Shri Pawar Lauds Contribution of Scientists in Success of Major Agricultural Programmes

ICAR Releases 104 Varieties, 11835 Tonne Breeder Seed, Opens 5 Kvks, Gets ISO Certification in 2013 

Agriculture and FPI Minister, Shri Sharad Pawar, recently lauded the contribution of agricultural scientists in the success of the recently launched programmes for fast growth in foodgrain production. Talking of the rise in foodgrain production achieved by the National Food Security Mission, the BGREI and Accelerated Pulse Production Programme, the Minister said, “I feel an important factor contributing to the success of these programmes is the active involvement of scientists and the officials of development agencies, right at the level of farmer’s field.” 

Shri Pawar was addressing scientists and policy makers at the 85th Annual General Meeting of the ICAR Society. 

Elaborating further, Shri Pawar said, “The efforts of scientists in developing high yielding, input efficient, disease tolerant varieties/hybrids alongwith their widespread adoption by the farmers are visible in increasing the farm productivity, quality and quantity. In the last 10 years, our foodgrain production increased from 198 million tonnes in 2004-05 to 259 million tonnes by 2011-12, at an average of about 6 million tonnes per annum. The two major staple cereals of the country, wheat and rice, registered an increase of nearly 50 million tonnes during this period. Overall it is important to note that the foodgrain production has continuously increased despite a virtual ceiling on cultivable area of 140±2 million hectares. Today, India is among leading rice exporters in the world. A single rice variety, Pusa Basmati 1121 has earned over Rs 18,000 crores through export last year. The active participation of ICAR in the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative (BGRI) enabled us to screen rust resistant wheat germplasm and develop high productivity wheat variety HD 2967 with resistance to yellow rust, leaf and black rust including Ug99. India’s export of agricultural and allied products has increased from Rs. 1,78,800 crore in 2011-12 to Rs. 2,01,000 crore in 2012-13, registering a growth of nearly 11%.” 

The Minister informed that in 2013, the ICAR released 104 new improved varieties/hybrids of different field and horticultural crops with potential for higher yields. These varieties also have enhanced tolerance/resistance to various forms of stress for cultivation in diverse agro-ecological regions of the country. India is amongst the leading exporters of Basmati rice and landmark varieties such as Pusa Punjab Basmati 1509 with moderate resistance to leaf blast and brown spot diseases and HD 3059, wheat variety resistant to all three rusts, including stem rust race Ug99 and its variants are helping the farmers for enhanced production. 


The Council produced over 11,835 tonnes of breeder seeds of major food crops. 

For the first time in India, a variety ‘Swarna Vaidehi‘ of makhana has been developed and released by ICAR Research Complex for Eastern Region, Patna. This variety has a production potential of 2.8–3.0 t/ha in farmers’ field, almost two fold higher than the productivity of traditional cultivars. 

On the new major research initiatives taken by ICAR with a novel approach, ie. the National Fund for Basic, Strategic and Frontier Application Research in Agriculture (NFBSFARA) and National Agricultural Innovation Project (NAIP), the Minister informed that the NFBSFARA awarded 25 new projects in the last year with a total budget of Rs 50 crore on subjects ranging from climate change to use of nanotechnology for agriculture and RNAi gene silencing technology. The NAIP research and development activities resulted in filing of 72 patent/intellectual property protection applications; commercialization of 82 technologies/products and piloting 51 new rural industries. A first of its kind, Agri-Tech Investors Meet was organized in that brought inventors into direct contact with industry and investors. The investors meet was able to successfully commercialize 58 technologies and earning resources for the Council. 

Among other initiatives and achievements of the agricultural research and education system in India, the Minister highlighted the National Initiative for Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA). ICAR has developed the crop contingency plans for more than 450 districts in the country which were effectively used during 2009 and 2012 droughts moderating the impacts as compared to droughts that struck the country earlier. In the year 2013, states of Uttarakhand, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were struck by natural calamities of differential, but severe intensities. The ICAR prepared doable and location-specific action plans of agriculture and allied sectors for rehabilitation and restoration of the affected areas through technological backstopping. 

Among the major achievements in animal research, the Minister mentioned of development of a crossbred pig and a dual purpose rural poultry variety, Srinidhi. Scientists produced world’s first mithun calf by embryo transfer, test tube yak calf ‘Norgyal’, calf from cloned buffalo mother, etc. Sea cage farming with seabass and cobia added a new dimension in fisheries towards enhanced utilization of coastal production potentials. 

On a need basis, five new KVKs, two in Jammu & Kashmir, and one each in West Bengal, Jharkhand and Arunachal Pradesh, have been approved, thus raising their number to 637 in the country. 

