Churpi is prepared from the milk of Arunachali yak, which is a unique yak breed found in West Kameng and Tawang districts of Arunachal Pradesh. Yak Churpi, a naturally fermented milk product made from yak milk, has been given recognition as a Geographical Indication (GI) of Arunachal Pradesh.

 

Dr Mihir Sarkar, Director, ICAR- National Research Centre on Yak said it is a major boost to the pastoral production systems and yak rearing in the country.

 

Churpi is an excellent source of proteins and is frequently used as a substitute for vegetables by tribal yak herders in the vegetation-starved cold and hilly mountainous regions of the state. It is also mixed in vegetable or meat curry and is eaten with rice as a staple food in tribal households. It is considered an integral part of the tangible cultural and tribal heritage of Arunachal Pradesh- says Sarkar.  

 

Arunachali yak breed is reared by tribal yak pastoralists known as Brokpas who migrate along with their yaks to higher reaches (at an altitude of 10,000 ft and higher) during summers and descent to mid-altitude mountainous regions during winters. Since the product is prepared at such a high altitude, it is also expected to provide benefits to the tribal herders against cold and hypoxia besides providing enriched nutrition, Dr Vijay Paul, Principal Scientist of NRC-Yak who was associated with the GI application process informed.

 

ICAR-National Research Centre on Yak, Dirang applied for registration of this unique yak product.  The institute is closely working with the Brokpas rearing Arunachali yaks and is helping them through research and extension support. The services rendered by the institute assume greater significance in the light of the fact that yak population throughout the country has been declining at a fast pace due to enormous hardships and dwindling gains associated with pastoral yak rearing. The registration of yak Churpi of Arunachal Pradesh as a GI is going to serve the cause of yak conservation and yak pastoralists’ socio-economic upliftment.

The next round of negotiations between India and South American nation Peru for a free trade agreement is scheduled to start on February 12, an official said.

The proposed agreement is aimed at promoting bilateral trade and investments between the two countries.

 

In such pacts, two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them, besides easing norms to promote trade in services.

'The sixth round of negotiations for a proposed trade agreement between India and the South American nation Peru is scheduled from February 12-15,' the official said.

Issues which are expected to figure in the negotiations include rules of origin, trade in goods, customs procedures and trade facilitation, technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures.

Negotiations for the agreement started in 2017 and the fifth round was concluded in August 2019. The negotiations were paused due to the coronavirus pandemic.

During 2022-23, the bilateral trade between India and Peru stood at USD 3.12 billion.

India exported goods worth USD 865.91 million to Peru and imported goods valued at USD 2.25 billion.

Key Indian exports to Peru include motor vehicles/cars, cotton yarn and pharmaceuticals, while imports items include gold, copper ores and concentrates.

Peruvian businesses are also looking to export agricultural products like avocados, fresh grapes and blueberries, and natural resources like calcium phosphates to India.

India witnesses a remarkable 24% surge in oilmeals exports during April-December 2023-24, with soyabean meal playing a pivotal role in the growth. Increased demand, especially from South Korea, Vietnam, and Thailand, showcases India's competitive position in the global oilmeals market.

 

Highlights

 

Surge in Oilmeals Exports: India experienced a significant surge in oilmeals exports, witnessing a growth of 24.16% during April-December 2023-24 compared to the corresponding period in 2022-23.

 

Contribution of Soyabean Meal: The export growth was primarily fueled by a 19% increase in Q1 of 2023-24, driven by the export of soyabean meal, amounting to 12.16 lt, with soyabean meal accounting for 3.64 lt during this period.

 

Q2 Export Increase: In Q2 of 2023-24, the export of oilmeals surged by 43%, attributed to a sharp increase in the export of soyabean and rapeseed meal. India exported 10.66 lt during this period, including 2.22 lt of soyabean meal and 7.23 lt of rapeseed meal.

 

Q3 Export Dynamics: Despite a 16% increase in Q3, the export of oilmeals slightly decreased from Q2 levels due to the ban on the export of de-oiled rice bran. India exported 12.20 lt during Q3 of 2023-24.

