Page 25 - Agriculture

Wheat stocks decline to 7-year low on poor procurement, shows data

The last time wheat stocks were below the current levels on March 1 was back in 2017. It had then dropped to 9.42 million tonnes

India achieves 11.6% ethanol blend with petrol in first 4 months of 2023-24

ISMA has appointed Deepak Ballani as its new Director General

Chhattisgarh launches scheme to provide input assistance to farmers

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Tuesday launched 'Krishak Unnati Yojna' to provide input assistance to farmers and released Rs 13,320 crore to 24.72 lakh cultivators. The scheme was launched at a function at Saryu Prasad Agrawal stadium in Balod district. Speaking on the occasion, Sai said another guarantee of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been fulfilled with the launch of this scheme. Input assistance worth Rs 13,320 crore was transferred to the bank accounts of 24.75 lakh farmers under the Krishak Unnati Yojana, he said. Of these cultivators, 24.72 lakh sold paddy this year in the kharif marketing season 2023-24 at minimum support price, and they were paid the difference amount of Rs 13,289 crore, the chief minister said. Similarly, more than Rs 31 crore was paid to 2,829 farmers producing paddy seeds through the seed corporation, he said. "The state government fulfilled its promise to farmers, by disbursing pending paddy bonus of two years (2014-15 and 2015-16

Rajasthan govt assesses crop loss in districts affected by rain, hailstorms

Trader K G Jhalani said harvesting of wheat, barley, and gram would begin in 10-15 days, so there is no major loss to these crops yet

Drop in onion and potato output; tomato slightly up, shows govt data

Onion production stood at 31.68 million tonnes in 2021-22, according to government data

FMCG sector to see subdued growth till September quarter: Kantar report

With El-Nino impact expected to keep weather dry for the first half of the year, the agriculture outlook for 2024 is a mixed bag

2.4 million paddy farmers in Chhattisgarh to get Rs 13,000 crore: CM

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has promised to pay Rs 3,100 for a quintal of paddy procured during the kharif marketing season 2023-24

Rethink the way we grow food

The fact is that the European farming system, which epitomises modern agriculture as we know it today, has survived only because of massive subsidy

Building capacity

Grain storage facilities will benefit all stakeholders

Gates meets Odisha CM, discusses tech-driven farmer empowerment initiatives

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates called on Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at his residence here and discussed technology-driven farmer empowerment initiatives. Gates, who arrived here on Tuesday, held discussions with the chief minister about various state government initiatives. "Pleasure meeting @Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Mr @BillGates. Had a wonderful discussion on our technology-driven farmer empowerment initiatives, several welfare initiatives like #JagaMission, #MissionShakti, #OdishaSchoolTransformation, #BSKY and healthcare transformation," Patnaik said on X. He appreciated the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for supporting innovation in extending inclusive benefits to the people. "Thanked him for his praise for Odisha's welfare initiatives and success in different sectors through #5T transformative governance," he added. In the morning, he visited a slum in Bhubaneswar and interacted with the residents. He visited the Biju Adarsh Colony in the Maa ...

Tea industry body welcomes move to sell dust tea through auction route

Tea Association of India (TAI), a body of planters, on Wednesday hailed the decision of the Tea Board for selling dust tea fully through the auction route. On February 26, the board issued an order saying that 100 per cent of dust grades of tea manufactured in a calendar year through the auction mode under Tea (Marketing) Control (Amendment) Order which will be effective from April one, 2024. President of TAI Sandeep Singhania said in a statement that dust grades constitute approximately 20 per cent of total production in North India. Therefore, transitioning to 100 per cent auction of dust tea will be a small step towards restructuring the existing system, he said. TAI said that the tea industry is facing unprecedented challenges and urgent action is required to revitalise the industry. The association is also committed to compliance with the maximum residue levels (MRL) of pesticides and market teas as a healthy beverage. TAI has urged all the stakeholders to collaborate with t

ISO raises forecast for size of global sugar deficit for current season

A Reuters poll of analysts and traders this month gave a median forecast of a small surplus of 500,000 tons in the 2023/24 season

Is legalising MSP workable? Agri economists talk about the pros and cons

The MSP scheme already exists and has been in existence for more than five decades. A legal guarantee simply provides a legislative co­ver to ensure proper imple­men­tation, argues Himanshu

WTO: India argues to finalise permanent solution to public stockholding

At the 13th ministerial conference (MC13) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Abu Dhabi, 164 member nations are participating in negotiations on agriculture

Economic growth likely slowed to 6.6% as agriculture lagged: Poll

Strong capital expenditure by the Indian government ahead of a national election due in May was a primary driver of growth in the previous few quarters

PM inaugurates world's largest grain storage plan in cooperative sector

The power of cooperation has a huge role in strengthening the foundation of agriculture and farming and this has led to a separate Ministry for Cooperation

Then and now: Protesting farmers want their voice to reach Delhi

Similar langar set-ups are placed every 500 metres across the protest site spreading up to 8 km. Tractors and trucks are lined up on the stretch, leaving a bylane for daily or emergency commute

Share of crop income dips for agriculture households, shows data

The Central government's three-member panel of senior ministers have offered them a proposal of guaranteed purchase of five crops at the MSP to break the imbroglio

No impact of MSP turmoil on wheat buying: Food secy Sanjeev Chopra

The wheat procurement season usually starts from April 1 in most parts of the country but in the coming season the government has given freedom to the states to advance the purchase dates

SKM forms panel to launch united fight for protesting farmers' demands

The members of the panel include Hannan Mollah, Joginder Singh Ugrahan, Balbeer Singh Rajewal, Yudhvir Singh, Darshan Pal and Raminder Patiala