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Japan, Sustainability, Water

The project will rehabilitate the existing Nurgal irrigation canal in Kunar province, improving both the quantity and reliability of irrigation water for agricultural production

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) in partnership with the Government of Japan has launched a four–year project that aims to increase the amount of irrigated land, boost local food production and strengthen the food security and livelihood resilience of more than 12 600 vulnerable people in the Kunar province of eastern Afghanistan.

Facilitated by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the $9.5 million project will also provide direct environmental benefits to local communities, helping to protect fragile rangelands and recharge vital groundwater resources, which are particularly important in the context of the increasing impacts of the climate change.

Access to water is critical in Afghanistan, a country where more than 70 per cent of food production depends on irrigation.

The project will rehabilitate the existing Nurgal irrigation canal in Kunar province, improving both the quantity and reliability of irrigation water for agricultural production and increasing the total command area – the agricultural land irrigated by the canal – by 70 hectares to a total of 643 hectares, leading to both increases in overall agricultural production and increases in productivity of at least 12 per cent.  Importantly, the project will enable poor food insecure rural households to plant two crops a year, rather than just a single wheat crop, boosting incomes, resilience and food security. 

The project will also deliver benefits to communities, helping to protect more than 2,000 hectares of fragile rangelands through improved and adapted plant varieties.  The project builds on and enhances the Green Ground Project initiated in 2003 by Tetsu Nakamura and Peace (Japan) Medical Services (PMS) to build irrigation systems in the Kunar River Basin. By 2023, the PMS project will have transformed 23,800 hectares of abandoned arid farmlands back into green fields. Over 650,000 people have benefitted from this project.  

The project will rehabilitate the existing Nurgal

AgroPolicy, SAARC, Supply Chain, Trade

The government has approved exports of 14,184 tonnes of wheat grain, 5,326 tonnes of wheat flour, and 15,226 tonnes of maida to Bhutan during this period

The Indian government is offering exporters the opportunity to apply for a quota to export wheat, ‘atta’, and ‘maida’ to Bhutan in 2023-24. The allocation of this quota will be based on humanitarian and food security grounds, in accordance with requests made by Bhutan.

The government has approved exports of 14,184 tonnes of wheat grain, 5,326 tonnes of wheat flour, and 15,226 tonnes of maida to Bhutan during this period. Exporters are invited to apply for a quota, with a minimum threshold of 100 tonnes for land transport to the neighbouring country.

Applications will only be accepted for quantities greater than this minimum threshold. In addition, the DGFT has issued a notification prohibiting the export of de-oiled rice bran until November 30, 2023. This amendment to the export policy has been put in place with immediate effect.

The government has approved exports of 14,184

AgroPolicy, India, R&D, Sustainability, World

The aim of this conference is to facilitate the development of a global ecosystem of partners from academia, industry, government, and multilateral and bilateral organisations

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the apex body for co-ordinating, guiding and managing research and the World Bank have come together to announce the first International Conference on ‘Blended Learning Ecosystem for Higher Education in Agriculture’ in India under the National Agricultural Higher Education Project (NAHEP). The three-day event to be held from March 21-23 in New Delhi will be hosted by ICAR – IASRI (Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute), which is a multi-partner global forum to support collaboration for the development of a state-of-the-art blended education system for higher agricultural education.
 

The aim of this conference is to facilitate the development of a global ecosystem of partners from academia, industry, government, and multilateral and bilateral organisations who would provide critical insights towards the design and full-scale implementation of all aspects of the Resilient Agricultural Education System (RAES) under National Agricultural Higher Education Project (NAHEP), that is, learning management system, content repository, and system-wide capacity building. Apart from the engaging discussions the three-day event will also showcase an exhibition on the diverse range of services and offerings in the field of agriculture and blended learning.
 

The conference and exhibition will be inaugurated by Narendra Singh Tomar, Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. Various other ministries will also be participating along with other global leading institutions like AICTE, IIT and IRRI among others. Eminent speakers addressing the conference include Dr Himanshu Pathak, Secretary, Department of Agriculture Research and Education (DARE) and Director General (DG), ICAR, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, Dr R.C. Agrawal, Deputy Director General (Agricultural Education), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India and Dr Auguste Tano Kouame, Country Director, The World Bank among others.
 