 

Factors Driving Demand: Improved price competitiveness and a shortage of Argentine export supplies have contributed to increased demand for Indian soyabean meal in the international market.

 

Export Breakdown by Type: India exported a total of 12.11 lt of soyabean meal and 18.24 lt of rapeseed meal during the first nine months of 2023-24.

 

Key Importers: Notable importers of Indian oilmeals include South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, and Bangladesh. South Korea imported 7.30 lt, Vietnam imported 3.61 lt, and Thailand imported 4.95 lt during April-December 2023-24.

 

Competitive Supplier of Rapeseed Meal: India is identified as the most competitive supplier of rapeseed meal to South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, and other Far-East countries.

 

Export Composition to South Korea: South Korea's imports included 5.13 lt of rapeseed meal, 1.83 lt of castorseed meal, and 32,946 tonnes of soyabean meal.

 

Export Composition to Vietnam: Vietnam's imports consisted of 90,540 tonnes of ricebran extraction, 2.19 lt of rapeseed meal, 50,506 tonnes of soyabean meal, and 905 tonnes of groundnut meal.

 

Export Composition to Thailand: Thailand's imports included 4.81 lt of rapeseed meal, 8,445 tonnes of soyabean meal, 4,666 tonnes of ricebran extraction, and 701 tonnes of castorseed meal.

 

Export Composition to Bangladesh: Bangladesh's imports comprised 27,771 tonnes of ricebran extractions, 3.14 lt of rapeseed meal, and 3.21 lt of soyabean meal.

 

Conclusion

 

India's robust 24% growth in oilmeals exports, driven by soyabean demand and competitive pricing, underscores its significance in the global market. Despite challenges like export bans, the nation's strategic role in catering to South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, and Bangladesh positions it as a key player. The positive trend reflects not only market resilience but also the ability to meet diverse international demands, emphasizing India's pivotal role in the global oilmeals trade.

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has initiated a mission to develop region-specific smart agro-technologies tailored for paddy cultivation in South India. This effort aims to not only improve soil health and crop productivity but also enhance the income of farmers. As part of this mission, advanced technologies like IoT-based sensors, drones, and Artificial Intelligence gadgets will be utilised to create a real-time precision database, paving the way for a future where automation plays a vital role in agriculture.

 

Crop Monitoring with IoT and Drones

The core of the mission revolves around the use of Internet of Things (IoT) based sensors and drone-based hyper and multi-spectral imaging. These technologies will generate real-time data on phenological and physiological indicators, influenced by the micro-environment of various crops. The mission focuses on understanding the diverse agro-climatic conditions across the country, ensuring the development of region-specific solutions.

 

Farming in Action

A collaborative effort by scientists and technologists from CSIR Fourth Paradigm Institute, Bengaluru, CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine Jammu, and CSIR-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute, Ludhiana, has identified paddy fields in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka for the mission. Real-time data on soil and crop health indicators will be collected using advanced technologies such as soil optix and multispectral imaging through UAVs, fostering precision farming practices.

 

Crop-Specific Agrotechnologies

The outcome of the project is expected to revolutionise crop-specific agro-technologies. Through optimisation of mineral nutrition, irrigation, real-time crop management, and agronomic practices, the mission seeks to enhance soil and plant health. The collected data will serve as a baseline for mapping soil health and creating high-definition nutrient and texture maps. Variable rate precise fertiliser application using UAVs and granular fertiliser applicators is envisioned, promising improved yields while minimising environmental impact.

 

The integration of multi-spectral imaging will enable the identification of stress, disease, and pest-infested areas, facilitating targeted interventions. Paddy growers will benefit from a comprehensive understanding of crop events, enabling timely and precise decision-making.

 

The government plans to handhold the industry to help them familiarise with adequate documentation that they need to maintain for the Remission of Duties or Taxes on Export Products (RoDTEP) scheme-related reimbursements, a senior government official said.

 

This is because last year, the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) had imposed countervailing or anti-subsidy duty against some products as retaliation against India’s export boosting scheme.

