Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

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SBajwa
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

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SBajwa wrote:
Saw the video. Actually, in the place where I grew up as a kid, which had just emerged as a grade 3 municipality still retained its village modes of living. Rearing cows/buffaloes was very much in vogue in that semi rural town. The cattle would roam the streets in search of grass growing on the sides of gravel roads. It is not uncommon to see cattle droppings on the roads. In the best traditions of 'finders keepers' women would collect it in basket and take it home. There they would mix some water and make a paste and flatten it and slap it on side walls of house and compound wall or even on the earth. Once dried it can be easily removed. The resultant tandoori roti like cow dung cakes are used as fuel for mud stoves supplementing firewood.
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

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nandakumar wrote:
SBajwa wrote:
Saw the video. Actually, in the place where I grew up as a kid, which had just emerged as a grade 3 municipality still retained its village modes of living. Rearing cows/buffaloes was very much in vogue in that semi rural town. The cattle would roam the streets in search of grass growing on the sides of gravel roads. It is not uncommon to see cattle droppings on the roads. In the best traditions of 'finders keepers' women would collect it in basket and take it home. There they would mix some water and make a paste and flatten it and slap it on side walls of house and compound wall or even on the earth. Once dried it can be easily removed. The resultant tandoori roti like cow dung cakes are used as fuel for mud stoves supplementing firewood.

That happens all over India. This machine converts the cowdung into sort of a "Wood" with 1" hole across it that helps burn for higher temperatures (boilers, steel, etc)
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Record wheat acreage takes rabi sowing beyond 64 million hectare.

India has sown wheat over a record area of 330 lakh hectares, taking the total planted area in the current rabi season to 641 lakh hectares, which is 8.6 per cent more than that sown in the corresponding period last year, according to data released by the Agriculture Ministry on Friday.

“The maximum wheat sown area in the past was a little over 320 lakh hectares. That way this a record of sorts. And the crop condition this year is very good,” said RK Sharma, Principal Scientist at the Karnal-based Indian Institute of Wheat and Barley Institute, a lab under the aegis of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

While Madhya Pradesh has sown wheat over an area of 78 lakh hectares, about 19 lakh hectares over last year, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra planted wheat over an additional area of 5.6 lakh hectares, 4.5 lakh hectares and 3.86 lakh hectares, respectively, over the corresponding week last year.

Image

Farmers have planted pulses over an area of 157 lakh hectares as against 150 lakh hectares in the same week last year. Much of the increase has been reported from Maharashtra, which brought an additional area of 7.74 lakh hectares under pulses, Rajasthan (6.35 lakh hectares) and Gujarat (2.16 lakh hectares). Madhya Pradesh, on the other hand, planted nearly 9 lakh hectares less under pulses.

The area under coarse cereals is up by 13.5 per cent to over 53 lakh hectares. The coarse cereals acreage in the corresponding week last rabi season was less than 47 lakh hectares. Jowar, which has been planted over an additional area of 4.65 lakh hectares, accounted for much of this increase.

Even though mustard planting is a tad lower than last year's 69.28 lakh hectares, the total area under oilseeds moved into positive territory with a marginally higher groundnut acreage.

Oilseeds had been sown on 79.25 lakh hectares till this week. Rice transplanting in Telangana and Tamil Nadu were 2.56 lakh hectares and 1.4 lakh hectares higher than the corresponding week last year, respectively, taking the total area under rice cultivation to 21.41 lakh hectares, more than 18 per cent higher than the last winter season.
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Electricity from cowdung

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After wheat, rice, govt targets to make India surplus in pulses.

After wheat and rice, the government targets to make the country surplus in pulses, catering to demand from other countries, agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar has said. However, the ambitious target can be achieved when the productivity of pulses is raised, which is still below pre-Green Revolution levels, he added. Stating that India is almost on the path to become self-sufficient in pulses, Tomar said: “As of now, maximum of the domestic requirement is being met in India itself. We will further boost pulses production and will also help in meeting the global demand.”

