19.08.2016

Jayalalithaa announces Rs.64 cr. special scheme for Samba crop

The Chief Minister details the reason behind launching the direct sowing scheme for

samba.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Friday said her government would implement

Rs 64.30 crore combined scheme for direct sowing of Samba crop in the delta region if

the Mettur dam could not get adequate water by end of August.

Making a suo motu statement in the Assembly, she said samba crop would normally

cover 14,93,000 acre if there was adequate rain during the North-East monsoon and

adequate water in Mettur.

"I hope that we will get a favourable judgement in the Supreme Court and water will be

released for samba crop. But a good government prepare itself to overcome hurdles," she

said explaining the reason behind launching the direct sowing scheme for samba.

She said farmers would get Rs. 500 per acre for sowing and the total allocation was Rs.

25 crore. "Farmers will get Rs. 10 per kg of seed as grant to get quality seeds and the

government will allot Rs. 4.50 crore for the purpose," she said.

To facilitate mechanised sowing, a farmer will get Rs 600 per acre and the allocation for

the scheme is Rs. 3 crore. As weeds are likely to sprout in direct sowing, farmers will get

Rs. 280 per acre for herbicide. Moreover, farmers will get Rs. 2000 per acre as grant in

areas where plantation is done through machines and the government will allot Rs 20

crore.

"Since deficiency of zinc sulphate will affect the crop yield, a grant of Rs 200 per acre

will be given and it will cost Rs 2 crore”, the Ms. Jayalalithaa said.

Can’t avoid pesticides, say farm experts

Parliament’s Standing Committee on Agriculture may have expressed concern at the

unscientific and excessive use of pesticides in agriculture that pose a threat both to the

environment and human health. But experts say their judicious use, combined with safe

agricultural practices, is the only way out as the country’s growing demand for food

cannot be met through organic farming.

In its recently presented report in Parliament for 2015-16, titled “Impact of chemical

fertilizers and pesticides on agriculture and allied sectors in the country,” the panel said

fertilisers and pesticides changed the face of agriculture by enhancing production and

productivity, but excessive and unscientific use of pesticides caused tremendous harm to

the environment and affected human population indirectly.

The report says since pesticides are mostly non-biodegradable and persist in the

environment, there is the possibility that they will enter human blood by the process of

bio-magnification and through the food chain.

Need for scientific use “Human health and food safety, both are important, and therefore there is an imperative

need for promoting scientific use of pesticides in agriculture. Relying entirely on organic

farming is not a practical solution, as we need to feed a growing population,” agriculture

expert and member of the Uttar Pradesh Planning Commission, Sudhir Panwar, told The

Hindu. There must be efforts therefore to create awareness among farmers about the

scientific use of pesticides.

The report points out that the use of pesticides has been an integral part of the green

revolution strategy. They not only enhanced food grain production by reducing losses to

weeds, diseases and insects, but also helped improve the quality of the crops. However,

unscientific use of pesticides such as organochlorine and pyrethroids can cause cancer,

besides neurological and endocrine system disorders.

“Heavy use of pesticide in agriculture has contaminated soil, water, air and the food

chain... Remedies are many... The most important among them is to ban pesticides whose

bad effects are well known and are already banned in the western world,” said

Lakhwinder Singh, professor with the Punjabi University, who has been extensively

working on agricultural issues.

“Educating the farmers and agriculture labourers for minimizing the use of pesticides and

strengthening our agriculture research and extension system is the need of the hour,” he

said.

Cow protection, with insurance

Maharashtra scheme to care for cows if they stop yielding milk

Maharashtra’s non-milking cows will soon have a new destination where farmers can

send them, and the State government will bear the entire cost of transporting, feeding and

treating them until they start yielding again.

Maharashtra’s Minister for Animal Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries does not want them

left dying and has a solution for farmers who cannot afford to care for non-lactating

cows.

“The government will take care of cows of those farmers who cannot afford them when

they don’t produce milk. Bring them to us, we will feed them, care for them and once the

lactation begins, they can take cows back to their farm,” said the Minister, Mahadev

Jankar, to The Hindu. The scheme will start working within the next two months.

Dabcheri in Dahanu in Palghar district is the preferred place for such cow shelters. The

Minister said funds won’t be a problem. “We will give whatever amount is required.

Protecting a cow is our priority,” he said.

Farmer activists welcomed the move but questioned its practicality. “It’s a welcome step,

but why only one faraway shelter? There should be one in every district. It shouldn’t be

just another BJP government announcement with nothing on the ground,” said farm

activist Vijay Javandhiya.