To promote agricultural education in deprived areas, ICAR has moved a bill for establishing a Central Agricultural University in Bundelkhand region. 

The Department of Agricultural Research and Education (ICAR) became one of the first departments in the Government of India to obtain IS/ISO 9001:2008 certification by implementing Quality Management System, the Minister informed. 


Source: Ministry of Agriculture

Major Boost for Zimbabwe’s Sustainable Agricultural Development & Food Security Efforts

FAO and DFID agree on a 4-year, $48 million project on climate-smart agriculture, training, market access and inclusive financing.

The United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) and FAO have agreed on a four-year initiative to support Zimbabwe's efforts to address the root causes of poverty and food insecurity, and build resilience against climate change.

The innovative new programme will enable poor vulnerable farming households to improve food security, nutrition and income while strengthening their long-term resilience.

DFID is providing a $48 million (GBP 30 million) package of funding for an FAO-managed programme to increase sustainability of agriculture, contribute to rural employment and improve nutrition - from childhood to maturity - in Zimbabwe.

The programme will reduce poverty in many parts of the country by increasing incomes of poor farming households through climate-smart farming practices that will raise agricultural productivity, along with initiatives that will improve farmer access to markets.

FAO will be responsible for the overall management of the programme, including coordination of activities, technical quality and reporting on results. The programme will seek to help nearly 300 000 people in selected districts.

What makes this arrangement unique is the type of collaboration with the resource partner, in which FAO manages a programme, sharing implementation with a great number of partners. The large amount of resources put at FAO’s disposal underlines the trust and confidence that DFID has in FAO’s ability to deliver,” said Daniel Gustafson, FAO Deputy Director-General for Operations.

More than 70 percent of Zimbabweans depend primarily on agriculture for their livelihoods, but they face a wide range of challenges, including low productivity; limited market integration; low soil fertility in some regions; the impact of climate change; limited irrigation systems; a lack of smallholder-oriented credit systems; and weak agricultural training and services.

The Livelihoods and Food Security Programme will focus on poverty reduction, but also on addressing specific constraints that smallholder farmers, particularly women, face in boosting agricultural productivity and gaining full access to market systems. It will aim, among other things, at:

• boosting short-term employment opportunities through safety-net programmes that will help women and men improve nutrition and invest in their farms;
• improving irrigation infrastructure;
• linking smallholder farmers with markets;
• providing enabling environments through policy support and encouraging public and private investments; and,
• increasing agricultural production and productivity of nutritious foods.

Making farmers resilient against climate change is one of the objectives of the programme. To strengthen food production mechanisms, it will focus on promoting appropriate climate-smart technologies and farming systems, such as greater crop diversity, improved storage, processing and preservation, crop rotations, conservation agriculture and irrigation. Resilient livestock production approaches will be promoted, covering improved feeding strategies, fodder crop production, animal husbandry and breeding practices.

Source: Food & Agriculture Organisation

National Crop Insurance Program being Implemented from Current Rabi Season

A new central sector scheme, ‘National Crop Insurance Programme’ (NCIP) has been introduced by merging Modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (MNAIS), Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (WBCIS) and Coconut Palm Insurance Scheme (CPIS) throughout the country from Rabi 2013-14.

Administrative Approval for implementing NCIP from Rabi 2013-14 has been issued on 1^st November, 2013.

NCIP has been introduced to provide financial support to the farmers for losses in their crop yield, to help in maintaining flow of agricultural credit, to encourage farmers to adopt progressive farming practices and higher technology in Agriculture and thereby, to help in maintaining production, employment & economic growth. Besides, farmers are also benefitted due to: -

·         coverage of indemnity for prevented sowing/planting risk and post harvest losses (due to cyclone in coastal areas),

·         higher level of indemnity and more proficient basis for calculation of threshold yield,

·         faster settlement of claims due to provision for making  50% advance of likely claims under MNAIS component for immediate relief to the farmers, etc.

·         To encourage the State Governments to implement the scheme at village/ village panchayat level, a provision to reimburse 50% of incremental expenses on Crop Cutting Experiments has been made in the scheme.

Unit area of insurance has been reduced to the village/village panchayat level in the restructured scheme of ‘National Crop Insurance Program’ (NCIP). 

Continued efforts are made to create awareness about crop insurance schemes by the implementing agencies in coordination with implementing states.   The salient activities under awareness campaign, involve the publicity of features & benefits of the scheme through advertisements in leading National/local News Papers, telecast through audio-visual media, distribution of pamphlets, participation in agriculture fairs / mela / gosti , organization of workshops/ trainings and SMS through Kisan Portal, etc.

