Page 59 - Agriculture

China expands imports, planting approvals of additional gene-modified crops

The agriculture ministry approved the domestic production of six more varieties of genetically modified corn, two of soybeans and one of cotton, and another two of gene-edited soybeans

India's corn exports plunge as domestic prices rally on strong demand

India usually exports around 250,000 to 300,000 metric tons of corn every month but in December its exports fell to around 30,000 tons

Exports of oilmeals rise 16% to 1.22 mn tonne in December quarter

The country's oilmeals exports rose 16 per cent to 12.20 lakh tonne in the third quarter of the current fiscal compared to the year-ago period, industry body SEA said on Thursday

Govt can look at taxing rich farmers, says MPC member Ashima Goyal

She was responding to a query on whether agriculture income should be taxed in India

Fog-induced chaos: Regulators impose fines on 3 airlines, Mumbai airport

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) imposed a total fine of Rs 2.7 crore on the aforementioned four major aviation sector players in India

Higher food prices push WPI inflation to 9-month high in December

This is the second consecutive month that the wholesale inflation rate had remained in positive territory after there was deflation for seven consecutive months till October 2023

Can cloud seeding be the answer to India's growing problem of uneven rains?

According to the IITM report, cloud seeding is a technique in which cloud-forming particles are used to increase rainfall

India asks US to permit domestic labs for fruit irradiation to cut cost

Irradiation improves safety of fruits as it kills microorganisms. Irradiation helps eliminate pests without affecting the quality of the fruit

Rabi, fruit farmers in Himachal stare at losses amid prolonged dry spell

Further, the apple orchards are also getting deprived of the required moisture and chilling hours

No proposal to lift export curbs on wheat, rice, sugar, says Piyush Goyal

India had banned wheat exports in May 2022, non-basmati rice exports from July 2023 and extended curbs on sugar exports beyond October 2023, as part of measures to control rising domestic prices

Masur production may touch record 1.6 mn tons this Rabi season: Govt

The country's masur (lentil) production is estimated to touch an all-time high of 1.6 million tonnes in the 2023-24 rabi season on higher acreage

India set to become largest lentil producer in 2023-24 crop yr: Official

Says pitching for self-sufficiency in pulses, but imports will have to continue for sometime

Non-GM mustard yield only a little higher than GM mustard: Coalition

The coalition said that the Union of India presented a new paper with regard to the Centre of Origin of Brassica juncea being outside India

GM Mustard: Why reports of panel not considered by GEAC, SC asks Centre

The attorney general said being a statutory body, the GEAC is not supposed to go into these reports but has considered every relevant scientific finding before giving the go-ahead for the release

Sugar firms seek court help against ban on use of cane juice for ethanol

The distillery in its petition to the Karnataka High Court said that as it produces only ethanol and not sugar from cane

Jeera prices halve after sowing increases on 2023 hopes, shows data

Experts are saying the slump could be due to expectations of a bumper crop this year. Farmers had sown the crop in a larger area after prices hit multi-year highs last year

SC starts hearing pleas challenging commercial release of GM mustard

The bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Sanjay Karol asked the petitioners how much time they would take to argue the matter

Slow purchases in some states drag rice procurement for central pool

Rice procurement for the central pool remains sub-par for the 2023-24 season starting in October due to slow purchases in Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh

Farmers' bodies organise 'mahapanchayat', demand MSP guarantee law

The gathering of farmers from across north India also announced a "Delhi Chalo" march to the national capital on February 13

UN's world food price index ends 2023 around 10% below 2022 levels

The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 118.5 points in December, down 1.5% from November