The Minister however slammed ‘anti-social’ gau rakshaks who in recent incidents

targeted men, mostly Muslims and Dalits, for transporting cows. “I will show no

tolerance for such men. Our efforts are purely from the farmers’ point of view as we

know the economic burden a household suffers while taking care of non-milking cows,”

he said.

It is not just ‘gau-seva.’ The State’s cows, buffaloes, sheep, goats, horses and even

rabbits will be insured to protect owners from financial disaster if they perish.

The government has deposited Rs. 8.5 crore with New India Assurance Company as

premium under the plan. Accordingly, the government will pay 75 per cent of the

premium for Scheduled Castes and Tribes, and 50 per cent for the open category.

Each household can insure a maximum of five cows, buffaloes or horses at total premium

of up to Rs. 410 a year. For goats, sheep and rabbits, around 100 can be insured per

household at Rs. 60 to Rs. 70.

“The claim would be around Rs. one lakh for big animals and for others, to be decided by

officers based on market value,” said Mr. Jankar.

Agrihub to provide one-stop solution to farmers

The Agrihub, a digital platform floated by two mechanical engineers will provide one-

stop solution for farmers about products and technologies.

The Bengaluru-based portal will connect seed providers, agriculture equipment providers,

retailers and distributors. It will also help the stakeholders to track innovations or

products, find suppliers and facilitate and educate to make rapid purchase decisions.

Rajeeb Roy co-founded the firm along with another Mechanical Engineer Abhishek Bhatt

and Sidharth Kumar in Bengaluru.

Talking to The Hindu, Mr. Bhatt said: “Ours is a boot-strapped firm. We have invested

Rs.10 lakh. Plans are on to raise $3 million. Over the next three to four months. We are

already in talks with three investors. The fund will be used for scaling up technology,

operations and marketing.”

“While the urban trader has access to new products and technology it is difficult for those

from remote towns to know about them. At best they can know about it through extensive

visits to exhibitions. Businesses and small companies spend thousands of dollars to

showcase their existing products and launch new products in exhibitions. The duration of

these exhibitions is for about three to four days and the footfall is usually more of casual

visitors. Agrihub has been started to address these issues,” Chief Executive Officer, Mr.

Roy said.

Over 3,600 farmers and well-known brands such as John Deere, Yara Fertilizers, Rallis,

Namdhari Seeds, Tafe, KF Bioplants, New Holland Agriculture, Known Your Seed,

Ginegar and Nagarjuna have already been listed on the platform.

The product category offered by the company includes: seeds and plants; irrigation

products; fertilizers and plant protection products; farm tools and equipment and hi-tech

agriculture and allied products.

Punjab Agricultural University develops new varieties of crops

Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has released two new varieties of wheat and celery

for general cultivation in the state. During the meeting of State Variety Approval

Committee, where after a thorough discussion on salient characteristics of these varieties

they were approved, under the Chairmanship of Jasbir Singh Bains, Director of

Agriculture, Punjab, an official release said.

The variety PBW 725 of bread wheat has been released for cultivation in the Punjab state

under irrigated timely sown conditions. It possesses a combination of several desirable

traits like high grain yield, resistance to yellow and brown rusts, and good grain quality.

“It is a double dwarf variety with an average plant height of 105 cm. Its ears are medium

dense and tapering in shape with white smooth glumes. Its grains are amber, hard,

medium bold and lustrous. It matures in about 154 days. Its average grain yield is 22.9

quintals per acre which is 7.6 per cent higher than that of the pre-dominant wheat

variety,” it said.

Read: Punjab to open 13 new colleges: Education Minister The variety Punjab Celery 1 is the first celery variety developed by PAU and has been

released for cultivation in the Punjab state. “Its seeds are brown in colour with

characteristic odour and pungent taste. These contain 1.9 per cent essential oil with a total

oil content of 20.1 per cent. The variety starts bearing flowers in the month of March and

matures in 140-150 days after transplanting. Its average seed yield is 4.46 quintals per

acre,” it said.

R K Gumber, Director of Research, PAU said that very positive feedback on new wheat

variety PBW 725 was received from the farmers of the state during last crop season.

Punjab: Agriculture dept tells farmers to go for direct purchase of pesticides

AFTER A pesticide purchase scam came to light following failure of cotton crop due to

whitefly attack last October, the agriculture department has decided not to purchase any

pesticide this year.

It has instructed farmers to go for direct purchase from shops where pesticides

recommended by PAU and agriculture department are available given at subsidised rates.