Source: Ministry of Agriculture

Steps to Support Small & Marginal Farmers

As per Agriculture Census 2010-11, land holdings of less than two hectare, cultivated by small and marginal farmers (many of whom are below poverty line), constitute about 85% of total land holdings in India. Considering the importance of this segment in agriculture sector, due attention has been given to it in formulation and implementation of various schemes/programmes of the Government. Government is taking all possible steps for the welfare of the farming community and to make agriculture sector an attraction vocation. Plan outlay of Centre for Agriculture for XII Plan period has been substantially increased to Rs.1,34,746 crore as against Rs.61,527.90 crore during XI Plan period. The Department of Agriculture & Cooperation has budget provision of Rs.21,609 crore for the year 2013-14. During the year 2011-12 and 2012-13, the budget provisions were Rs.17,122 crore and Rs.20208 crore, respectively. 

Important schemes/programmes being implemented for the welfare of farmers, and particularly the small and marginal ones, are Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, National Food Security Mission, Integrated Scheme for Farmers’ Income Security (including covering risks through insurance cover), Price Support Scheme (PSS), Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), National Horticulture Mission, Funding of Farmer Producer’s Organisations, Self Help Groups of Small & Marginal Farmers for achieving benefits of economies of scale, Augmentation of Extension Services, Crop diversification etc. Small and marginal farmers are especially encouraged to form aggregates to avail the benefits of economies of scale in sourcing the inputs and for marketing their produce. Farmers are being provided inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, farm machinery and implements etc. at subsidized rates. Farmers are also provided Institutional Credit at concessional interest rate of 4% on farm loans provided they repay their loan in time. 

Government has approved, in principle, the restructuring of the schemes/programmes into five Missions, five Centrally Sponsored Schemes and one State plan Scheme for implementation from the year 2014-15 in order to have focused approach and to avoid overlap. 

Source: Ministry of Agriculture

Indian Pesticide Market to Reach INR 229,800 million by FY 2018

According to the report 'India Pesticides Industry Analysis to 2018,' Indian Pesticide market is projected to reach INR 229,800 million with a CAGR of 14.7% from FY 2014-FY 2018.

The Indian crop protection market is expected to witness a growth in its consumption owing to factors such as growing farmer awareness, farmers prosperity, inclining demand for organic food, increased focus on R&D, expansion of the contract farming and GDP growth.

According to the report, several factors including rising population, inflating agricultural commodity prices, favourable rain pattern, increased adoption of new technologies and growing farmer preference towards high-value and high-quality products and others are some of the factors expected to drive the industry's growth in the future.

Pesticides industry in India has been broadly segmented into six categories including insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, bio-pesticides, plant growth regulators and rodenticides. Of the aforementioned, insecticides commanded the highest share of around 45% in the overall pesticides market revenue. In spite of leading the market, the segment's market share has observed a steady decline over the last few years. Followed by the insecticides, the market share of herbicides was recorded to be the second highest. Herbicide is a swiftly growing sector in the overall pesticides market. Bio-pesticide was observed another important segment has an immense potential for growth in the years ahead primarily owing to government support and increasing awareness about use of non-toxic, environment friendly pesticides in the country.

The pesticides consumption in India has been unevenly spread across various regions. While the country's northern region forms majority of the pesticides consumption, the eastern and north eastern region constitute the lowest share. Some of the major pesticides consuming states in India include Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Haryana, West Bengal, Gujarat, Kerela and Tamil Nadu. 

Indian crop protection industry is capital intensive and highly regulated industry. The industry has been mainly composed of technical grade manufacturers and formulators. The technical grade producers usually sell premium quality chemicals in the bulk to the formulators, who then prepare formulations by mixing the carriers, solvents, surface active agents and other relevant compounds. 

Source: Agropages (http://news.agropages.com/News/NewsDetail---11037.htm)  

UN Joins Forces with Expo 2015 to End Hunger

22 UN agencies will bring the vision of a sustainable hunger-free world to Expo Milan

The United Nations and Expo 2015 signed an agreement recently confirming the UN’s major support for Expo 2015, during which global attention will zero in on the challenge to eradicate hunger and poverty and on producing enough nutritious food for a world population expected to top 9 billion people by 2050.

Expo 2015’s theme, “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life” is at the heart of the UN’s founding principles to combat hunger and poverty. Expo will run in Milan for six months from May until the end of October 2015.

The Expo theme touches upon food security and nutrition, sustainability, poverty reduction, development and cooperation, said  José Graziano da Silva, Director-General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Kanayo F. Nwanze, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and Claudia von Roehl, Director of the Government Partnership Division at the World Food Programme (WFP).

The UN system is closing ranks behind the call to bring the vision of a sustainable, hunger-free world to Expo Milano 2015, FAO, IFAD and WFP stressed.