The country had produced 23.4 million tonne of pulses during 2018-19 crop year (July-June), against annual domestic demand of about 27 million tonne. Production of pulses was recorded 25.4 million tonne in 2017-18 and the output dropped last year due to crop damage in Maharashtra and Karnataka. Speaking at a conference on pulses, Niti Aayog member Ramesh Chand said there is a need to improve yield level of pulses which at present is lower than pre-Green Revolution days of 1965. He suggested strengthening the research and development for improving productivity, reorientation of trade policies and increase in private investment to achieve the target. Identification of pulses that suit different crop sequence will also help in raising output, Chand said, adding that more number of people are becoming vegan across the world.

The yield of tur was 656 kg/hectare in 2015-16 against an all-time record of 867 kg/hectare in 1956-57 :shock: . However, the all-India average yield of all pulses is 841 kg/hectare, which is more than the pre-1965 levels (520 kg). Still, India is way below the world’s highest of 5,537 kg/ hectare in Australia. Even Madhya Pradesh, which has the highest productivity among all states, has an average yield of 1,084 kg in all pulses combined, according to the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP).

Tomar said that the government has taken a number of initiatives including hike in the minimum support prices (MSPs) and creation of buffer stock of pulses to support farmers. He also said that pulses are becoming necessary not only in India but also in other countries. Between 2010 and 2015, the pulses production was 16-19 million tonne and there was a huge demand for imports. Countries like Myanmar, Canada and Malawi had in fact started growing pulses only for the purpose of selling to India. This crop year, the government targets 26.30 million tonne pulses output.
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

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India's 2019-20 foodgrain production seen at record 292 million tonnes.

India’s foodgrain production is expected to reach a record 291.95 million tonnes, as per the second advance estimates of production of foodgrains, oilseeds and other commercial crops for the agricultural year 2019-2020.

As per the second advance estimates for 2019-20, total foodgrain production in the country is estimated at record 291.95 million tonnes which is higher by 6.74 million tonnes than the production of foodgrain of 285.21 million tonnes achieved during 2018-19. Foodgrain production during 2019-20 is also higher by 26.20 million tonnes compared with the average production during the previous five years (2013-14 to 2017-18).

Total production of rice during 2019-20 is estimated at record 117.47 million tonnes, which is higher by 9.67 million tonnes than the five years’ average production of 107.80 million tonnes.

Production of wheat during 2019-20 is estimated at record 106.21 million tonne, which is higher by 2.61 million tonnes compared with wheat production during 2018-19 and is 11.60 million tonnes higher than the five-year average wheat production of 94.61 million tonnes.

Production of nutri/coarse cereals, estimated at 45.24 million tonnes, is higher by 2.18 million tonnes than the 43.06 million tonnes production achieved during 2018-19. It is also higher by 2.16 million tonnes than the five-year average production.

Total production of pulses during 2019-20 is estimated at 23.02 million tonnes, which is higher by 2.76 million tonnes compared to the five-year average production of 20.26 million tonnes.

Total oilseeds production in the country during 2019-20 is estimated at 34.19 million tonnes, which is higher by 2.67 million tonnes than the production of 31.52 million tonnes during 2018-19. Further, the production of oilseeds during 2019-20 is higher by 4.54 million tonnes than the average oilseeds production.

Total production of sugarcane in the country during 2019-20 is estimated at 353.85 million tonnes. The production of sugarcane during 2019-20 is higher by 4.07 million tonnes compared to the average sugarcane production of 349.78 million tonnes in the past five years.

Cotton production is estimated at 34.89 million bales (of 170 kg each) in 2019-20, which is higher by 6.85 million bales than the production of 28.04 million bales produced during 2018-19. Production of jute and mesta is estimated at 9.81 million bales (of 180 kg each).

These estimates are, however, subject to revision on account of more precise information flowing over the time.

