As climate change intensifies, it is imperative for policymakers to address the escalating loss and damage it inflicts on vulnerable communities in developing countries. In India's Maharashtra state, these impacts are forcing rural families into life-altering decisions and migrations to work in sugarcane fields, where exploitative practices by contractors, including …
The agricultural research system has developed 24 crop varieties of barley, cotton, oilseeds, sugarcane and pulses in one year which were approved and released for production to ensure food security in the country. Ministry of National Food Security and Research, while enumerating the measures taken to promote agricultural sector, on …
Forest protection policies potentially reduce deforestation and re-direct agricultural expansion to already-cleared areas. Using satellite imagery, we assessed whether deforestation for conversion to pasture and cropland decreased in the lowlands of northern Costa Rica following the 1996 ban on forest clearing, despite a tripling of area under pineapple cultivation in …
Industries Minister opens additional class rooms A bagasse-based cogeneration power unit of 15MW capacity will be set up at the Moongilthuraipattu Cooperative Sugar mill, according to P. Thangamani, State Industries Minister. Addressing a meeting of the sugarcane officers during his visit to the mill on Saturday, the Minister asked the …
No animal, not even the snake, attracts more bad press than the leopard. The worst victim of poaching in India, it is also the biggest killer of people among all large carnivores. The leopard’s prey preference for smaller livestock and dogs draws it close to habitations. The result is nationwide …
After almost a decade, the Jharkhand state seed subcommittee released nine high-yielding varieties of rice, groundnut, soya bean, sugarcane and chickpea crops, following a notification by the Government of India last month. These are resistant towards major diseases and pests. The release got a final nod from the committee chaired …
The number of farmers suicides declined to 346 in 2011 from 565 in 2006 in Vidarbha region The government today said 228 farmers committed suicide in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra because of agrarian distress during the April-January period of 2012-13 fiscal. "The number of farmers in the six identified suicide …
More than six months after the Rangarajan panel recommended deregulating the R80,000-crore sugar sector, at least one state has initiated reforms in cane pricing. The Karnataka government has passed a Bill that seeks to link the price of cane with its byproducts, including sugar. “Although a specific formula is yet …
This has reference to the excellent article entitled “Cauvery Dispute: A Lament and a Proposal” (EPW, 30 March 2013) by Ramaswamy R Iyer on the history, complex dynamics and current status of the Cauvery River dispute. I run a conservation foundation in Bangalore and, as much of our work is …
Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative, SSI, an innovative set of agronomic practices, that leaves reduced ecological footprint, is catching up very fast among the sugarcane growers in India. The SSI will most likely become the standard planting method owing to its yield advantage, reduced use of water and other inputs. Coordinated efforts …
A large part of Maharashtra has been declared drought-hit. But distribution of water is quite incongruous. While the few who are politically and financially powerful take the lion’s share for sugarcane crops, thermal plants and other industries, the rest are struggling to survive. Read More: http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/drought-equity
The Krishni–Yamuna interstream area is a micro-watershed in the Central Ganga Plain and a highly fertile track of Western Uttar Pradesh. The Sugarcane and wheat are the major crops of the area. Aquifers of Quaternary age form the major source of Irrigation and municipal water supplies. A detailed hydrogeological investigation …
This year’s drought cannot be called worse than the one in 1972: SANDRP While the Maharashtra government is crying hoarse about this year’s drought surpassing the one in 1972 and farmers are cutting off their crops and digging deeper than ever for water, an analysis based on rainfall patterns blames …
New Delhi: Most people think of leopards as predators that live in forests except for a few that occasionally stray into human settlements. Breaking that myth, a new study has found that a large number of these big cats may be residing in human habitats, quietly sharing space with people …
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today announced relief for agriculturists using tubewells in Bhiwani district. Hooda was addressing representatives of the Bhartiya Kisan Union and farmers of the area who had called upon him at his residence here today. Hooda said the consumers having motors with capacity between 12.5 …
The global emergence of biofuels over the last two decades has been met with increased concerns over climate change and sustainable development. This report addresses the core issue of biofuel sustainability and related feedstocks, drawing from a wide range of studies, reports and policy initiatives. The report critically examines the …
Lucknow: With a total of Rs 17,174 crore allocated for agriculture and allied sectors, UP budget-2013 is all set to shower some bounty on Uttar Pradesh’s farm sector. Last year, when chief minister Akhilesh Yadav presented the state budget, he made provisions for farmer loan waivers worth Rs 500 crore. …
Water tangle: Agro-climatic condition in seven districts in Cauvery basin likely to change The entire agro-climatic condition in the Cauvery basin area covering seven districts of Karnataka is likely to undergo a change if the contentious final award of the Cauvery River Water Disputes Tribunal (CRDT) is implemented in toto. …
The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (Chairperson: C. Rangarajan) submitted a ‘Report on the Regulation of Sugar Sector in India: The Way Forward’ on October 5, 2012. The Report examines the issues related to the regulation of the sugar sector, and suggests ways to promote efficiency and investments …
Minister for Water and Power Ch Ahmed Mukhtar on Thursday approved the Draft National Policy for co-generation by utilising bagasse and Biomass and asked the ministry to submit it to the relevant forum for formal approval. He said this while presiding over a meeting on fast track development of bagasse …
Corn ethanol would get a larger share of the U.S. gasoline market under a government proposal on Thursday while ranchers, environmentalists and the oil industry aim to kill the renewable fuels mandate altogether. The Obama administration proposed a 9 percent increase in the so-called renewable fuels standard from 2012, in …
