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Thursday / December 26. 2024

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HomePosts Tagged "Gujarat" (Page 2)
Agrotech, Dairy, Live Stock, R&D

Laxmi is from a high genetic merit IVF embryo having the potential for the production of 35-40 kg milk a day.

NDDB Dairy Services (NDS) announced the birth of the first female calf ‘Laxmi’, under the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD), Government of India’s Accelerated Breed Improvement Programme through IVF Embryo Transplant (ABIP-IVF-ET). The programme targets establishing two lakh pregnancies through the transplant of IVF embryos of high genetic merit to enhance the milk yield for dairy farmers.

The results of nine months of hard ground work which started with the transplant of IVF embryos in September 2022, have started coming in. Since the news of more births only seems to pour in, with 13 healthy female births confirmed to date. Laxmi is the first female calf born from the surrogate transplanted with an IVF embryo at Rajarambapu Patil Cooperative Milk Union Ltd., Islampur (Sangli), in Maharashtra. More than 250 births are expected in due course from cows and buffaloes whose pregnancies through IVF embryo transplants have been confirmed.

“Laxmi is from a high genetic merit IVF embryo having a potential for production of 35-40 kg milk a day, which is nearly double the average of the existing cattle owned by dairy farmers in this area,” said an exuberant Sushil Dilip Khot, the dairy farmer beneficiary who has just expanded his herd with the birth of Laxmi.

Meenesh Shah, NDDB & NDS Chairman, shared that the journey has not been easy. “When we initially started, the success rate with IVF embryo transplant was as low as 9 per cent, which today has reached, in some cases, up to 46 per cent. The success depends on the proper selection of the surrogates & its management, and there is still a lot of work required in the area.”

NDDB’s wholly owned subsidiary, NDS is one of the service providers identified by the DAHD, Government of India, for the execution of the programme. NDS last year kicked off the implementation on September 22 from Islampur in Maharashtra, said a Company spokesperson.

The NDS team have been working relentlessly for over a year and has already scaled the programme to 15 milk unions in six states, i.e. Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Punjab, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh. Since September 2022, the team so far has transferred 1,436 embryos, out of which 1,211 have been examined for pregnancies. During the current financial year, embryo transplant activity will be scaled up, and another 3,000 IVF embryo pregnancies are expected to be established.

The choice of breed of the embryo to be transplanted lies with the farmer, and the gender-sorted IVF embryos of about 6 indigenous cattle and 1 buffalo breed have been used to ensure that 90 per cent of calves born are female. As the calves will have none of the characteristics of the surrogate, the potential of producing milk goes up to 15-20 kgs from Gir and Sahiwal breeds of cows and 20 kgs from the Murrah buffalo breed, the NDS spokesperson said.

Laxmi is from a high genetic merit

AgroPolicy, India, Sustainability, Water

Till date about 81 per cent more than the area covered during pre-PDMC 8 years

A National Workshop on Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) was organised by the Department of Agriculture& Farmers Welfare (DA&FW), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India discussed with the stakeholders the various approaches which can be adopted for increasing penetration of micro irrigation in the country. Participants from various Ministries/ Department of Central Government, States and UTs, Irrigation Industries, Startups working in the water management sector and Farmers Producer Organisations were present in the event.

Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, of the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) inaugurated the event. He emphasised the adoption of technologies in the implementation of the programmes and focused on enhancing micro-irrigation coverage and thereby increasing overall efficiency and water productivity of agriculture for ensuring the food and nutrition security of the country and incomes of the farmers, particularly in rainfed areas. Dr Himanshu Pathak, Secretary, of the Department of Agricultural Research & Education (DARE) also addressed the inaugural session. He urged all participants to make efforts to adopt micro-irrigation on a large scale to reduce the water footprint of the agriculture sector.