Confirming the development, Dr Jasbir Singh, director, agriculture, said, “This year, we

have not purchased pesticides at our level.

Rather, a list of recommended pesticides has been sent out to farmers and various dealers

have stocked them in their shops. Farmers can buy pesticides according to their will.”

Last year, an inquiry was ordered on purchase of more than 92,000 litres of Oberon

pesticide that was given to cotton farmers. Former Director Agriculture Mangal Singh

Sandhu was booked in the case.

Dr Jasbir Singh, however, did not comment on the pesticide purchase controversy but

reiterated that farmers were repeatedly being told to buy pesticide sprays suggested by

the agriculture department.

Sukhdev Singh, general secretary, Bharti Kisan Union (Ugrahan), said, “This year we are

directly purchasing pesticides from the dealers, as last year’s subsidised product was

spurious and spoiled our cotton crop in Malwa region.” However, pesticides are costlier

this time.

Farmers shun castor on sustained low prices

AHMEDABAD, AUGUST 18:

With castor growers shifting to more remunerative crops such as pulses in the current

kharif season, sowing of the oilseed has taken a beating in Gujarat, the largest grower.

Castorseed prices have remained under pressure for a sustained period since 2012 and

hovered in the range of ₹3,325-3,400 a quintal in the spot market. The peak was seen in

February 2011 at ₹6,000.

Dip in acreage

So far, this kharif season, castor acreage was reported at 2,12,200 hectares, which is

about 70 per cent less than the 3-year average acreage of 7,14,400 hectares, thereby

indicating a lower crop.

“The reasons for decline in castor sowing is primarily the lower prices for a sustained

period. And because of this, farmers are shifting to other remunerative crops such as dals

(tur or urad). But currently, it is premature to comment on the scenario of castor crop

because the real sowing outlook will be clear only after September 15,” said Haresh

Vyas, Co-Chairman, SEA Castorseed & Oil Promotion Council, adding that the crop is

likely to be lower than last year.

A lower crop would mean a higher prices for the castorseed in the coming months.

According to the Neilson India’s castor crop estimates for 2015-16, castor acreage in

Gujarat was 7,81,000 hectares in 2015-16, whereas nationally total castor acreage was

11,36,000 hectares.

Castor is an important cash crop for India considering the international demand for castor

oil and its derivatives like sebasic acid in the industries such as pharmaceuticals,

cosmetics, lubricants, paints and adhesives, food, paper, plastics, rubber, textile

chemicals, besides agriculture and others.

India is the largest producer of castorseed in the world with about 85 per cent share in the

global supply.

SEA initiatives Considering the significance of the crop and its economic importance, the Solvent

Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) has taken up the crop improvement measures to

increase castor yield in the country, which currently hovers around 1,200-1,400

kg/hectare. “However, there is a potential to increase the productivity to over 2,000

kg/ha, provided the farmers follow the pre- and post- “good agronomy” practices coupled

with use of correct inputs like good quality of seed, fertiliser, pesticides, etc,” SEA said

while announcing the project.

A pilot project is planned to be rolled out in North Gujarat districts of Banaskantha and

Aravali.

The Association has decided to set up model farms at these districts to showcase the

farmers how to achieve the higher yield and thereby higher returns per hectare. The

project will be supervised by the agriculture scientists and progressive farmers.

In November when the castor seed crop will be ready, SEA plans to organise “Kisan

Mela” to showcase the benefit of innovations to achieve higher yield.

On success of this project, next year all the districts of Gujarat and Rajasthan will be

covered under this project.

Cashew shipments down by 24% in April-June

KOCHI, AUGUST 18:

Cashew exports from the country continued to experience a sharp decline in April -July

2016 with the shipments falling by 24 per cent in volume and 14 per cent in value from

that of the corresponding period last fiscal.

Total shipments during April-July 2016 fell to 24,833 tonnes valued at ₹1,400.74 crore

from 32,780 tonnes valued at ₹1,630.39 crore in the corresponding period last financial

year, according to Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI).

The decline in volume stood at 24 per cent while that of the total value was at 14 per cent.

The average unit value realised has shown an upsurge of 13 per cent during this period,

Sasi Varma, Executive Director and Secretary, CEPCI, said.

The average unit value increased this fiscal to ₹564.07 a kg from ₹497.37 in April-July

2015, they said.

Meanwhile, fall in the unit value of Cashew Nut Shell Liquid (CNSL)/Cardinol has raised

their exports to 4,898 tonnes valued at ₹17.57 crore from 3,697 tonnes valued at

₹21.75 crore.

