CEOs need to accelerate their action plans to safeguard the production of commodities critical to the global population and economy as heat stress and drought risk rise around the world, according to PwC's report, Climate Risks to Nine Key Commodities: Protecting People and Prosperity, published. The report, which analysed nine …
Several schools in Sambalpur district have not received rice for the last one year under the mid-day meal scheme. A large number of schools in the state have not yet resumed supply of the meal after summer vacations. Many schools have also alleged that funds did not reach the school …
The government has taken a move to conduct a study to determine the presence of toxic heavy metals including cadmium and arsenic in rice, officials said. The Soil Resource Development Institute under the ministry of agriculture has been mandated to conduct the study in the wake of a report that …
A day after Congress president Sonia Gandhi asked the party-ruled states to implement national food security Bill in ‘letter and spirit’, food minister KV Thomas on Sunday said the biggest challenge is to improve the existing targeted public distribution system (TPDS) so that highly subsidised foodgrain reaches the masses. “The …
The Congress government in Karnataka today launched its ambitious scheme of supplying rice to nearly one crore poor families across the state at Re 1 a kg. The scheme will entail an additional expenditure of around Rs 4,200 crore a year. The Opposition parties have termed the move as an …
More than 90 per cent paddy transplantation has been completed in the state. However, the area under paddy cultivation has been reduced by 60,000 hectares this year. An official of the Agriculture Department said the government was encouraging farmers to diversify from paddy to maize and the farmers were being …
The scheme aims to provide 30 kg rice every month to families under BPL at subsidised rate of Re 1 per kg via PDS The first populous scheme of the Karnataka government, Anna Bhagya rice scheme, as promised in its election manifesto, will be launched tomorrow in Mysore district benefiting …
About 35 mn poor families may get benefits from the scheme which has the highest malnutrition rate in India Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan sounded the poll bugle on April 22 by announcing the availability of wheat at Re 1 a kg and rice at Rs 2 a kg …
GOADED by its perceived potential as a vote-winner, the UPA government on Wednesday chose to promulgate an ordinance to give effect to the Food Security Bill, which would give 67% the population the right to 5 kg of grain every month at highly subsidised rates of R1-3 per kg. The …
Seen as a potential vote-catcher for Cong-led coalition The government is all set to promulgate an ordinance to empower citizens with the right to food, after it failed to pass the proposed legislation during the budget session of Parliament. Seen as a potential vote-catcher for the Congress-led ruling coalition in …
The biggest advantage of developing seed banks is reduced cost About 500-odd organic farmers in Gujarat are trying to develop individual seed banks in a bid to resist the onslaught of genetically modified seeds. "The farmers are now developing seed bank as a measure against the invasion of genetically modified …
Increasing land plotting has been posing a serious threat to food production in eastern Tarai, economists have warned. Statistics from the Regional Directorate of Agriculture show that in the past three years, paddy fields in 16 eastern Tarai districts have shrunk by more than 100,000 hectares. Economist Bhesh Prasad Dhamala …
As shortage of seeds is a major problem for farmers in the state, the Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI) here has started a novel initiative to help them. The CRRI has introduced a project on seed production among small farmers in Cuttack region to make good quality seeds available for …
Need to replace paddy cultivation, which needs a lot of water, with pulses, others. Depleting groundwater in Uttar Pradesh has spurred the state to suggest to its farmers less water-intensive crops. Agricultural Production Commissioner Alok Ranjan suggested paddy crop, which needs a lot of water, could be replaced with pulses …
United Phosphorus Limited (UPL) today launched rice herbicide 'Saathi' in Uttar Pradesh, a major paddy producer in India. The product would control all types of weeds and cost about Rs 1,000 a acre, increasing the farmers' profit margin, Head (integrated business unit) Bhupen Dubey said. He said the biggest challenge …
The State government is planning to provide sugar and wheat to Above Poverty Line (APL) ration cardholders under the Public Distribution System (PDS), Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said on Monday. Rao told reporters that the department is working on details to supply wheat and sugar. If …
A study found high concentrations of cadmium in rice samples from 12 upazilas. Bangladesh came at the top followed by Sri Lanka for concentrations of cadmium in a listing of 12 countries where rice was tested for toxic metals. Cadmium had been linked to a mysterious chronic kidney disease the …
Ignoring concerns expressed by allies and civil society groups, the United Progressive Alliance government is all set to push for an ordinance on the Food Security Bill. The revised Bill along with Food Ministry’s 81 amendments will be tabled for approval in the Union Cabinet meeting on Thursday. Food Minister …
The UPA Government plans to call a special session of Parliament to pass the Food Security Bill after the Cabinet on Thursday deferred a proposal to pass an ordinance for implementing the same. The Food Security Bill, which the Government considers will be a game changer, aims to provide legal …
Amid reports of contamination of food products in China, UN's Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has expressed concerns over pollution and food safety issues in the world's second largest economy. "We're concerned about pollution in general," Graziano da Silva, director-general of the FAO said. "We have seen a lot of …
Officials are searching for godowns to store additional food grains Even as the State government is struggling to mobilise huge quantity of rice required for launching the ‘rice for Re 1 per kg’ scheme next month, it appears to have confronted a bigger challenge: Lack of adequate number of godowns …