Franklin L Khobung, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare explained in detail the Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) Scheme and the progress made so far. It was informed that the Department of Agriculture, Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) is implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) from  2015-16 in all the States of the country which focuses on enhancing water use efficiency at the farm level through Micro Irrigation viz. Drip and Sprinkler irrigation systems. An area of 78 lakh ha has been covered under Micro Irrigation from 2015-16 to till date which is about 81 per cent more than the area covered during pre-PDMC 8 years. The Government has been focusing on increasing water productivity in agriculture and thereby sustainable agriculture and incomes of farmers. A Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) with a corpus of Rs. 5000 Crore has been created with NABARD during 2018-19 with the major objective to facilitate the States in mobilising the resources to provide top-up/additional incentives to farmers for incentivising micro irrigation beyond the provisions available under Per Drop More Crop as well as innovative integrated projects including projects in the Public Private Partnership (PPP) for expanding Micro-irrigation. A Budget announcement has been made to double the initial corpus of the Micro Irrigation Fund under NABARD, by augmenting it by another Rs. 5,000 crores.

During the programme, five Best Gram Panchayats from the States of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu were recognised for their efforts in high micro-irrigation adoption and best practices in the water management sector.

Till date about 81 per cent more

AgroPolicy, India, People, Supply Chain, Sustainability, Vegetables

Intervention to give immediate relief to the farmers

National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd, (Nafed), on the direction of the Government of India, will initiate procurement of Kharif onion to address the issue of falling prices of onion in Gujarat. This move of Govt of India will provide stability to the onion market in the State.

Taking stock of the situation due to the depressed prices of Onion in the late Kharif season in the State, the Department of Consumer Affairs has directed NAFED to start procurement of Onion from three major markets in Gujarat. NAFED will start procurement of onion from Thursday in Bhavnagar (Mahua), Gondal and Porbandar. 

This intervention has been planned by Govt of India in order to give immediate relief to the farmers from crashing prices of onions in the State. Farmers are requested to bring their good quality and dried stock to the procurement centres to avail of better rates at these centres. Payments to the farmers will be done online.

More centres will be opened from time to time as required.

Intervention to give immediate relief to the

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, Environment, India, People, Sustainability

The main objectives of Sagar Parikrama are to disseminate information on various fisheries-related schemes and programs being implemented by the government

Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, starts the Sagar Parikrama Phase-III from Hazira Port, Gujarat, and proceeds towards the coastal line of Maharashtra at Satpati, Vasai, Versova, and Parikrama will end at Sasson Dock, Mumbai.

The main objectives of ‘Sagar Parikrama’ are to facilitate interaction with fishermen, coastal communities and stakeholders so as to disseminate information on various fisheries-related schemes and programs being implemented by the Government; demonstrate solidarity with all fisher folk, fish farmers and concerned stakeholder as a spirit of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, to promote responsible fisheries with focus on the sustainable balance between the utilisation of marine fisheries resources for food security of nation and livelihoods of coastal fisher communities and protection of marine ecosystems.

The journey of Sagar Parikrama focuses on the sustainable balance between the utilisation of marine fisheries resources for the food security of the nation and livelihoods of coastal fisher communities and the protection of marine ecosystems, to bridge the gaps of fisher communities, and their expectations, development of fishing villages, upgradation and creation of infrastructure such as fishing harbours & landing centres to ensure sustainable and responsible development through an ecosystem approach.

The Sagar Parikrama program is celebrated in all coastal States/UTs through a pre-decided sea route down right from Gujarat, Diu, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar, and Lakshadweep Islands to have interaction program with fishermen, fisher communities and stakeholders in these locations to know the problems of Coastal Fisher folk. A holistic approach has been adopted to improve the quality of life and economic well-being of fishers and fishermen in rural areas and create more livelihood opportunities.

The main objectives of Sagar Parikrama are

Agrotech, Company News, India, Sustainable Energy

 UPL and CleanMax Enviro Energy Solutions Pvt. Ltd. will set-up and operate a hybrid captive power plant with a capacity of 28.05 MW of solar power and 33 MW of wind power

UPL Ltd., a global provider of sustainable agricultural solutions, today announced a joint venture with CleanMax Enviro Energy Solutions (‘CleanMax’), a Mumbai-based renewable energy company, to establish a hybrid solar-wind energy power plant in Gujarat, India.