The unit value realised fell to ₹35.86/kg from ₹58.83, he said.

Attributing the consistent fall in exports mainly to non-receipt of parity price for kernel,

Sundaram Prabha, Chairman, CEPCI, told BusinessLine that sharp rise Raw Cashew Nut

(RCN) prices coupled with closing down of around 80 per cent of the factories in Kerala

following hike in wages are also responsible for the decline.

Rise in unit value of kernels is also claimed to be a reason for the drop in exports.

Imports down Meanwhile, imports of raw cashew nuts (RCN) has shown substantial fall during the first

four months of 2016-17.

Total imports dropped during the period by 40 per cent to 3,01,454 tonnes valued at

₹3,152.23 crore from 5,03,854 tonnes valued at ₹4,049.54 crore. The average unit

value has increased to ₹104.57 a kg from ₹80.53 in April-July 2015.

Sundaram said high RCN prices coupled with unattainable Standard Input-Output norms

(SION) fixed by the DGFT for cashew sector has led to the drop in the raw material

imports

Meanwhile, according to trade sources, cashew markets suddenly picked up steam by

middle of July after remaining sluggish in May-June, with the prices for all grades

moving up by 10-20 cents per lb in the second half of the month.

“Reasonable volume was traded to Europe and the US for shipment up to December

2016,” Pankaj N Sampat, a Mumbai-based dealer told BusinessLine.

During the week price range for W240 $4.35-4.60; W320 $4.20-4.40; W450 and SW320

from $4-4.20; SW360, Splits and Butts from $3.25-3.40; LP from $3.15-3.25 and SP

from $2.90-3 per lb (fob).

RCN crop decline Overall, 2016 cashew crop has been disappointing with reduction in quantity in some

areas and decline in kernel yield in almost all areas. RCN prices have been high

throughout the season and, in fact, they have increased as season progressed.

Current range for African RCN is $1,450-1,850 C&F India/Vietnam. Between 2014 crop

and 2016 crop, there has been an increase of 25-30 per cent in average RCN price.

From now until March 2017, replacement availability is limited to about 25 per cent of

world production.

Tea prices decline at Kochi auction

KOCHI, AUG 19:

Despite good arrivals, the prices of several tea varieties declined at the Kochi auctions

this week.

The market for good liquoring CTCs tended to ease by ₹2 to ₹3 and were barely

steady. Others were also irregular and lower by ₹3 to ₹5 and witnessed some

withdrawals. The quantity on offer in CTC dust was 10,21,737 kg.

According to auctioneers Forbes, Ewart & Figgis, leading blenders lent useful support

and there was subdued demand from upcountry buyers. Exporters covered a larger

quantity of medium and plainer grainer varieties compared to last week.

Fair demand persisted in orthodox varieties while the market for primary and secondary

tended to ease. It also witnessed some withdrawals. The quantity on offer was 18,650 kg.

Exporters and upcountry buyers absorbed the bulk of the quantity sold.

In Cochin CTC dust quotation, good varieties fetched ₹105-155, mediums quoted ₹90-

123 and plain grades quoted ₹78-88.

Prices were also lower in the leaf category and the market for select best high-grown

brokens, whole leaf and Fannings in orthodox varieties were barely steady. The quantity

on offer was 199,500 kg. Exporters to CIS countries and traditional exporters lent fair

support.

However, good demand for CTC leaf led the market for good liquoring brokens and

Fannings to firm and dearer. The quantity on offer was 62,000 kg.

In the dust varieties, Monica SFD quoted the best prices of ₹157, followed by Injipara

SFD at ₹148. Chamraj FOP-S (Green Tea) took the top position in leaf varieties,

quoting ₹405, followed by P’s Woodlands Hyson Green Tea at ₹287.

Wet day seen for eastern region as deep depression crosses coast

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, AUG 18:

Yesterday's deep depression crossed the West Bengal coast at night and this morning was

located over Jharkhand and its neighbourhood.

Importantly, the system has kept its strength even after crossing, which indicates how

well-endowed it is in terms of moisture carry and storminess.

'ACTIVE' MONSOON

It set up active monsoon conditions over Jharkhand, Bihar, Odisha, East Madhya

Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand yesterday, an India Met Department update said.

It will weaken as a depression during the course of the day but the deterioration in system

strength may not manifest itself immediately in terms of rainfall in its catchment area.

As for the rest of the day, the Met has forecast heavy to very heavy rain at a few places

over Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, while it will be isolated over East Madhya Pradesh and

East Uttar Pradesh.

