Nitish Kumar protests BT-maize trial in Bihar without permission

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday complained to the Centre about a BT-maize trial by a multinational company at the Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI) campus in Samastipur district without obtaining permission of the state government.

In a letter to Union environment and forests minister Jairam Ramesh, Kumar said Monsanto India Ltd laid trial of BT-maize at IARI campus in Pusa on February 21 before receiving a go ahead letter from the Generic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), vide a letter dated February 24, and without seeking permission from the state government.

The state government was not apprised of the GEAC decision to allow Monsanto to undertake BT-maize, he said.

Copies of the letter issued to the company marked for the state officials did not reach them at all, he said and alleged that the trial was done in a surreptitious manner.

Kumar also urged Jairam to probe whether the isolation requirement and safeguard norms for BT-maize trail were properly adhered to, as the possibility of pollen travel to other maize fields could not be ruled out because the company followed an isolation distance of only 300 meters instead of one kilometre.

On the 'inadequate' safeguard measures, he said as Bihar was a major maize producing state, this 'risk' was not worth taking as it could have a considerable economic bearing on the state.

Kumar further alleged that the laid trial was done in an unscientific manner and without presence of any state agriculture department officials, raising question marks on the entire process.

He demanded that representatives of the state government be included in the GEAC.

The chief minister also questioned the 'advantages' of BT-maize saying that Bihar's average productivity of maize was more than the national average even without harnessing full potential of existing varieties of this cereal.

In the recent past, the farmers suffered losses by using private hybrid seeds which did not form in grains in an area of 61,000 hectares, the chief minister said.

But the private companies neither took responsibility for deficiency in the seeds nor compensated the farmers and the state government gave them a compensation of Rs10,000 per hectare causing a burden on the state exchequer, he said.

Kumar reminded Ramesh of an earlier letter in 2009 in which he wrote about the state government's reservation on introduction of BT-brinjal.

There are enough rules to check quality of GM seeds: Govt

The government today said it has adequate regulatory provisions to check the quality of genetically modified (GM) seeds such as Bt Cotton introduced by companies in the country.

“The government has adequate regulatory provisions under the Seed Act, 1966, Seed Rules, 1968 and Seed Control Order, 1983 to check the quality of seeds introduced by companies in India,” Minister of State for Agriculture Harish Rawat said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

The Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) looks into the bio-safety aspects of GM crops prior to environmental release, he said.

Besides, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) and Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) also have mandate to regulate the bio-safety of a GM products, he added.

For instance, the MoEF last year had put a moratorium on introduction of Bt brinjal in the country following protests from farmers and environmentalists, who said GM crops are harmful for health and could damage the eco-system.

Similarly, the Environment Ministry stopped the field trial of Bt maize recently, concerned over the impact of GM food crops.

Veg production estimated to rise by 6% in 2010-11

India's vegetables production is estimated to rise by 6 per cent in 2010-11 and recent high prices of onion were mainly on the back of lower and delayed arrivals in markets caused by initial damage to the crop due to unseasonal rain, Parliament was informed today.

Vegetable production in India is estimated to touch 141.3 million tonnes in 2010-11, against 133.5 million tonnes in 2009-10, Minister of State for Agriculture Arun Yadav said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

The minister said the recent high prices of kitchen staple onion were mainly due to lower and delayed arrivals in markets caused by initial damage to kharif crop on account of untimely rains during November and December, 2010 in some parts of major onion growing states Maharashtra. He said cultivation of all the major veggies including onion, tomato, peas, cabbage, beans and carrot, is estimated to see a rise in the current year vis-a-vis 2009-10. Onion, which had moved consumers to tears recently due to spike in prices to the level of Rs 70-85 a kg in retail, is expected to witness a rise by nearly 8 per cent in production in the current year as compared to last year.

The country is estimated to produce 13.1 million tonnes of onions in 2010-11, against 12.1 million tonnes last year, the minister said. Likewise, tomato crop is estimated to see 4 per cent growth in the current year, the minister added. India is likely to produce 12.9 million tonnes of tomato this year as compared to 12.4 million tonnes last year, he added. In reply to an another question, Yadav said post harvest losses due to transportation and due to godowns/warehouse/cold storage range from 0.1-0.2 and 0.2-0.6 per cent, respectively for selected cereals, Yadav said.

The same is 0.1-0.2 percentage for pulses and 0.4-3.1 and 0.3-2.2 percentage, respectively in selected vegetables, the minister said quoting a study carried out by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) from 2005 to 2007.

On mechanism to check prices of horticulture products, Yadav said the government has taken a number of short and medium term measures to keep their prices under control.

