Page 24 - Farmers

Farmers rights to be protected during food processing modernisation: MoS

As the Centre moves to modernise the food processing sector of the country, it will also protect the rights and interests of farmers, Union Minister of State (MoS) for Food Processing and Jal Shakti Prahlad Singh Patel said here on Friday. The Minister, who is presently in the southern state, gave the assurance while visiting the CSIR-National Institute For Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (NIIST) at Pappanamcode here during the day, a government statement said. Scientists at the Institute apprised the Minister of the activities of NIIST and he also viewed a presentation on the progress of various projects of the institute, it said. Patel visited various labs at NIIST and the officials briefed him about the eco-friendly products manufactured there, it further said and added that the Minister also planted a sapling in the institute's campus. He later visited MoS External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan who is undergoing treatment at KIMS hospital in ...

Farmers crowd swell at 'seed counter' on first day of Pusa agri-mela

Hundreds of farmers, who thronged to the famous 'Krishi Vigyan Mela' held at the Pusa campus here on Thursday, had to face a lot of inconvenience while buying seeds and complained about poor management by the organiser IARI. The rush for buying seeds was so much that the Delhi Police had to intervene to control the crowd. The seed counter was also well guarded by security personnel to avoid commotion. The three-day annual 'Pusa Krishi Vigyan Mela', organised by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), was inaugurated by Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Thursday. The sale of seeds developed by IARI has always been the main attraction of the mela and farmers from states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Bihar travel long distances just to buy the "quality Pusa seeds". A huge counter has been set up for sale of seeds at mela, where IARI plans to sell paddy seeds, including basmati rice varieties as well as moong till March 4. On the first day of

We're with onion farmers, says Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde in Assembly

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday told the legislative assembly that his government is with onion farmers amid reports of falling prices of the key kitchen staple in the wholesale market, and talked of financial help for the growers if required. Speaking on the floor of the lower house, Shinde said, We are firmly standing by the onion growers in the state. NAFED (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited) has started onion procurement and that would push the prices up. NAFED, an apex organisation under the Union Ministry of Agriculture, deals with marketing cooperatives for agricultural produce in India. On our request, NAFED has increased its onion procurement and 2.38 lakh tonnes have already been purchased from farmers. If a particular area does not have a procurement centre, then it will be opened for farmers, Shinde said on the second day of the budget session of the state legislature. The price per kilogram of onion came down to

Nafed intervenes to stabilise markets as onion and potato prices plunge

Sharp drop in onion and potato prices since last few weeks have forced farmers to dump their produce in fields as selling price is far less than even cost of carrying produce to the market

Give us fair price or permission to commit suicide, say Nashik farmers

Farmers in Maharashtra's Nashik district have asked the Modi government to grant them permission to commit suicide as they have been facing difficulties due to the low prices of onions in the state

Making millets mainstream: The two-day event to begin on Friday

The roundtable discussions on millets processing will be attended by members from the private sector

Centre sets up panel to protect wheat as farms gear up for heat wave

The states that could see a possible heatwave are in the Northwest region mostly, which is India's main food bowl plain and comprises Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh

J&K govt approves Rs 30.40 cr 'Sensor-based Smart Agriculture' project

The project is aimed at establishing a 'sensor-based smart agriculture ecosystem' would prove to be helpful for the agri-economy of the region

Farmers slam UP govt's status quo on sugarcane price for 2022-23 season

Opposition says move will ruin farmers economically; meanwhile food secy says Centre will take a call next month on increasing sugar export quota

Rajasthan govt to draft new law to stop auction of small farmers' land

Guha directed the officials that the Rajasthan Farmers Loan Relief Act should be prepared within a month

Quick commerce firm Zepto launches engagement programme, app for farmers

Service will Zepto digitise processes helping farmers to streamline their supplies and yields

Popularisation of millets to boost income of small, marginal farmers: Govt

The government on Saturday said popularisation of millets in the country will lead to increase in the income of small and marginal farmers and urged international organisations, academia and hotel industry to revive the forgotten glory of "miracle millets". The year 2023 has been declared by the United Nations as the International Year of the Millet, following a proposal by India, which wants to position itself as a global hub for millets. Several initiatives are being undertaken in this regard. Addressing 9th International Chefs Conference organised by the Indian Federation of Culinary Associations here, Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Choudhary said millets are considered traditional food for more than half a billion people across Asia and Africa. In India, millets are primarily a kharif crop, requiring less water and agricultural inputs than other similar staples. "Millets are important by virtue of its mammoth potential to generate livelihoods, increase farmers' incom