Heavy rainfall warning has been sounded for Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal and Odisha

during the period as the deep depression lets off some steam and weakens a round.

The Met joins the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts in plotting a

west-northwest track for the depression for its onward journey over the next few days.

SUCESSOR 'LOW'

It will travel across North Madhya Pradesh, South-West Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, even

while undergoing a further weakening and will probably end up as a low-pressure area

('low') over Rajasthan.

This will bring a flood of rain into the region ahead of another wet spell from a successor

'low' forming in the Bay by Saturday and travelling along the very same track.

The upshot is that East India, Central India, parts of West and North-West India will gain

most from the enhanced monsoon conditions while rain in the South will be confined

largely to the West coast.

Tentative forecasts by the Met indicate the formation of a 'low' over the southern part of

the east Coast (off Andhra Pradesh) during the last week of the month, bringing rain into

the South Peninsula.

This could also mark a change in the pattern witnessed till now when such systems have

formed high up to the North of the coast and have travelled into Central and North-West

India.

Campco posts ₹19-cr profit in 2015-16

MANGALURU, AUGUST 18:

In spite of the sluggish scenario in arecanut and rubber markets, the Central Arecanut and

Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco) Ltd recorded a net profit of

19.15 crore during 2015-16 against a net profit of 40.57 crore in 2014-15.

It made a turnover of 1,591 crore during 2015-16 against 1,547 crore in 2014-15.

To a query on the decline in the net profit during 2015-16, Suresh Bhandary, Managing

Director, toldBusinessLine that there was not much fluctuation in the price of arecanut

during 2015-16 compared to the previous fiscal.

When asked to explain, he said the fluctuation in the price of the commodity was in the

range of ₹40-45 a kg during 2014-15.

However, this fluctuation narrowed down to around 5-7 a kg in 2015-16.

The co-operative purchased 51,142 tonnes of arecanut worth 1357.79 crore from grower

members in 2015-16 against 45,497 tonnes worth 1241.78 crore in 2014-15.

Campco sold 47,093 tonnes of arecanut worth 1339.92 crore in 2015-16 against 47,346

tonnes worth 1292.77 crore in 2014-15.

(In a recent reply to the Member of Parliament from Dakshina Kannada, Nalin Kumar

Kateel, the Union Commerce Ministry had said that India produced around 7.02 lakh

tonnes of arecanut during 2015-16. )

One of the reasons for the steady price for the commodity was the availability of

sufficient stock in the market, Bhandary said.

The annual report of the co-operative for 2015-16 said that it has performed in an

excellent manner during the year, despite the turbulences in the market.

With around 97,800 members, Campco has presence in Karnataka and Kerala (the major

arecanut-growing states in the country).

Rainfall in August increases kharif sowing in Gujarat

Good monsoon during August has slightly increased kharif cropsowing in Gujarat during

the month. According to the Gujaratagriculture department data, as on August 12,

total kharif sowing was at 7.28 million hectares, a rise of 1.4 per cent from the 7.18

million hectares in 2015 at the same time.

"So far, kharif sowing is on track, as the state has received good rains during August.

Sowing has improved in Kutch and Saurashtra regions due to favourable monsoon. The

kharif sowing activity is still going on and it will continue till the end of this month," said

official of agriculture department.

According to the data, area under pulses has gone up by 56 per cent to 598,600 hectares,

compared with 382,400 hectares. Groundnut sowing increased to 1.61 million hectares

this year, against 1.28 million hectares in the corresponding period last year. However,

area under cotton has declined 13.5 per cent to 2.31 million hectares, from 2.67 million

hectares last year.

Recent round of showering has helped kharif crops in Gujarat. According to the farmers

and agriculture experts, this will help crops such as cotton, groundnut, paddy, pulses and

other oilseeds in the state.

An official at agriculture department said, "It has been good for standing crops but still

one better round of rains is required for the crops in this month. Recent round of

showering is sufficient as of now and pulses and paddy, maize will need more water.

With this, sowing of castor will gear up by end of August and for that also, Gujarat need

rain."

Gujarat has received medium to heavy rains in last one week, which was needed for the

standing crops such as cotton, groundnut, paddy, tur and other kharif crops. According to

farmers, if the state does not receive rains, the situation might get critical.

"Groundnut, cotton, tur, pulses and other kharif crops are in growing stage and at this

time, all these crops need good rains. The recent rains have helped kharif crops to

survive," said Ramesh Bhoraniya, farmers from Naranka village of Rajkot district.