Production of major crops during 2019-20 (second advance estimates)
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We need to increase acreage under pulses & oil seeds while decreasing cultivation area of cotton, jute, sugarcane, tobacco etc
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Govt pegs record wheat output at 106.21 million tons for 2019-20.

India is set to harvest a record wheat production of 106.21 million tonne in the 2019-20 crop year on the back of good rains, according to latest government data.

Wheat production has been rising year-on-year and the previous record of 103.60 million tonne was achieved during the 2018-19 crop year (July-June). Wheat is the main rabi (winter) crop, harvesting of which will begin from next month.

Releasing the second estimate of foodgrain production, Agriculture Ministry said the cumulative rainfall in the country during the monsoon season (June-September 2019) was 10 per cent higher than the Long Period Average (LPA).

Accordingly, the production of most of the crops for the 2019-20 crop year has been estimated higher than their normal production, it said, and added these estimates are subject to revision on account of more precise information flowing over the time.

As per the second estimate, total foodgrain production is pegged at a record 291.95 million tonne for 2019-20 crop year, higher than 285.21 million tonne last year.

Of the total production, foodgrain output is estimated to be 142.36 million tonne from the kharif (summer) season and 149.60 million tonne from the rabi season of this year.

Foodgrain basket comprises of wheat, rice, cereals and pulses.
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Fruit and vegetable output set to cross record 320 mt.

Spectacular increase in the production of onions after the severe crop loss during the last monsoon season, together with relatively better yield in potato and banana ,has helped the country to have a record horticulture harvest of 320.48 million tonnes (mt) in the current crop year, according to the second advance estimates of horticulture crops released by the Agriculcture Ministry on Tuesday.

However, there hasn’t been much increase in area under horticulture crops over 2018-19. The total area under these crops this year was 25.66 million hectares as against 25.43 million hecatres in the previous year.

Image

While the production of vegetable is projected to go up to 191.77 mt from 183.17 mt in 2018-19, total fruits output may cross 99 mt MT as against close to 98 mt last year.

Onion production is estimated to 26.74 mt as against 22.82 mt in 2018-19 whereas potato output would be 51.3 mt as against 50.2 mt last year. Tomato output is expected to cross 20 mt from 19 mt in the previous year.

The onion production is significantly high in the later parts of the year considering that many onion-growing areas in the country, particularly in Maharashtra and Karnataka witnessed severe floods leading huge crop loss in the prevous kharif season.

Among fruits, banana, citrus and apple performed bettered their output last year. The output of plantation crops and spices more or less remained at last year’s levels at 16.24 mt and 9.42 mt respectively.
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Rice transplantation in Nagaland

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Aadhaar-based farmer database in the works.

The Centre plans to digitise all its farm-oriented schemes and ensure farmers are paid procurement prices directly, by launching an Aadhaar-based database that will also map landholdings of beneficiaries, said officials. In the first phase, the database will have details of 50 million farmers across nine states, they said.

“The database, to be completed by June 30, will have satellite imaging of individual farm land so that farmers may be provided advisories based on the kind of land they possess and the crop they grow,” said Vivek Agarwal, joint secretary of newly created Digital Agriculture Division.

Agarwal, also the CEO of PM-Kisan scheme, said the database may be shared with farm technology companies for developing innovative solutions to increase productivity. The database will also help ensure direct benefit transfer (DBT) in the bank accounts of authentic farmers
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Acreage under pulses risen by a third this season, production target at 25.6 mt.

The acreage under pulses has risen by a third this season and is likely to make the country self-sufficient in the commodity, officials said.

This year, the government has set a pulses production target of 25.6 million tonnes, which is 11.2% more than the estimated output of last year.The planting of pulses in the current kharif season, which accounts for about 30% of the country’s total production of pulses, indicates a 20% rise in output, the officials said, adding that overall kharif planting is up by 21.20% from last year.

