Women farmers play a crucial role in South Asia’s agricultural sector and contribute significantly, despite facing numerous challenges. The intersection of climate change, gender, and health can have disproportionate
Apprehension of more farmers committing suicide looms large in Orissa as almost half of nearly two lakh peasants in the state are not going to benefit from the Rs 71,000-crore loan-waiver package announced by the UPA government at the Centre. The guidelines issued by the National Bank of Rural Development (Nabard) and Orissa State Cooperative Bank, as claimed by officials of state-controlled cooperative societies, deprive the farmers from the biggest ever loan-waiver package.
Despite bumper production of maize in Thakurgaon and Panchagarh districts, farmers are frustrated due to its drastic fall of prices in the local markets. About 1,57,920 tonnes of maize was produced in the two districts against the target of 1,28,000 tonnes in this season. Maize was cultivated on 19,450 hectares of land against the target of 18,425 hectares with the production target of 1,07,234 tonnes in Thakurgaon, Agriculture Extension Department (AED) officials said.
Uddyog, a local NGO, in cooperation with IC-Leaf Project has taken up a programme side by side with the government to motivate the farmers to cultivate short duration BRRI-Dhan 33 in Gaibandha during the current T-aman season to eradicate monga (feminine-like situation). Under this programme, special measures have been taken to ensure timely supply of seed of BRRI Dhan 33, fertiliser and pesticides including other inputs to the farmers, sources said.
The general body meeting of the District Congress Committee on Monday decided to hold "Farmers' Rally" at district level in a big way on June 23 to campaign the "loan waiver policy" of the Central government. The mandal-level Congress leaders were asked to mobilise 1,000 farmers from each mandal for the rally chalked out by the PCC and the state government jointly. The DCC wanted to utilise the opportunity to go into the hearts of the farmers. The meeting also directed the cadre to organise such programmes at mandal-level from July 1 to 3 three to highlight the gesture of the government.
The Punjab government has revived the green tractor scheme under which Rs 01 million will be given as subsidy to the small farmers for the purchase of a tractor. The government has allocated Rs 1 billion to provide subsidy on purchase of 10,000 green tractors in the 2008-09 budget. Only holders of upto twelve and a half acres agriculture land will be eligible to benefit from this scheme. Green tractors will be given through balloting of applicants to make the system transparent and judicious.
The Mango Growers Association of Pakistan (MGAP) has termed the budget 2008-09 as vague and fairly not farmer-friendly. The MGAP is of the view that the enhanced subsidy for DAP fertiliser is practically unworkable as subsidies are exploited and the entire benefit is taken by the hoarders and profiteers.
Taking serious note of the farmers' agitation in Nizamabad which led to firing in air, the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy asked the AP State Seeds Development Corporation to raise the required bank loan and take over the stocks of fodder jowar seeds available in the district in consultation with district collector.
The rapidly spreading menace of counterfeit, sub-standard and unregistered vaccines is rising risks to poultry industry and could lead to incurable diseases across the country. Poultry farmers told Business Recorder on Monday that the Sindh government in particular failed to rein in the manufacturers and paddlers of illegal drugs. "We are seeking the Sindh government's help in controlling bird diseases being made incurable through substandard medicines spreading widely in the country," they maintained.
Labour pangs for farmers seem to be far from over. First it was the overall shortage of manual labour and now early rains are becoming a cause of worry for farmers. An early monsoon is good news for farmers, but the need to transplant paddy as soon as possible has only hiked labour expenses. A rough estimate says in the last couple of days alone, the labour expenses have gone up by 30 per cent. Beginning June 10, about 20 per cent of paddy cultivation in Punjab has been completed, says government data.
IN A BID to pre-empt the mounting pressure from the opposition parties and farmers' organisation for a judicial probe into the June 10 police firing at Haveri on farmers protesting against the non-availability of fertilisers, in which a farmer was killed, the BJP-led B S Yeddyurappa regime has appointed retired supreme court judge K Jagannath Shetty to probe into the incident.