As short-term measures, Minimum Export Price (MEP) of onion was raised initially to $600 per tonne, which has now been brought down to $350 per tonne, he said, adding medium-term measures is to establish good post harvest management infrastructure in the country.

Centre consulting states for finalising National Dairy Plan

The Centre today said consultation with state governments is in progress for finalising the National Dairy Plan (NDP), which aims to achieve 180 million tonnes of milk production by 2021—22.

“Consulation with state government is in progress for finalisation of NDP-Phase 1,” the Minister of state for Agriculture and Food Processing Arun Yadav said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

The NDP phase-1, prepared by National Dairy Development Board, is a multi-state initiative to increase productivity of milch animals and thereby increase milk production to meet the growing demand, he said.

The minister said the government envisages increasing the share of organised sector in milk from the current 30 per cent to about 65 per cent of total marketable surplus of milk by year 2021-22.

The International Development Association (IDA) may provide grant-in-aid for implementation of NDP, he added.

India being the world’s largest milk producer is resorted to import of milk powder this year to meet the rising domestic demand and contain prices, which have increased 30 per cent in retail markets in the last one year.

India has inked 20 MoUs in the agriculture field in past 3 years

India has inked 20 MoUs in the field of agriculture with U.S., Russia, Italy and others in the last three years for cooperation in research and development and capacity building, Parliament was informed today. Besides fostering bilateral partnership, India also entered into agreement in the farm sector in multilateral format. Broad based and inclusive multilateral cooperation is pursued through international organisations such as Food & Agriculture Organisation (FAO), World Food Programme (WFP) etc, Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar said in a written reply to Lok Sabha. Pawar said most recently the country signed MoUs with Indonesia and Afghanistan in January and February 2011 respectively.

He said eight MoUs were signed in 2010 with Malawi, Botswana, Norway, USA, South Africa,Argentina, Austria and Tajikistan.

Rest 10 MoUs were inked in 2008 and 2009 with Russia, Canada,Italy, Spain, Brazil and Canada among others, he added.

Pawar said the areas for cooperation identified in these MOUs/agreements broadly include cooperation in research and development, capacity building, germ plasm exchange, post harvest management and plant protection.

About benefits likely to accrue to the agri sector from such agreements, the minister said besides enhancing productivity at farmers field by developing appropriate technology, such cooperation also facilitates creation of opportunities for trade in agricultural commodities.

