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, …
It shall provide an opportunity for multinational companies to monopolise TIRUCHI: The Tiruchi district unit of the Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam, affiliated to the Communist Party of India (CPI), has urged the State government to reject the Seeds Bill 2010 and the Tamil Agricultural Council Act 2009. In a representation …
When the researchers and agriculturists across the country are having heated debates on introducing BT brinjal in the country, they have forgotten to protect the desi Brinjal variety ‘Sunde Badane’, which is grown only in few places. ‘Sunde badane’ a variety of brinjal found near Biligiri Bhavan at Biligirirangana betta. …
COIMBATORE: The Department of Organic and Seed Certification has certified 93,552 tonnes seed from the paddy, millets, pulses, cotton, oil seeds and vegetable varieties. The purpose behind certifying the seeds was to convey to the farmers that they could be assured of the purity of the seeds, the department said …
The International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics has released 735 highly-nutritious and drought-tolerant crop varieties developed using germplasm and breeding materials in 78 countries, including Andhra Pradesh in India, significantly contributing to increased income and better nutrition of resource-poor people in the dry land tropics. In Anantapur, where over …
Bt cotton seed companies are eyeing an income of Rs 700 crore this year following an increase in seed prices. The month-long tussle between seed companies and the Maharashtra government over Bt cotton seed prices has ended in the former
Farmer-breeders are an unsung tribe. In far corners of the world, farmers study the seeds they use, experiment with them, do simple back-crossing to improve yields and taste, and quite often come up with winners. Some farmers are geniuses when it comes to improving their seed and introducing simple but …
The Bt cotton seed companies have got a major blow as Maharashtra, the largest cotton growing state, refused to increase the price of Bt cotton seeds. This is likely to create a severe shortage of seeds in north Maharashtra
This document is the first volume in a new series of publications to mark the 10th year of Bt cotton cultivation in India. It is a comprehensive and rich source of information on the multi-purpose utility Bt cotton for food (oil), feed (cake) and fiber (kapas) that has been gaining …
If numbers were enough, the case of Organic Seed Growers & Trade Association, et al versus Monsanto would already be won. On March 29, family farmers—in America, this essentially means small farmers; in India it would be redundancy— along with seed dealers and international organic farming organisations, filed an unusual …
AHMEDABAD: The pricing of cotton seeds is no more under the control of the state government, as the Gujarat high court has declared the Gujarat Cotton Seeds Act invalid as it comes into conflict with the legislation made by the Centre. A division bench headed by chief justice SJ Mukhopadhaya …
GANDHINAGAR: Following several non-UPA ruled states opposing the proposed Seeds Bill, to be placed in the next session of Parliament, Gujarat government on Monday sought preliminary consultation to form an opinion on the matter. State agriculture minister Dilip Sanghani told TOI, "While we decided to oppose any effort of the …
BIHAR and Kerala have come out strongly against the Seeds Bill 2010 to be tabled in the Rajya Sabha, saying states should get more powers to regulate seed trade. They say the bill in its present form would lead to unrestricted commercialisation of seeds now in public domain. After Andhra …
The lack of high quality agroforestry tree germplasm has long been recognized as one of the major challenges to widespread adoption of agroforestry in Southern Africa. Productivity levels realized in operational scale plantings are far less than those demonstrated in research and this has been partly blamed on the use …
Admitting gross mismanagement in agriculture department, the Odisha government on Thursday said that it would set up a high-level inquiry into the supply of alleged fake seeds and pulse kits to farmers during the rabi crop season. Mismanagement in the agriculture department was admitted by its minister Damodar Rout while …
Registration and licensing of seeds and fixing of prices State's response to revised draft of seeds Bill Seeks full powers on compensation issues THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala government has sought control for the State governments over registration and licensing of seeds and fixing of their prices under the proposed seeds Bill. …
NEW DELHI: After raising objections to the permission given by the Centre for trials of Bt Maize in his State, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has now urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh not to pass the Seeds Bill in Parliament without taking into consideration the views and concerns of Bihar. …
In what is likely to revolutionise seed potato production in India, the Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI), Shimla, has developed a technique based on Aeroponics to produce seed potatoes without exposing them to soil. The institute first designed a prototype and tested it on three varieties of potato seeds, namely …