UPL and CleanMax will set-up and operate a hybrid captive power plant with a capacity of 28.05 MW of solar power and 33 MW of wind power. Combining two of the fastest growing renewable energy technologies, this project will enable UPL to increase its renewable energy usage to 30% of its total global power consumption (against 8 per cent currently). Due to their complementary nature, wind solar hybrid power plants are highly efficient, providing reliable and continuous power supply that helps to effectively manage power loads.

Jai Shroff, Global CEO of UPL, said: “At UPL, we are committed to Reimagining Sustainability internally as well as with our farming partners. Ensuring we have access to reliable, clean energy will help realize that vision as we significantly reduce our carbon footprint. We look forward to welcoming CleanMax to our OpenAg network through this partnership and are excited to be joining India’s green energy wave.”

Kuldeep Jain, Founder & Managing Director, CleanMax said, “This 61.05 MW captive wind solar hybrid project is a part of a larger wind solar hybrid farm developed by CleanMax in Gujarat. The overall capacity of the CleanMax wind solar hybrid farm stands at over 400 MW; comprising 230 MW wind and 180 MW solar; leading to carbon abatement of 8.75 Lakh tonnes of CO2 equivalent per annum.”

 UPL and CleanMax Enviro Energy Solutions Pvt.

India, Schemes - Govt

Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, recently inaugurated the sixth State Centre of Coconut Development Board at Junagadh in Gujarat. Tomar also inaugurated the 24th World Coconut Day celebrations. 

During his address, Tomar said that along with coconut cultivation, processing and marketing is also growing in our country and India is becoming a leading player in coconut exports. Through the board, the farmers cultivating coconut are getting benefits of the government’s schemes and along with increasing their income, they are also contributing to the country’s economy.

On the occasion of the World Coconut Day this year, Tomar congratulated the National Award and Export Excellence Award winners of Coconut Development Board and also addressed the farmers gathered in Kochi, Kerala through video conference.

Tomar elaborated that the central government is working continuously with the states to increase the cultivation and processing of coconut. The schemes are being implemented meticulously through the Coconut Development Board. He said that the cultivation of coconut is a very good farming practice and its growth will increase the benefits drawn by farmers and the country as a whole.

The function was organised by Junagadh Administration and Coconut Development Board wherein Dr. Vijayalakshmi Nadendla, joint secretary and board president, Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare delivered the welcome address.

Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister for Agriculture

Finance, Schemes - NABARD, Water

The Saurashtra-Narmada Avataran Irrigation Yojana or SAUNI Yojana has been launched to divert one million acre-feet of flood waters from Narmada to the Saurashtra region

Under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF), the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned Rs 3,245 crore for irrigation and rural drinking water supply projects in Gujarat for 2021-22.

“This is the highest allocation for loan assistance to projects in the state,” said a senior NABARD official. Compared to the Rs 2,989 crore sanctioned in 2020’21, the sanctioned amount under RIDF for 2021-22 was 8.5 per cent more.

The irrigation projects to receive sanction for 2021-22 are two packages of SAUNT Link 3 projects worth Rs 336 crore. The Saurashtra-Narmada Avataran Irrigation Yojana or SAUNI Yojana has been launched to divert one million acre-feet of flood waters from Narmada to the Saurashtra region.

The Link 3 of SAUNI will connect 28 reservoirs of Rajkot, Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Porbandar, Morbi and Surendranagar with a 66-kilometre water project.

The other irrigation projects to receive sanction include a Rs 194-crore lift irrigation project in the tribal district of Dahod, Rs 273 crore Panam reservoir based lift irrigation scheme, Rs 114 crore Panam high-level canal-based lift irrigation scheme and Rs 231 crore Vaghrech recharge project. These irrigation projects will increase the irrigation facilities by 75,112 hectares.

The Saurashtra-Narmada Avataran Irrigation Yojana or SAUNI

Agro Universities, R&D

The MoU was signed for leasing out 44.9 acre of ANGRAU to ICAR-DGR for the establishment of the Regional Research Station of ICAR-DGR at Ananthpur, Andhra Pradesh

The ICAR-Directorate of Groundnut Research (DGR), Junagadh, Gujarat signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the form of LEASE DEED with the Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh.

Dr CS Praharaj, Director, ICAR-DGR, Junagadh and Dr Yella Reddy, Comptroller of ANGRAU, Guntur signed the MoU on the behalf of their respective organisations in the presence of Dr A Vishnuvardhan Reddy, Vice-Chancellor, ANGRAU, Guntur.

