsidise DAP at the cost of up to Rs 3,850 crore and approved a one-year extension of two crop-insurance schemes, decisions that Modi said were .

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday that the government's first decision in the New Year is dedicated to farmers, as the Union Cabinet headed by him enhanced allocation to crop insurance scheme and raised subsidy to a key fertiliser. He said on X, "(Govt's) first decision of the New Near is dedicated to crores of farmer brothers and sisters of our country. We have approved increasing the allocation for crop insurance scheme. This will provide more security to farmers' crops and will also mitigate their concerns about any damage." The Cabinet's decision on extending the one-time special package on Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) will help farmers by ensuring the fertiliser at affordable prices, he added. The Cabinet approved continuation of the 'Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana' and Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme till 2025-26 with an overall outlay of Rs 69,515.71 crore for 2021-22 to 2025-26. The decision will help in risk coverage of crops from ...

The country's agriculture and allied sector is expected to grow at 3.5-4 per cent in 2024-25, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Wednesday, marking a significant improvement from the 1.4 per cent rise recorded in FY24. In a New Year message posted on social media platform X, Chouhan expressed confidence in India's development trajectory under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, highlighting various rural welfare initiatives implemented in the past six months. "The New Year has brought good news that the growth rate of agriculture and allied sector is likely to be 3.5 to 4 per cent this year," Chouhan said. The minister emphasised ongoing efforts to ensure fair prices for farmers' produce and pointed to several rural development programmes, including housing for the poor, village road connectivity, skill development, and the Lakhpati Didi campaign aimed at improving rural livelihoods. He also highlighted the role of MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural ...

The agri-tech sector is expected to create 60,000-80,000 new employment opportunities over the next five years, a senior executive of TeamLease Services said. Agritech addresses every aspect of farming, from water irrigation advancements for seeds, fertilisers, and pesticides to offering access to advanced farm machinery and market linkages for selling produce, TeamLease Services Chief Strategy Officer Subburathinam P told PTI. The sector also empowers farmers with real-time advisory services, such as climatic forecasts, pest and disease predictions, and irrigation alerts, helping them make informed decisions in addition to bridging financial gaps by offering credit, insurance, and digital payment solutions as well, he noted. "The agritech sector in India employs approximately 1 lakh people across various roles, including technical, operational, and managerial positions. In the five years, the sector is expected to generate 60-80K new job opportunities. These will span across roles

Also, Rs 824.77 crore fund has been created to foster innovation and technology in the agriculture sector

The SOP was shared with all state Registrars of Cooperative Societies, with advice to modify it suitably and adopt

Nano urea sales dropped by a steep 43.2 per cent in FY24 from the previous year, despite production capacity rising by almost 59 per cent in that period

The government on Friday announced an increase in the minimum support price (MSP) for copra by up to Rs 420 to Rs 12,100 per quintal for 2025 with a budget outlay of Rs 855 crore. A decision in this regard was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The MSP for 'milling copra' has been increased by Rs 420 to Rs 11,582 per quintal, while for 'ball copra' by Rs 100 to Rs 12,100 per quintal for 2025, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters. The total financial implication would be Rs 855 crore. Cooperative agencies Nafed and NCCF will be the central nodal agencies for the procurement of copra, he added.

The government on Tuesday informed Parliament that more than 37.17 lakh identity cards of farmers have been created so far as part of the AgriStack project. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the 'farmer ID' includes comprehensive and useful data on farmers' demographic details, land holdings, and crops sown, enabling farmers to digitally identify and authenticate them for accessing benefits and such as credit, insurance, procurement, etc. "As on December 11, 2024, a total of 37,17,709 Farmer IDs has been created," he said. He said even the Digital Crop Survey (DCS) has been undertaken in 436 districts in the kharif season of 2024. At present, Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with 22 states and Union Territories for creation and implementation of the Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture. Chouhan said the government has consulted with states and other stakeholder ministries and financial institutions throug