“Due to good rains in pulses growing areas of Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, the area has increased and so would be the production,” said a senior oicial of the agriculture department.

The annual requirement of pulses in the country is 25-26 million tonnes, he said. “We expect to meet the requirement. Last year, the output was short of requirement by 10-15%, which was met through imports,” he said.

The area under oilseeds has risen by about 41% from 11 million hectare to 15.49 million hectare during this period.

“There is increase in areas of soyabean and groundnut due to timely and suicient rains in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. Last year, heavy damage was reported in soya bean due to uneven rains, but this year we expect bountiful crop,” the official said.
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

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Remotely operated tractors and tillers by Mahindra.
In addtion to this, Mahindra research valley has a fully autonomous tractor program. And UAVs with agricultural and defense application including engine devolopment.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thehin ... 9.ece/amp/
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Signs of farm 'revolution' in India as coronavirus prompts change.

For more than two decades, Ravindra Kajal (farmer) cultivated rice the way his forefathers had - every June he flooded his fields with water before hiring an army of farmhands to plant paddy seedlings.

But a scarcity of workers this year because of the coronavirus forced Kajal to change. He irrigated the field just enough to moisten the soil and
leased a drilling machine to directly sow seeds on his 9-acre (3.6-hectare) plot. "Since I was more than comfortable with the tried-and-tested way of growing rice, I opted for the new method with some trepidation," said Kajal, 46, looking over his field, green with rice saplings, in the Raipur Jattan village in Haryana state.

"But I've already saved around Rs 7,500 ($100) per acre because I hardly spent on water and workers this year," he said.

India is the world's biggest exporter of rice and the world's second-biggest producer after China. Across the country's grain bowl states of Haryana and neighbouring Punjab, thousands of farmers like Kajal have been forced by the coronavirus to mechanise planting.

They are still wary of the technology and overturning the time-honoured use of manual labour. But Kahan Singh Pannu, Punjab's agriculture secretary, is convinced a historic change is underway that could dramatically increase India's rice output, which in turn could impact world markets. "It is no less than a revolution in Indian agriculture," he told Reuters.

Government officials say the so-called direct seeding of rice (DSR) method could increase yields by about one-third and slash costs on workers and water. The DSR machines allow farmers to grow more than 30 saplings per square metre against the usual 15 to 18 seedlings, (This huge) said Naresh Gulati, a state government farm official in Punjab.

Punjab is the home of the 1960s Green Revolution that led to a spike in crop yields. This year, farmers there have used seed drilling machines to sow rice on more than half a million hectares, a big increase compared with less than 50,000 hectares in 2019, growers and government officials said. Pannu expects DSR use to jump again next year.

"More and more farmers are using the DSR technology which seems to be so promising that the entire 2.7 million hectares of Punjab's rice area could come under it next year, which will be a watershed for India's rice production," he said.

Avinash Kishore, a research fellow at the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), said if this year's crop was good, DSR would be the way forward. "The scale of this year's shift to the DSR is a momentous change in rice cultivation in India," he said.

Sudhanshu Singh, a senior agronomist at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, said the shift to DSR was "one of the rare positive fallouts from COVID."

None of the world's major rice exporting nations - India, Vietnam and Thailand - makes significant use of seeding machines.

They have come into play in a big way in India this year because hundreds of thousands of migrant labourers from Bihar and Jharkhand states in the east did not arrive in the northern grain belt for the 2020 planting season due to the coronavirus lockdown.

That pushed up the price of local workers and made it more economical for farmers to lease rice planting machines rather than pay for hired help, said Jaskaran Singh Mahal, a director at the Punjab Agricultural University.

Farm wages have gone up by Rs 1,500 an acre to about Rs 4,500 this year, and growers need around half a dozen workers to transplant rice paddy on a one acre plot In comparison, farmers can hire planting machines for Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 per acre, which can cover 25 to 30 acres in a day,
rice growers said. "Other than helping us save on major overheads such as water and labour, DSR is swift, unlike the old method which was tedious and time-consuming," said Devinder Singh Gill, a farmer in Punjab's Moga district, well known for its aromatic basmati rice.

