The revised draft Seeds Bill 2019, which the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare placed in the public domain recently for suggestions and comments, seems to be a watered down version of a draft prepared about nine years ago by the then United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Among other things, …
As agreed at the recently held 17th SAARC Summit in the Maldives, Sri Lanka will set up a 'SAARC Seed Bank' to boost agriculture production in the region. Sri Lanka's cabinet of ministers yesterday approved a proposal made by the Minister of Agriculture Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to establish the SAARC …
BHUBANESWAR: The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has set its sights on Orissa to make it a hub of groundnut production. The premier agency has said it is focussing its seed and technological research to tap the unexplored resources of groundnut production in the State. The groundnut productivity in …
With the yield of rabi and kharif crops remaining stagnant for the past four years, there is a need for new variety of seeds to improve farming practices or for some seed treatment, experts told a farmers training cam here. “Wheat production was 164 lakh tonne last year but this …
Thanks to a favourable agro-climatic condition Horticulture crops cultivation is picking up in the district as it is having a favourable agro-climatic condition. Farmers have raised horticulture crops on over 68,423 hectares, including fruits on over 8,555 hectares, vegetables on over 328 hectares, root and tuber crops on over 7,868 …
Owing to a surge in global demand for organic feed, the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) seeks to actively promote organic aquaculture in suitable areas. Ms Leena Nair, Chairperson, MPEDA, said fish products are considered health food and the organic fishery market is valued at $800-900 million. Organic aquaculture …
Growers look for new markets in North-East Shimla: Seed potato growers in the tribal Lahaul valley are looking for new markets in the North-East in the wake of a bumper crop in the state. The total production of seed potato has shot up from last year’s 1.50 lakh bags (80 …
The field trial of a genetically modified rice variety has been deferred till an expert committee formed to look into the food security aspect submits its report. The West Bengal Environment Minister, Mr Sudarshan Ghosh Dastidar, said here that the three-member committee would file its report on October 30 after …
Genetic engineering has failed to increase the yield of any food crop but has vastly increased the use of chemicals and the growth of “superweeds,” according to a report by 20 Indian, southeast Asian, African and Latin American food and conservation groups representing millions of people. The so-called miracle crops, …
The Agriculture Department would adopt 84 villages in the district to promote the system of rice intensification (SRI) technique in paddy cultivation during the samba and thaladi seasons this year. One assistant agriculture officer would be assigned to each of these villages to ensure that the entire paddy area in …
Pakistan and Brazil are likely to sign a Memorandum of Understanding in November to boost bilateral co-operation in the agriculture sector. In this connection, Economic Affairs Division and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are preparing the draft pact, which would be completed within a month. This was stated by Chairman Pakistan …
Bangladesh fared better than Pakistan in accelerating agricultural growth rate after its liberation in 1971, said a study yesterday. Expansion of cultivation of boro rice, increased use of high yielding seeds and irrigation helped Bangladesh attain faster growth in agriculture, said Takashi Kurosaki, researcher of the study. The country performed …
The Sindh government has approved Rs4 billion relief package for growers affected by heavy rains and floods in lower Sindh to till their fields again. Sources in the agriculture department said on Thursday that the package comprises free distribution of seeds and urea among farmers to grow wheat and sunflo-wer …
Mahyco (Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company) will have to wait for one more year to launch Bt cottonseeds with Roundup Ready Flex (RRF) technology as Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) asked the firm to repeat trials . RRF is a technology that kills weeds in cotton fields. When herbicide is sprayed …
The Rs 8,000-crore seed industry has asked the Andhra Pradesh Government to finalise prices of Bt cotton seeds by February-end every year. “It is important for us to have the price tags by that time in order to prepare the packets and send them to dealers well before the season …
Monsanto Co., the world's largest seed company, has prevailed in another lawsuit against a U.S. farmer, earning a ruling from a federal appeals court that protects Monsanto's interests even when its patented seeds are sold in a mix of undifferentiated "commodity" seeds. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal …
The Government has announced a time bound action plan to set the second phase of Green Revolution in motion. This will involve increasing the production of pulses and oilseeds in the eastern region with the help of high-yielding seeds. This was decided in a review meeting held at the Prime …
A soybean seed racket has been unearthed in Akola, Maharashtra. The scam comes on the heels of the large scale soy seed germination failure in the state and further erodes the credibility of government seed corporations. (Read: Seeds of failure) The racket came to light after Ajay Parate, agriculture officer …
About 30,000 farmers in Maharashtra are feeling cheated. The soybean seeds they had purchased from the state seed corporation, Mahabeej, failed to germinate this season. About 40,000 hectares (ha) of farms in seven districts have been affected. Mahabeej has 45 per cent share in the soy seed business in the …
With less than one percent of the world’s area, Nepal is home to a disproportionately large number of plant species. Yet large numbers of the population are food insecure, and hunger and malnutrition are prevalent. Statistics show that the situation has worsened during the past two decades. The worst-affected segments …
ABOUT 30,000 farmers in Maharashtra are feeling cheated. The soybean seeds they had purchased from the state seed corporation, Mahabeej, failed to germinate this season. Over 40,000 hectares (ha) of farms in seven districts have been affected. Mahabeej has 45 per cent share in the soy seed business in the …