Dr Girdhar Krishna, Registrar; Dr Yella Reddy, Comptroller and Dr (Smt) Neeraja T, Dean, Community Sciences represented the ANGRAU, Guntur side. Dr CS Praharaj, Director, ICAR-DGR; Dr Harish G, Nodal Officer, RRS, ICAR-DGR, RRS, Ananthapur; Dr Ajay BC, Incharge and Dr Rajanna GA, Scientist, RRS, ICAR-DGR, Ananthapur represented the ICAR-DGR.

The MoU was signed for leasing out 44.9 acre of ANGRAU to ICAR-DGR for the establishment of the Regional Research Station of ICAR-DGR at Ananthpur, Andhra Pradesh for 99 Years to conduct the groundnut related research and extension.

The MoU was signed for leasing out

Agro Universities, Bee keeping

The objective of this conclave is to create awareness about the production of other high-value beekeeping products

A National Conclave on Production of Bees Wax was organised by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), Gujarat in collaboration with the National Bee Board (NBB), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. The conclave was supported by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) & Tribal Co-Operative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED). The objective of this conclave is to create awareness about the production of other high-value beekeeping products viz. bee wax, bee pollen, royal jelly, propolis, bee venom, etc.

Dr Abhilaksh Likhi, Additional Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, said that beekeeping, besides pollination support, also provides extra income and creates employment opportunities for rural/ landless farmers and beekeepers. NDDB, NAFED & TRIFED have been identified as implementing agencies under NBHM for implementing beekeeping activities through a cluster-based approach by making Farmers Producer Organizations (FPOs) on beekeeping.

Abhijit Bhattacharjee, GM, NDDB informed that NDDB is always committed to bringing policies/ schemes beneficial to farmer/ milk producers with the aim to uplift the economy of rural farmer/ milk producers. NDDB has a wide approach that the economy of Indian farmers/ milk producers will only increase if farmers/ milk producers will utilise the resources present in their local area and do not import resources from outside.

Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB, Anand suggested that engaging beekeepers in multiple streams of income through diversified activities is important for building economic resilience. Scientific beekeeping is one such activity that can provide additional income not only from honey production but through the production of other beehive products. He informed that NDDB is promoting beekeeping by using dairy cooperative channels present in the country and creating FPOs by organising beekeepers with the support of NBB.

Dr Prabhat Kumar, Horticulture Commissioner, DA&FW advised beekeepers to work in the field of value-added products in beekeeping to get more financial benefits and uplift their economy.

Dr NK Patle, Executive Director, National Bee Board (NBB) has briefed about the central sector scheme entitled National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) and practices aspects relating to beekeeping. He invited beekeepers to avail the facilities available under NBHM and adopt beekeeping in a scientific manner to get additional income through honey & other beehive products. He assured full support to beekeepers across the country under the NBHM scheme.

Dr Balraj Singh, Project Coordinator, Honeybee and Pollinators (HB&P), IACR said that in India, beekeeping is mainly practised for the production of honey only and therefore there is a need to create awareness about the diversification of beekeeping for the production of various other beehive products.

Dipenkumar C Patel, Progressive Beekeeper & Director, One Bee Organic, Gujarat introduced the participants to different types of honey, various bee products, its collection methods and types of equipment/machinery used.

Jaswant Singh, Tiwana Bee Farm, Ludhiana, Punjab inform that their firm is involved in the production of all kinds of bee products and equipment/machinery. His firm is involved in the production of Comb Foundation Sheets (CHS) from bee wax.

Jai Prakash, Senior Manager, Indian Bank has informed that to address the issue of adulteration in honey & other beehive products, National Bee Board has launched online registration and developing a blockchain /traceability system of the source of honey and other bee products. He showcased the procedure of online registration on Madhukranti Portal and requested all beekeepers/ other stakeholders to come forward and register themselves on this portal.