The conventional method requires farmers to sow seeds in nurseries and then wait for 20 to 30 days before manually transplanting the seedlings into plantation fields that are ankle-deep in water. Seeding machines allow farmers to bypass the nursery stage and plant straight into fields.

Water conservation is another key attribute of DSR, which is crucial in a mostly dry, monsoon dependent country like India. Under the conventional method, 3,000 to 5,000 litres of water is used in India to produce 1 kg of rice - the most water-thirsty crop - and DSR allows growers to cut water use by at least 50% to 60%, farmers and government officials said.

The main challenge for farmers using direct seeding machines is managing weeds, which require the spraying of herbicides through the season.
Still, even factoring in the extra costs of these applications, the overall cost of cultivation is substantially lower under DSR, said Kajal, the farmer in Haryana.

Another drawback will be that if the method is adopted across the farm belt, there will be huge unemployment in the eastern states next year. But farmers say they will wait to see the harvest in October before deciding whether to stick with the technology next year.

"The new technology leads to a lot of saving on account of water and labour, but the real test lies in productivity and farmers will not be fully convinced unless they see some rise in their yields," said Ashok Singh, a rice farmer.

The productivity of rice per acre would dramatically shoot up if this method of cultivation is adopted/implemented throughout India and we may also overtake china as the largest producer. Tremendous saving of scare water resource but the flip side is the employment issue.
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

Post by kit »

I have a question about "Himalayan Rock Salt" , this item is selling quite well in western markets as a premium product. Most of it comes from the salt mines in Pakistan and nothing to do with "Himalaya" . Are there any viable sources for this product in India ?
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

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I don't believe so. When it first hit the market in US, my extended family had tried to find a place all over to see if this can be exported from India as many were buying thinking it's Indian product and related to Ayurveda.
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

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kit wrote:I have a question about "Himalayan Rock Salt" , this item is selling quite well in western markets as a premium product. Most of it comes from the salt mines in Pakistan and nothing to do with "Himalaya" . Are there any viable sources for this product in India ?
It only comes from Pakistan, some Indian companies marketed it, it was a big scam, it not have any real health benefits.
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

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Aditya_V wrote:
kit wrote:I have a question about "Himalayan Rock Salt" , this item is selling quite well in western markets as a premium product. Most of it comes from the salt mines in Pakistan and nothing to do with "Himalaya" . Are there any viable sources for this product in India ?
It only comes from Pakistan, some Indian companies marketed it, it was a big scam, it not have any real health benefits.
I thought it also came from Rajasthan.
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

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kit wrote:I have a question about "Himalayan Rock Salt" , this item is selling quite well in western markets as a premium product. Most of it comes from the salt mines in Pakistan and nothing to do with "Himalaya" . Are there any viable sources for this product in India ?
Any salt can be sold as Himalayan Rock Salt since its not GI tagged.

If I remember correctly- Pakistan cannot market any of its rice as "basmati rice" since the GI tag belongs to rice produced in in a few states in India
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

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bharathp wrote:
kit wrote:I have a question about "Himalayan Rock Salt" , this item is selling quite well in western markets as a premium product. Most of it comes from the salt mines in Pakistan and nothing to do with "Himalaya" . Are there any viable sources for this product in India ?
Any salt can be sold as Himalayan Rock Salt since its not GI tagged.

If I remember correctly- Pakistan cannot market any of its rice as "basmati rice" since the GI tag belongs to rice produced in in a few states in India
I don't think that is correct. I am pretty sure I've seen paki Basmati in Indian stores.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basmati#P ... _varieties
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Explained: Why MP’s push for inclusion into the GI list of Basmati can hurt India globally
https://indianexpress.com/article/expla ... ation-tag/
Following Madhya Pradesh (MP) government’s pressure on the central government for seeking Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Basmati produced in 13 districts of MP, the All India Rice Exporters’ Association (AIREA) has appealed to the government to preserve and protect the integrity of one of the most cherished national produce of India — Basmati rice.

