A new variety of highly productive banana plants will be distributed to farmers starting next month in a bid to improve banana production and fight disease in one of the priority crops in the country. The move, under the government's seven year programme which will come to an end in …
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 …
A tiny black bug had caused much grief to banana farmers in the State but a successful trial has kindled hope that cultivation can be carried out without fear of pests or of the cost or side-effects of hazardous chemical pesticides. Named ‘Nanma’ by researchers at the Central Tuber Crops …
A section of women self-help groups growing vegetables at Bahour in Puducherry had switched to organic fertilizers due to the growing demand for organically grown crops. But the transformation to eco-friendly practices was not complete as they had to bank on chemical pesticides. Their wait ended with the state bio-control …
Compensation to be credited to their savings bank accounts The State government has sanctioned Rs.60 crore for the distribution of compensation to 1.28 lakh farmers who suffered more than 50 per cent crop loss due to drought, according to Collector N.Venkatachalam. Presiding over a special drought relief meeting at the …
The State government will soon come out with a comprehensive organic agriculture policy, according to K. Ramasamy, Vice- Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU). Addressing the launch of ‘SUSTAIN,’ a Public Private Partnership initiative to deploy innovative drying and storage technology to farmers, Dr. Ramasamy said here on Tuesday that …
Several women’s NGOs, including Women for Diversity, Guild of Services, Diverse Women for Diversity and Gene Ethics Australia, have launched a combined campaign against genetically-engineered (GMO) bananas. Dr Vandana Shiva has questioned why India should finance the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Australia to develop GMO bananas when research …
Anti-genetically modified (GM) food groups on Wednesday announced a campaign against the Government’s move to promote GM bananas to “save Indian women from anaemia”. As part of the campaign, an online petition opposing the move has been initiated by Navdanya, Mahila Anna Swaraj, Diverse Women for Diversity, Initiative for Health …
A team of researchers from the University of Calicut has reported the discovery of a new subspecies of wild banana that could be developed as an ornamental plant for tropical gardens. The plant Musa velutina subsp. markkuana was discovered from the forests of Arunachal Pradesh and is characterised by smooth …
About 40 to 54 per cent of the daily consumed foods including fish, milk and baby foods are found adulterated and poisonous and the adulteration is increasing for the last couple of years. This was disclosed in a report prepared by the National Food Safety Laboratory (NFSL) under the Institute …
London: Bananas could soon become a critical food source for millions of people and replace potatoes as the staple diet due to climate change, a new study has claimed. Researchers from the the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) partnership said that while bananas may replace potatoes in some …
Though drip irrigation is ideal for banana and patronised in several parts of the country, it is unfortunate that farmers of the Cauvery delta have not realised its importance, M. M. Mustaffa, Director, National Research Centre for Banana (NRCB), said on Monday. Talking to presspersons at the centre, near here, …
It is the world’s favourite fruit and India is its largest producer, contributing to 23 per cent of the world production. It gives an instant and sustainable boost of energy and is a good source of potassium, fibre, carrying 110 calories each and approximately six vitamins and 11 minerals. After …
The National Institute for Inter-disciplinary Science and Technology (NIIST) is offering a technology for clear extraction of banana fibre on a non-exclusive basis. NIIST is an affiliate of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) based here. PATENT SOUGHT The indigenously developed process know-how is for ‘clean extraction of …
BHUBANESWAR: Having witnessed a quantum rise in the production of horticulture crops in the last 10 years, the State Government has now decided to lay emphasis on floriculture, coconut and banana crops. Three new schemes - floriculture development, coconut development, banana development - besides inter-cropping have been introduced under the …
Nagpur In a significant verdict, the Bombay High Court has ruled that wild animals including tiger should be treated as "government property for all purposes" and any damage caused by them should be compensated by the Government. If a wild animal causes loss to an agriculturist or a citizen, it …
The District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), Vellore has adopted a cluster approach in undertaking various works under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in order to enable more villagers to get employment, according to N. Srinivasan, Project Officer of the DRDA. Talking to newspersons at the Alangulam …
The Karnataka Planters' Association (KPA), which is currently holding its coffee area scientific symposium (CASS) in Israel, plans to adopt kibbutz model of drip irrigation for their plantations. “After visiting the Naan Dan Kibbutz near Tel Aviv, we were able to get a first-hand experience of irrigation facilities created to …
The government’s plan of ushering in a green revolution in eastern states doesn’t seem to have taken off in the country’s biggest paddy (de-husked) rice producing state of West Bengal. Till January 20, only 50 per cent of the total funds allocated for the state were released by the Centre. …
Acting on the directives of the Centre, States such as Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Haryana are ready with their annual plans to boost horticulture production. Besides these States, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa have also drawn the annual action plan for 2012-13 horticulture year, sources in the Agriculture Ministry …
The damage caused by the havoc wreaked by cyclone Thane in the district has been pegged at Rs 4,000 crore, according to an official of a Central team that inspected the affected areas here. “In total, two lakh hectare of agricultural lands were affected, of which more than over a …