The objective of this conclave is to

Agrotech, Pulses, Start ups, Sustainability, Trade

The fresh capital will be used to scale the traceable, sustainable, and profitable ecosystem of seed spices, oilseeds and pulses

Delhi-based agritech startup BharatRohan Airborne Innovations has raised seed funding investments in a round led by Upaya Social Ventures and Acumen Fund.

The fresh capital will be used to strengthen its foothold across Rajasthan and Gujarat and scale its traceable, sustainable, and profitable ecosystem of seed spices, oilseeds, and pulses across 2 lakh acres of area in the next 18 months. The investment will help build the capability to sell close to 7,000 metric tonne of seed spices like cumin, coriander, fenugreek, carom, and fennel to different institutional buyers.

The startup provides drone-based advisory services to nearly 6,000 farmers across 20,000 acres in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Out of which almost 20 per cent purchase agri-inputs from the company. This relationship enables the company to implement sustainable farming practices and to track every farm activity on the ground. Consequently, this ensures that the farm output meets the quality parameters of the buyers as BharatRohan also procures farm produce from the same farmers and supplies them to the major retail chains, FMCG players, masala makers and exporters based in India.

The fresh capital will be used to

Agro Universities, Biofuel industry, Sustainable Energy

The construction of the plant is easy and it is an all brick masonry structure

The Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has inked a pact with SP ECO FUEL, Anand, Gujarat, for commercialisation of Modified PAU fixed Dome Type Janta Model Biogas Plant having capacity from 25 m3/day to 500 m3/day technology.

Dr GS Mangat, Director of Research, PAU and SP ECO FUEL signed the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) on behalf of their organisations. As per the agreement, the university offers non-exclusive rights to the above-mentioned firm for making Modified PAU fixed Dome Type Janta Model Biogas Plant having capacity from 25 m3/day to 500 m3/day within India.

Dr Ashok Kumar, Dean, College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology and Director of Extension Education, PAU congratulated Dr Rajan Aggarwal, Head, Department of Renewable Energy Engineering for commercialization of this technology developed by Dr Sarbjit Singh Sooch, Principal Scientist, Department of Renewable Energy Engineering.

Dr Aggarwal said that animal waste (cattle dung, poultry droppings, etc.) can be digested anaerobically for the production of biogas as a fuel for thermal applications as well as for power generation.

Giving details about the technology, Dr Sooch explained that the construction of this type of plant is easy and it is an all brick masonry structure. This design is suitable for all regions of the country, he added. Informing that the life of this plant was around 25 years, he said its advantage was that the whole plant is underground.

Dr Usha Nara, Plant Breeder, TMIPRC, informed that PAU has signed a total of 276 MoAs. “This is the eighth MoA of Modified PAU fixed Dome Type Janta Model Biogas Plant,” she said.

The construction of the plant is easy

AgroPolicy

A pre-event summit has been organised by the Health & Family Welfare Department, Government of Gujarat, with a theme “Holistic Healthcare focused on Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices” on December 18, 2021

The Government of Gujarat is organising the 10th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2022, from January 10 -12, 2022, at Mahatma Mandir Convention and Exhibition Centre, Gandhinagar, Gujarat. A pre-event summit has been organised by the Health & Family Welfare Department, Government of Gujarat, with a theme “Holistic Healthcare focused on Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices” on December 18, 2021, in Pandit Deendayal Energy University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

The pre-event summit was inaugurated by Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare and Chemicals & Fertilisers and Bhupendra Patel, Chief Minister of Gujarat. S Aparna, IAS, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India, Dr Sarah Mcmullen, India Office Country Director, United States Food and Drug Control Administration (US FDA) and Dr V G Somani, Drugs Controller General of India were also present on the occasion.

The pre-event summit focused on the following:

  • Boosting Bulk Drug Production through Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme
  • Reducing India’s Dependence in Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) & Medical Devices
  • Jan Aushadhi Kendras – Generic Medicines

During the summit, Mansukh Mandaviya, inaugurated the stall of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) Through the PMBJP stall, PMBI informed the salient features of PMBJP and benefits of Jan Aushadhi Generic Medicines which are available at affordable prices through more than 8500 Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras, functioning across the country.

During this pre-event summit, technical sessions covered various aspects of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme and the opportunities to enhance bulk drug production.

A pre-event summit has been organised by