Dr Himanshu Pathak, Secretary, Department of Agriculture Research and Education (DARE) and Director General (DG), ICAR, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, said, “According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the agriculture sector in India contributes 17-18 per cent of the Gross Value (GVA) added of the economy and employs more than 40 per cent of the workforce. Farmers are adopting new technologies to improve and monitor crop health and production. The true adoption of blended learning has immense potential and can unlock the agriculture economy to new heights.’’

The aim of this conference is to

Bee keeping, India

Government committed towards increasing overall potential of beekeeping industry in the country

National Bee Board (NBB), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, in collaboration with National Seed Research and Training Centre (NSRTC) Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, organised a National Workshop on Role of Agri Startups in Honey Value Chain at NSRTC Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.

Beekeepers, Honey Startups and FPOs, stakeholders in beekeeping, officials from various Ministries/ Government Organisations/ Institutes, State Departments of Horticulture, State Agricultural Universities (SAUs)/ Central Agricultural Universities (CAUs), etc participated in the workshop.

Dr N K Patle, Additional Commissioner (Horticulture) and Executive Director, NBB briefed about the role of role of Agri Startups in Honey Value Chain. He also highlighted the role of National Beekeeping & Honey Mission (NBHM) and its contribution in the beekeeping sector, including promotion & facilitation for honey startups and FPOs.  He highlighted that implementation of NBHM scheme is also intended to strengthen the infrastructure facilities for honey collection, storage, processing, testing & branding centres, which ultimately enhance the potential of beekeeping in the nation. He invited Honey Startups and FPOs to avail the facilities available under NBHM and adopt beekeeping in a scientific manner to get additional income through honey and other beehive product.

Startups from MANAGE and other states shared their experience and explained about their products being marketed in the country. They also highlighted the importance of Honey Value Chain being created by various stakeholders. These startups are promoting honey sector by Queen breeding, comb, raw honey production and food supplement of bee pollen.

Government committed towards increasing overall potential of

India, Oilseeds, Seeds, Webinar

For the first time in the country in the current season, experts at the Indian Merchants’ Chamber (IMC) webinar closely examined the progress of southwest monsoon, planted area and crop status. Forecast of the harvest size of major Kharif crops – covering rice, pulses, coarse cereals, oilseeds, cotton and sugarcane – was presented. The production of major crops is likely to be slightly below last year’s level and well below the season’s target set by the government. This was stated during a webinar organised by IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry in association with NCDEX IPFT. 

Looking at lower area coverage and lack of precipitation in key growing states in eastern India (UP, Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, and Jharkhand) rice production is expected to decline from last year’s 111.8 million tonne to 100-102 million tonne in the current season. 

Pulses to fall to 8.4 million tonnes from 10.5million tonnes, Oilseeds to fall to 21.5 – 22.5 million tonnes from 23.9 million tonnes. 

Overall, the harvest size of major crops is set to be smaller than last year’s, except cotton. Which is in the target range of 335 to 345 lakh bales, the target was set for 370 lakh bales. 

For the first time in the country

AgroPolicy, Trade

Directs to physically verify all documents of applicants for the export of wheat before issuing Registration Certificates

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade has directed Regional Authorities to physically verify all documents of applicants for the export of wheat before issuing Registration Certificates (RCs). The order has been issued to ensure that the exporters are not issued RCs based on improper documents.

In order to plug the loophole, it has been decided that regional authorities will do a physical verification of all Letters of Credit, whether already approved or under process. Wherever necessary, the help of a professional agency may be taken for such verification, the order adds. 

The order lays down the following further checks:

1. Validation/endorsement by Recipient Bank to be ensured while doing physical verification

2. In cases where the LC date is on or before May 13, 2022, but the swift message/message exchange date between the Indian and Foreign bank is after May 13, 2022, regional authorities may conduct a full investigation and if these are found to be antedated, immediate proceedings under FT (D&R) Act, 1992 to be initiated against the exporters. Such cases are to be further examined by referring to enforcement agencies like the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) / Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). In case of the complicity of any Banker in cases where ante-dating is established, necessary proceedings as per law will be initiated.