India stands tall in the global arena as the only producer of premium Basmati. No other country (other than 18 districts of Pakistan) can call any of its rice as ‘Basmati’. AIREA argues that if MP is included in the GI list of Basmati crop then it will not only harm the reputation of Indian Basmati as a whole, but also the national interest. The Indian Express explains what MP’s demand really means:....
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Re: Indian Economy News & Discussion - Nov 27 2017

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KJo wrote:
bharathp wrote: Any salt can be sold as Himalayan Rock Salt since its not GI tagged.

If I remember correctly- Pakistan cannot market any of its rice as "basmati rice" since the GI tag belongs to rice produced in in a few states in India
I don't think that is correct. I am pretty sure I've seen paki Basmati in Indian stores.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basmati#P ... _varieties
while it may call the rice "basmati" that is illegal and can be challenged. right now only India has a right to sell "basmati" rice with GI tag. and just like anyone can sell "sotch whiskey" - but thats spurious and not authentic as its not originally GI tagged, it can be challenged if taken to courts.
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

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‘Cotton has now become a headache’

https://ruralindiaonline.org/articles/c ... -headache/

A chemical-intensive Bt cotton monoculture is spreading through Odisha’s Rayagada district – harming health, deepening debt, irreversibly eroding indigenous knowledge, and sowing the seeds of a climate crisis

The more we buy, the more we are in debt.” That’s Kunari Sabari, a farmer in her 40s, speaking to us in Khaira, a village mainly of her own Saora Adivasi community.

“The gobarakhatachaasa, halaachasaa [farming with cow dung and ploughs], which was ours, nobody is doing that anymore,” she said. “Now we run to the market for everything. Seeds, pesticides, fertiliser. Unlike before, even what we eat, we have to buy.”
We had our own crops and our own agriculture,” rued Khetra Sabara, a young Saora cultivator. “Andhrawallas came and told us to grow cotton, and taught us everything.” Santosh Kumar Dandasena, another farmer here, added that the prospect of making profit drew villagers to kappa, or cotton. “Initially it gave happiness, we made money. But now, it is only misery and loss,” he said. “We have got destroyed and the sahucars [moneylenders] are happy.”

Dark green John Deere tractors rumbled up and down the village road as we spoke. The walls of the local temple were plastered with seed company posters in Odia advertising Bt cotton. Tilling and sowing equipment for that crop lay around the village square.
Perhaps the most devastating impact of cotton’s spread, Deb and his colleagues point out, is the erosion of local biodiversity, and with it the knowledge of communities who work in, and sustain, this ecologically rich landscape. Both are critical to an agriculture that is climate-resilient – with the capacity to withstand the increasing uncertainties and extremities of weather.

“Climate change,” Deb says, “is inducing abrupt vagaries of the local weather. Prolonged spells of drought, too much untimely rain, and more frequent droughts are already [being] experienced by Odisha farmers.” Cotton as well as modern varieties of rice and vegetables, which are replacing heirloom varieties, "are inherently incapable of surviving the sudden changes in local environmental conditions. This means a severe uncertainty of crop plant survival, pollination, productivity, and finally, food security."
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Post by Vips »

Sown area under kharif crops up 8.54% from last year.

A significant 14 per cent increase in planting of oilseeds and rice, the total area under kharif crops in the country so far, has crossed 1,000 lakh hectares and is set to hit a new record, data released by the ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare showed.

As of 14 August 2020, the total kharif crops have been sown on 1,015.58 lakh ha against 935.70 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year, an increase of 8.54 per cent in crop area coverage compared to last year.

As per crop wise data the under rice has gone up to about 351.86 lakh ha compared to 308.51 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year – an increase of 43.35 lakh ha compared to last year.