Over 200K farmers in Rajasthan become self-dependent by producing seeds

Looking at the success of the scheme, the chief minister in the last Budget doubled the size of the plan and announced benefiting 50,000 farmers

Over 5,000 farmers associated with fish farming in Chhattisgarh's Pakhanjur

From Chhattisgarh, fish seed is supplied to different parts of the country. Farmers earn about Rs 125 crore from fish seed alone, the spokesperson said

Time has come for farmers to run the country: KCR at BRS' national rally

Stating that Maharashtra has recorded the highest number of farmers' suicides in the country, BRS president and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said here on Sunday that the time has come for peasants to take the reins of the country. Addressing Bharat Rashtra Samithi's (BRS) first public meeting outside Telangana at Nanded, he said political parties and leaders are winning in polls but people are losing. "That's why BRS slogan is 'Abki ki baar, kisan sarkar' (This time around, a government for the farmers). If we unite, it is not impossible. In our country, farmers constitute more than 42 per cent and if the number of farm labourers is also added to that it will be more than 50 per cent which is sufficient to form government, Rao said. "Today, time has come. 75 years is a long period. Farmers should also be able to write and make rules," he said. There are several rivers like Krishna and Godavari flowing in Maharashtra. Even then, why is there water shortage in ...

Unfinished agenda: Pain points and what's on offer in Budget 2023

An agriculture accelerator fund has been announced. It is aimed at encouraging start-ups by entrepreneurs in rural areas

Farmers should create value-added items from agriculture: Kerala minister

Farmers in Kerala should create value-added items out of their agricultural products and sell them as international brands in the world market to increase their income, state Agriculture Minister P Prasad said. Speaking after inaugurating the silver jubilee celebrations of Kudumbashree projects at Ranni in Pathanamthitta district of the state, the minister said farmers can boost their income by international branding and sale of such value added products and by better organising the agricultural labour force. "Mechanization of the agricultural labor force can help both the farmer and the laborers," he said. As a step towards that, necessary machinery will be provided to the agricultural work force in Ranni Perunad panchayat with the help of the agriculture department, Prasad said. He further said that "our diet and lifestyle invite diseases, so we must take up agriculture to avoid them". The minister also praised the Kudumbashree and said it was a system that the world can emulate

About 300k women farmers benefited from PM-KISAN, Rs 54,000 cr transferred

President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday said about 3 lakh women farmers have been benefitted from PM-KISAN scheme under which Rs 54,000 crore has been transferred to them so far. The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme was launched in February 2019 but is being implemented with effect from December 2018. Under the scheme, eligible farmers are provided with a financial benefit of Rs 6,000 per year in three equal instalments of Rs 2,000 each every four months. The fund is directly transferred to bank accounts of the beneficiaries. In her first address to the joint sitting of Parliament as the Budget session began, Murmu said the government's priority is 11 crore small farmers who were for decades deprived of the benefits. These farmers are now being empowered. "Under PM-KISAN, more than Rs 2.25 lakh crore has been transferred. Important thing is that about 3 lakh are women farmers," Murmu said. About Rs 54,000 crore has been transferred to these small women farmers, she

Budget wishlist: Economy can touch $5 tn if lives of farmers improve

If the lives of millions of marginalised farmers are better and their standard of living improves, India should be coasting easily towards target of a $5 trillion economy, said top official from LEAF

Farmers are backbone of Indian economy: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla

India will become self-reliant only when farmers adopt innovations, new techniques and trends in agriculture to ensure maximum production from minimum land and investment, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said on Tuesday. Birla, along with Union Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Choudhary, inaugurated a two-day agriculture fair and exhibition at the Dusshera Ground in Kota. The Lok Sabha speaker said farmers are the backbone of India's economy and brought in the green revolution to make the country the highest producer of wheat in the world. The focus should now be laid on the white revolution in the form of milk production and animal husbandry, aided by modern innovations and techniques, he said. "It is the power of farmers (annadata) that they did not allow any shortage of wheat during the coronavirus pandemic when production had dropped in every sector," he said. During the pandemic, the Narendra Modi government distributed free wheat to 80 crore people and it was possible ..