Recommendations of Working Group on Agriculture

The Working Group on Agricultural Production, comprising Chief Ministers of Haryana (Chairperson), Punjab, West Bengal and Bihar has recommended a number of measures for increasing agricultural production and productivity. A summary of major recommendations of Working Group are as follows: - 1. Bridge the horizontal and vertical gaps in yield by ascertaining these through specific studies and address them through appropriate interventions like timely sowing, balanced use of fertilizers and soil ameliorants, improving water use efficiency etc. 2. Expansion of area under boro (winter) rice by increasing cropping intensity especially in the states of Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, and West Bengal. (Extending Green Revolution to Eastern India programme launched to address this) 3. Assam should also be included in the Extending Green Revolution to Eastern India programme. (Included) 4. As electric power is unlikely to be available to the extent required, it is necessary to assist farmers partly in meeting higher cost of diesel pumping sets for lifting water in eastern states. A scheme on the lines of Diesel Subsidy Scheme of Bihar should be launched in other States also. 5. Undertake an ambitious time bound programme of ground water use through bore-wells, shallow wells and lift irrigation schemes in eastern India. 6. Additional investments are required to maintain canals and to fund research on conjunctive use of brackish water with canal water. 7. Develop and upscale integrated farming systems including crops, horticulture, livestock etc. to generate both on-farm and off-farm employment for small and marginal farmers. 8. Include short duration summer mung-bean varieties under zero tillage in areas under irrigated cereal production systems of the country, and Reintroduce pulses in sugarcane production systems areas. In eastern India, relay cropping of zero till planting of winter legumes (lentil, chickpea etc) should be focussed in ‘rice-fallows’. 9. Promote production of hybrid seed aggressively and provide incentives to Private Sector. 10. Improve seed replacement rate of oilseed crops. Popularise Cyto-plasmic Male Sterility (CPM) based hybrids as they promise substantial productivity enhancement. Superior sunflower hybrids should be developed and promoted in northern India. In castor, special focus is required for the development of hybrids and varieties resistant to abiotic stresses such as drought and salinity. 11. State Seed Corporations should either be reformed/re-organized to make them vibrant organisations or should be closed to allow development of alternative mechanisms. 12. Fertiliser companies should produce right kind of mixtures of nutrients to suit the specific requirements of soils in all agro-climatic zones. Target to bring at least 10% area under bio-fertiliser application. Encourage use of liquid fertilisers. 13. There is need to create appropriate pesticide/ bio-pesticide quality control set up and to provide deterrent punishment for the sale of spurious pesticides. 14. New irrigation technologies like furrow irrigation, mulching, drip and sprinkler irrigation etc. need to be promoted as a national priority. Micro irrigation systems (i.e. drip and sprinkler) must be promoted as a matter of priority in both canal command and rainfed areas. In situ water conservation is the best solution for stability and sustainability of agriculture, and improving yields of crops in the rainfed areas. 15. Institutional development across States is a priority area for equitable flow of credit. Credit should be made available at not more than 4% per annum rate of interest. 16. Farm mechanisation is not only necessary for increasing productivity, but has become essential in view of emerging labour shortage and needs considerable support from Government. A Technology Mission on Farm Mechanisation should be started. 17. Encourage establishment of agri-business centres by Self Help Groups to purchase, maintain and provide farm machinery to farmers under custom hiring. 18. All types of tools, implements, machinery and equipment should be allowed to be freely imported without any import duty. 19. States may consider taking up segregation of feeders for dedicated availability of power to agriculture sector and making power available in un-served areas especially in eastern India. 20. Much needed emphasis to encourage use of solar, biomass and wind power in agriculture is required. It will be highly desirable to initiate a National programme on Harnessing Bio-energy in Agriculture. 21. A time bound programme to fill up existing vacancies in all KVKs and Extension Directorates should be prepared and implemented. 22. Train and Develop Technology Agents through vocational training at State Agricultural Universities for establishment of Agri-Clinics. 23. It is necessary to bring in private sector investments for developing marketing infrastructure to give better choices to farmers and for developing more efficient supply chain for better handling of agriculture produce. 24. System of Spot Electronic Trading, one of the biggest institutional reforms in agriculture marketing system, needs to be institutionalised. 25. Funds available under the Scheme ‘Gramin Bhandaran Yojana’ should be fully utilised to create a network of rural godowns in the country. 26. Methodology of calculating costs of cultivation of Commission for Agriculture Cost and Prices (CACP) must be reviewed in the context of need to provide economic and remunerative prices to the farmers. The Working Group supports acceptance of the National Commission on Farmers’ report suggesting 50% higher price over the actual cost of cultivation or adoption of Bureau of Industrial Cost and Prices (BICP) formula used for estimating industrial costs. 27. Minimum Support Price (MSP) for vegetables, especially Potato, Onion and Garlic, should also be fixed by GOI. 28. Market for agricultural produce must be immediately freed of all sorts of restrictions on movement, trading, stocking, finance, exports etc. No monopoly, including that of APMCs or corporate licensees, should be allowed. 29. Agriculture land ceiling for corporates could be fixed at 25 times the ceiling for individual farmers. 30. Proper policy should be put in place for land lease and contract farming. Guidelines need to be chalked out for contract farming/leasing, to ensure that the rights of both land owner and tenant are safeguarded. 31. Indian companies can be encouraged to buy lands in foreign countries for producing pulses and oilseeds under long term supply contracts to Indian canalising agencies. 32. A consolidation exercise should be taken up by the Planning Commission to convert existing CSSs into a few focussed schemes. 33. From the Twelfth Plan, it will be advisable to extend the NFSM to cover all the districts of wheat producing States. Crops such as maize and coarse cereals (sorghum and bajra) should be included in NFSM. 34. Entire statistical system needs to be revamped to cover all crops and to increase accuracy of data collection and elimination of higher or lower bias. 35. A national system of collecting and monitoring identified weather parameters should be developed and put in place using RKVY and other funds. Market information along with daily weather conditions should be provided to the farmers using modern ICT tools and techniques (SMS, Panchayat e-services, FM radio, AIR, TV etc.). 36. The States may consider setting up separate Universities of Veterinary and Animal Sciences. Union Government should also set up a Livestock Mission 37. Efforts to promote use of plastics in agricultural operations should be encouraged. 38. A coordination mechanism for Ministries of Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Public Distribution, Irrigation, Fertilisers and Power in the Central/State Government is urgently needed. A Scientific Advisory Council on Agriculture should be created under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister. 39. States may consider bringing all agriculture and allied sector related production programmes under the Agriculture Production Commissioner, for coordinating with other allied departments. 40. A comprehensive policy for insurance coverage of all important food crops and live stock needs to be put in place on priority and the same should be implemented with additional funding support from the Centre, with village as a unit instead of the Block. 41. Norms of Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) should be revised and the compensation for the loss of crops due to natural calamities like flood/drought/frost should be enhanced to at least Rs. 25,000 per hectare. 42. A massive effort for building modern silos to arrest post harvest losses of foodgrains is needed at the national level through both public and private sector interventions as a national priority. 43. In addition to use of location-specific technology, suitable policy initiatives in terms of insurance, preferential credit, strengthening infrastructure and extension services are also needed for climate proofing rainfed agriculture.