The Government of India had earlier (on 13th May 2022) restricted wheat exports to manage the overall food security situation in India and to support the needs of neighbouring and vulnerable countries that are adversely affected by the sudden changes in the global market for wheat and are unable to access adequate wheat supplies. 

Directs to physically verify all documents of

AgroPolicy, Sugar industry, Supply Chain, Trade

Govt will allow sugar exports upto 100 LMT

The government has decided to allow export of sugar upto 100 LMT with a view to maintain the domestic availability and price stability during the sugar season 2021-22 (October-September). As per the order issued by DGFT, with effect from June 1, 2022 till October 31, 2022, or till further order, whichever is earlier, the export of the sugar will be allowed with specific permission of the Directorate of Sugar, Department of Food & Public Distribution. 

The decision came in the light of record exports of the sugar. In sugar seasons 2017-18, 2018-19 & 2019-20, only about 6.2 LMT, 38 LMT & 59.60 LMT of sugar was exported. In sugar season 2020-21 against target of 60 LMT about 70 LMT have been exported. In the current sugar season 2021-22, contracts for export of about 90 LMT have been signed, about 82 LMT sugar has been dispatched from sugar mills for export and approx. 78 LMT have been exported. Export of sugar in current sugar season 2021-22 is the historically highest. 

The decision will ensure that the closing stock of sugar at the end of sugar season (September 30, 2022) remains 60-65 LMT which is two to three months stocks (monthly requirement is around 24 LMT in those months) required for domestic use. Crushing in new season starts in last week of October in Karnataka and in last week of October to November in Maharashtra and in November in Uttar Pradesh. So generally, up to Nov, supply of sugar takes place from previous year stock.

Govt will allow sugar exports upto 100

Finance, Schemes - NABARD

Expert’s views were taken into account for meeting the gap in augmenting productivity by way of agri- reforms, transformation, post-harvest management, collectivisation of agricultural produce, value addition and organising farmers into FPO

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has projected a credit potential of Rs 36,292 crore for the state of Assam for the financial year 2022-23

NABARD launched the State Focus Paper today for the financial year 2022-23 which is the consolidation of exploitable district wise realistic potential, both in physical and financial terms in the state of Assam.
Focusing on the priority sector and to ensure integrated and sustainable rural prosperity in the state, NABARD has projected a credit potential of Rs 36,292 crore for the state of Assam for the financial year 2022-23 in the State Credit Seminar held on December 8, 2021. The credit potential is 12 per cent higher than the previous year.

Of the total projected credit potential, as much as Rs 18755 crore (52 per cent) is towards Agriculture and Allied activities, Rs 12952 crore (36 per cent) is towards MSME sector, Rs 1388 crore for Informal Credit – SHGs / JLGs and Rs 3197 crore for housing, education and other Sectors.

The State Focus Paper was released at Guwahati by Finance Minister Ajanta Neog, in presence of Additional Chief Secretary P K Borthakur, Regional Director, RBI, Sanjeev Singha and CGM SBI, R S Ramesh etc.
The credit potential estimated in the State Focus Paper will be used as a base for the preparation of the Annual Credit Plan for priority sector lending of the state by financial institutions for the year 2022-23.

Baiju Kurup, Chief GM, NABARD informed that the seminar deliberated upon the demand of credit at the grass-root level besides taking cognizance of the policy interventions and programmes initiated by NABARD, Financial Institutions, the State as well as Central Governments in various sectors. It was also informed that expert’s views were taken into account for meeting the gap in augmenting productivity by way of agri- reforms, transformation, post-harvest management, collectivisation of agricultural produce, value addition and organising farmers into Farmer Producers’ Organisation (FPO), which may help in creating local level commodity-specific value chains to enable small and marginal farmers to realise optimal value of their products, through better price discovery mechanisms.

Expert’s views were taken into account for