Italy’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emma Bonino, said, “With Italy being the location of most of the agencies of the UN dedicated to food and nutrition, it goes without saying that for us, [this] active participation and engagement in Expo is considered by my government as one of the most important engagements we wanted to achieve.”

Bonino said, “Expo is not only the promotion of a theme. We would like to have an Expo which will not be remembered because of skyscrapers or architecture, but because of ideas, and because of projects, commitments and ideas that will follow up from this Expo.” 

Italy’s Commissioner for Expo 2015, Giuseppe Sala, said, “Of all the participants in Expo Milano 2015, the UN was the first international organization to show its support and is the first to sign a contract,” said Giuseppe Sala, Italy’s Commissioner for Expo 2015. “I am very proud of this outcome and to see here representatives of all three agencies – FAO, IFAD and WFP – that are responsible for food and nutrition at the global level, and which will guide UN participation in Expo Milano 2015,” he added.

“This synergy shows once again the global interest in the theme of the World Exposition. “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life” takes on a challenge that needs us united: assuring healthy, safe and sufficient food for everyone, with a view toward sustainable development.”

The work of the UN will be on display across Expo 2015, and its themes mirrored throughout the more than 110 hectares of pavilion space, rather than being one among hundreds of exhibitors.

Expo 2015 will allow the UN to spotlight its decades of knowledge and expertise with the aim of ramping up efforts to one day achieve the goal of healthy, sufficient food for every person on the globe.

Expo Milano is expected to draw some 20 million visitors to Italy in 2015. So far, 22 UN agencies have submitted proposals for exhibits, that will all centre on a common UN message. During the signing ceremony, an international competition was also launched for best practices in sustainable development, which will be on display at Expo.

Despite progress made toward achieving Millennium Development Goal #1 on halving the proportion of hunger and poverty, still some 842 million people worldwide are chronically undernourished.

The end of 2015 will mark the deadline for achieving the eight UN Millennium Development Goals . Yet hundreds of millions of people remain mired in hunger and poverty. Faced with the need to produce 60 percent more food for at least 2 billion more people in 2050, while coping with weather shocks and emergencies linked to climate change, the international community is expected to endorse a set of new goals to address sustainable development in the post-2015 era. 

Source: FAO (http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/206481/icode/) 

Shri Anwar Calls For Judicious Use of Technologies and Resources To Achieve Food Security

The Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing Industries, Shri Tariq Anwar recently said that use of better technologies can help us to achieve our primary goal of food security even if availability of land and water is kept constant. “We just need to use these resources more judiciously,” he emphasised. 

Shri Anwar was speaking at the inauguration of World Agriculture Congress at Hyderabad. The topic for this occasion is “Congress on Reshaping Agriculture for a Sustainable Future.” Inauguration of the Congress was attended by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Shri N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Minister for Agriculture, Andhra Pradesh, Shri K. Lakshmi Narayana, and Chairman of the WAF Advisory Board, Shri James Bolger. Scientists and businessmen also participated in the Congress. 

Stating that Bio-technology is expected to play a major role in improving productivity, the Minister said, “What is needed is Robust Regulatory System, which has scientifically established mechanism for evaluation of GM Crops so that all the issues raised on this matter can be put to rest. On this issue, he reiterated the request made by Hon’ble President wherein he had ex-horted the Scientific Community and ICAR to contribute to the public discourse and provide clarity on this sensitive issue.” 

Shri Anwar further said, "Contract farming and value addition of Indian food through food processing would play a major role in improving agricultural productivity as well as providing economic return for agricultural produce. Contract farming can provide the close hand holding regarding seed selection, seed treatment, soil testing, fertilizers, pest management and income support through procurement, which Government programme cannot possibly provide."

The Minister also said that Indian agriculture faces a number of serious challenges like shrinking land, depleting water resources & inefficient water use, adverse impact of climate change, ineffective management of energy resources, shortage of farm labour, poor and inefficient market infrastructure, lack of access to appropriate technology, increasing cost and uncertainties of domestic and international markets and the biggest challenge which the country would be facing in the coming years shall be how to ensure food security in face of constantly growing population. 

Underlining measures to tackle impact of climate change on Indian Agriculture, Minister said that steps are being taken to mitigate the impact of climate change. Among the various areas in which interventions are being planned include improved crop seeds, livestock and fish culture, water efficiency, pesticides management, nutrient management, agriculture insurance, market access and livelihood diversification. Shri Anwar further informed that Indian Council for Agriculture Research(ICAR) has initiated a network project “National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture”(NICRA) aiming at enhancing resilience of Indian Agriculture through Strategic Research, Technology Demonstration and Capacity Building. 

Source: Ministry of Agriculture