What’s in Budget 2011 for Farm sector?

• FM hints at inclusive growth, indicates double-digit growth in the near future

• Food inflation declined in the last year but remains a concern

• Rural economic growth helped India avoid the quagmire of a global meltdown

• FM acknowledges that the implementation gaps in the PDS is a big challenge

• GDP estimates grew at 8.6% in 2010; 9.6 % in services, 5.2 % in agriculture sector

• Exports grew 29 percent, imports by 17.6 percent

• Wholesale-retail price imbalance unacceptable. Need to improve the distribution system of food and agriculture

• FDI policy liberalisation being looked into

• 36.4% of total budget outlay to be allocated for social sector development

• Cold storage to be recognised as an infrastructure sector

• 150 lakh mT of storage capacity for food items being created under Rural Godown scheme

• Proposals for 15 more food parks during 2011-12

• Vegetable initiative to set in motion a virtual cycle of production and distribution. Allocation of Rs 300 crore for implementation of vegetable initiative to provide quality vegetable at competitive prices.

• Oilseed production to go up in 2010-11 as against 2009-10; 100,000 hectares added to oilseed farming

• National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture
Government to promote organic farming methods, combining modern technology with traditional farming practices.

• Outlay of Rs 500 crore to increase agriculture productivity

• Green revolution in eastern region to be given a fillip with additional allocation of Rs 400 cr to bolster paddy growth

• FM announces Women's Self-help Group Development Fund of Rs 500 crore

• India Micro-finance Equity Fund of Rs 100 crore proposed

• FM proposes removal of bottlenecks in supply of essential food items

• Capital infusion into PSU banks; Rs 20,000 crore proposed

• Slew of bills to make the financial sector more open in 2011-12

• FM allocates Rs 600 crore for various environmental schemes in 2011-12

• Rs 2 lakh crore from National Clean Energy Fund allocated for Green India Mission
• Food Security Bill to be introduced this year

• Fertiliser companies to get investment-linked tax deductions

• Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) has improved the availability of fertiliser; Govt. actively considering extension of the NBS regime to cover urea

• Allocation under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) increased from Rs 6,755 crore to Rs 7,860 crore.

• Allocation of Rs 300 crore to promote 60,000 pulses villages in rainfed areas

• Allocation of Rs 300 crore to bring 60,000 hectares under oil palm plantations. Initiative to yield about 3 lakh Metric tonnes of palm oil annually in five years.

• Allocation of Rs 300 crore to promote higher production of Bajra, Jowar, Ragi and other millets, which are highly nutritious and have several medicinal properties.

• National Mission for Protein Supplement
Allocation of Rs 300 crore to promote animal based protein production through livestock development, dairy farming, piggery, goat rearing and fisheries.

• Accelerated Fodder Development Programme
Allocation of Rs 300 crore for Accelerated Fodder Development Programme to benefit farmers in 25,000 villages.

• National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture
Government to promote organic farming methods, combining modern technology with traditional farming practices.

• Agriculture credit
1) Farm loan @ 4%
2) Agricultural credit to farmers to grow from Rs 3,75,000 cr to Rs 4,75,000 cr
3) Interest subvention proposed to be enhanced from 2 per cent to 3 per cent for
4) providing short-term crop loans to farmers who repay their crop loan on time.
5) In view of enhanced target for flow of agriculture credit, capital base of NABARD
6) to be strengthened by Rs 3,000 crore in phased manner.
7) Rs 10,000 crore to be contributed to NABARD’s Short-term Rural Credit fund for 2011-12.

• In view of recent episode of inflation, need for State Governments to review and enforce a reformed Agriculture Produce Marketing Act.

• National Food Security Bill (NFSB) to be introduced in the Parliament during the course of this year.

• Indirect Taxes exemptions
1) Scope of exemptions from Excise Duty enlarged to include equipments needed for storage and warehouse facilities on agricultural produce.
2) Basic Custom Duty reduced for specified agricultural machinery from 5 per cent to 2.5 per cent.
3) Basic Custom Duty reduced on micro-irrigation equipment from 7.5 per cent to 5 per cent.
4) De-oiled rice bran cake to be fully exempted from basic Custom Duty. Export Duty of 10 per cent to be levied on its export.