The area under pulses has gone up to about 124.01 lakh ha compared to 121.50 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year – an increase of 2.51 lakh ha compared to last year.

Area under coarse cereals stands at about 168.12 lakh ha compared to 162.28 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year – an increase of 5.84 lakh ha compared to last year.

Area under oilseeds has gone up to about 187.14 lakh ha compared to 163.57 lakh ha.during the corresponding period of last year – an increase of 23.56 lakh ha compared to last year.

Area under sugarcane has gone up to about 52.02 lakh ha compared to 51.40 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year – an increase of 0.62 lakh ha compared to last year.

Area under jute and mesta has gone up to about 6.96 lakh ha compared to 6.85 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year – an increase of 0.11 lakh ha compared to last year.

Area under cotton has increased to about 125.48 lakh ha compared to 121.58 lakh ha during the corresponding period last year – an increase of 3.90 lakh ha compared to last year.

And, with water storage in 123 reservoirs in different parts of the country at 88 per cent of the corresponding period of the last year, the agriculture ministry hopes for a bumper crop this season.
disha
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by disha »

Historical agricultural reforms are passed. Something that should have been done in 1950's itself. And here this thread is silent!

Anyway,
The first bill,Farmers` Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion And Facilitation) Bill, 2020, has generated the most fear amidst the farmers in the past couple of days They fear that the Centre will end the current system of open-ended FCI procurement. Farmers in Punjab think that the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and other central agencies will shut down annual wheat and rice purchases from the states, leaving them at the mercy of traders' predatory practices.

The central government's repeated assurances that the 'MSP will continue' are being called deceptive by various farmers collectives.

It is to be noted that the Centre distributes the annual wheat and rice procured from the farmers in Punjab through the Public Distribution System (PDS), and the farmers feel that the 'unlimited procurement' will be ended the government's new bill.
I hope forum members pull the bill information from NIC and bring it up for discussion.
V_Raman
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by V_Raman »

As someone said - the biggest roadblock to economic development is our biggest business house in the country - the central govt!!

What if the govt attempts to move to food stamps and starts the process of shut down of PDS?! will we have riots then?!

Tentancles of the govt seems to be everwhere!!!!
Yagnasri
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by Yagnasri »

Decades of FCI buyings, MSP rates, wholesalers and Mandi system created huge number of vested interests. Now these bills set to removed those things. We are going to see massive opposition from all those people now.

The first shot is already fired with the allegations that MSP will not be there in future.
kit
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by kit »

With the increasing acreage of crops esp water-intensive ones, it is likely water shortages can happen., We need the Tibetan glaciers to provide uninterrupted water for one of the largest fertile basins in the world !!

It is commendable that India can provide food and medicines to whichever country that is in need !! Not bad for an aspiring power.
darshan
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by darshan »

If I may do request to not use bbc links and find other outlets. One of the donors on the list is Ford foundation.
AshishA
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by AshishA »

Rajya Sabha has passed the farmer's bill. Some info about the bill -

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePa ... ID=1655890
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
Lok Sabha passes The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020

Farmers will now have freedom for direct marketing of their produce and will be able to get better prices, MSP procurement system will continue, consumers will also benefit - Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar

The reforms will accelerate agricultural growth through private sector investment in building agricultural infrastructure and supply chains for Indian farm produce in national and global markets, create employment opportunities and strengthen the economy

Two bills aimed at transforming agriculture in the country and raising farmers’ income were passed by Lok Sabha today. The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 were introduced in Lok Sabha on 14th September 2020 by Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, to replace ordinances promulgated on 5th June 2020.

Replying to the discussion on the Bills before they were passed by the Lok Sabha today, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar said that the Government under Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is fully committed to the welfare of Gaon-Garib-Kisan. He reassured emphatically that while farmers will now be freed from the restrictions of having to sell their produce at designated places only, the procurement at Minimum Support Price will continue and mandis established under State laws will also continue to operate. The Union Agriculture Minister said that these legislations will bring about revolutionary transformation and transparency in the agriculture sector, electronic trading will increase, there will be accelerated agricultural growth as private investment will be attracted in building supply chains and agricultural infrastructure, new employment opportunities will be created and rural economy will get a boost, which will in turn help to strengthen the national economy.

The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 seeks to provide for the creation of an ecosystem where the farmers and traders enjoy the freedom of choice relating to sale and purchase of farmers' produce which facilitates remunerative prices through competitive alternative trading channels to promote efficient, transparent and barrier-free inter-State and intra-State trade and commerce of farmers' produce outside physical premises of markets or deemed markets notified under various State agricultural produce market legislations; to provide a facilitative framework for electronic trading and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

Background

Farmers in India suffered from various restrictions in marketing their produce. There were restrictions for farmers in selling agri-produce outside the notified APMC market yards. The farmers were also restricted to sell the produce only to registered licensees of the State Governments. Further, barriers existed in free flow of agriculture produce between various States owing to the prevalence of various APMC legislations enacted by the State Governments.

Benefits

The new legislation will create an ecosystem where the farmers and traders will enjoy freedom of choice of sale and purchase of agri-produce. It will also promote barrier-free inter-state and intra-state trade and commerce outside the physical premises of markets notified under State Agricultural Produce Marketing legislations. This is a historic-step in unlocking the vastly regulated agriculture markets in the country.

It will open more choices for the farmer, reduce marketing costs for the farmers and help them in getting better prices. It will also help farmers of regions with surplus produce to get better prices and consumers of regions with shortages, lower prices. The Bill also proposes an electronic trading in transaction platform for ensuring a seamless trade electronically.

The farmers will not be charged any cess or levy for sale of their produce under this Act. Further there will be a separate dispute resolution mechanism for the farmers.

One India, One Agriculture Market

The Bill basically aims at creating additional trading opportunities outside the APMC market yards to help farmers get remunerative prices due to additional competition. This will supplement the existing MSP procurement system which is providing stable income to farmers.

It will certainly pave the way for creating One India, One Agriculture Market and will lay the foundation for ensuring golden harvests for our hard working farmers.

The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 seeks to provide for a national framework on farming agreements that protects and empowers farmers to engage with agri-business firms, processors, wholesalers, exporters or large retailers for farm services and sale of future farming produce at a mutually agreed remunerative price framework in a fair and transparent manner and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

Background

Indian Agriculture is characterized by fragmentation due to small holding sizes and has certain weaknesses such as weather dependence, production uncertainties and market unpredictability. This makes agriculture risky and inefficient in respect of both input & output management.

Benefits

The new legislation will empower farmers for engaging with processors, wholesalers, aggregators, wholesalers, large retailers, exporters etc., on a level playing field without any fear of exploitation. It will transfer the risk of market unpredictability from the farmer to the sponsor and also enable the farmer to access modern technology and better inputs. It will reduce cost of marketing and improve income of farmers.

This legislation will act as a catalyst to attract private sector investment for building supply chains for supply of Indian farm produce to national and global markets, and in agricultural infrastructure. Farmers will get access to technology and advice for high value agriculture and get ready market for such produce.

Farmers will engage in direct marketing thereby eliminating intermediaries resulting in full realization of price. Farmers have been provided adequate protection. Sale, lease or mortgage of farmers’ land is totally prohibited and farmers’ land is also protected against any recovery. Effective dispute resolution mechanism has been provided for with clear time lines for redressal.



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darshan
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Re: Indian Agriculture and Agro-based Industry

Post by darshan »

I would also add it to the achievement thread. Modi ki jai ho. Not letting go any event to waste. Modi got all infrastructure from transportation to digital payment in place for farmers to sell. No longer transportation guy would have to worry about seeing bankrupt farmer as both farmer and buyer would have deal in place. Farmer can be part of vertical and horizontal integration.
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