 

The RoDTEP scheme allows refunds of the embedded non-creditable central, state and local levies paid on inputs to exporters and is compliant with World Trade Organisation (WTO) norms. 

The Commerce Department, with the help of the Indian industry, is trying to precisely identify items where it can gain from tariff cuts by the ASEAN countries, as it prepares for the review of the ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) beginning next month. India hopes to bridge the growing trade imbalance against the country by gaining greater market access in various sectors.

 

'The Commerce Department has circulated to various industry bodies a country-wise list of tariff lines for all ten ASEAN countries on which either concessions given under the existing FTA are minimal or excluded. Based on feedback from the industry, the negotiating team will shortlist the items and firm up its negotiating position. It wants to be precise in its demand,' a source tracking the matter told businessline.

 

The ASEAN-India FTA, formally known as the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITGA), which was implemented fourteen years back in January 2010, resulted in disproportionate gains for the ASEAN industry.

 

Trade deficit

In 2022-23, India exported goods worth $44 billion to the region while its imports were valued at $87.57 billion. Trade deficit in 2022-23 was $43.75 billion compared to $7.5 billion during the implementation of the agreement.

 

India is hopeful that the long-pending review of the pact, to be initiated in New Delhi on February 18-19, will help in reducing some of the deficit with the ASEAN by addressing both tariff and non-tariff barriers.

 

'Under the AITGA, both sides agreed to progressively eliminate duties on about 75 per cent of goods and reduce tariffs on around 15 per cent of goods, but the tariff elimination commitment made by the ten ASEAN nations varied considerably. While an open economy like Singapore committed to almost 100 per cent elimination, countries like Indonesia and Vietnam offered much less,' the source said. 

 

The 10-member ASEAN, which includes Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.

 

Scope for tariff cuts

'There are various sectors where there is a scope for more tariff cuts in individual ASEAN, which include chemicals, metals and alloys, machinery, plastic & rubber, textiles, leather and gems & jewellery. The Indian industry has to go through the tariff list and point out exactly where they believe that they are competitive and can gain from tariff cuts,' the source said. 

 

While the government had started collecting inputs from the industry, on both tariffs and non-tariff barriers, from late last year, it is now attempting to help the industry get more focussed so that precise demands can be made.

Kerala is planning to implement a single-window system to expedite the usage of five per cent of the State’s plantation sector for other purposes, P Rajeeve, the Industries Minister, said.

 

The intention is to overcome the practical difficulties being faced in receiving official approval for non-plantation projects in the sector, he said after inaugurating the second edition of the Kerala Plantation Expo.

 

The government is convening a meeting of all the allied departments and the single-window system will come into existence from the next financial year (2024-25), he said and added that the government has also included plantation under a World Bank project for replanting the estates for their improved productivity.

 

Industries and Commerce Director S Harikishore, who is Special Officer, Plantation, said, the department has entrusted IIM-Kozhikode to study the issues facing the state’s plantation sector and prescribe solutions. “Based on that report, we will go for a comprehensive policy for the sector,' he said.

 

The expo seeks to catalyse the State’s measures toward the growth of its plantation sector by revealing its brand potential to tap the global and domestic demand for a whole range of products and services.

 

By Jeff Black Switzerland and India have reached consensus on a free-trade agreement after 16 years of negotiations, Swiss Economy Minister Guy Parmelin said.   

Parmelin traveled to India directly after the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to meet with counterpart Piyush Goyal, according to a post by the Swiss minister on the platform X, formerly Twitter, late Saturday. The outline of a deal was agreed, and officials are working to finalize the details, he said. 

 

The agreement 'will create jobs for the young population of India, and secure employment in Switzerland,' Parmelin said in an interview with the Swiss newspaper Sonntagszeitung. 

Farmers’ share in consumer prices has seen an increase for some perishables such as onions, potatoes and green chillies since 2018. This might reflect a rise in farm-level storage structures and market level cold storage capacity and transport facilities, especially for onions and potatoes, according to the RBI’s latest bulletin.

 

The total horticulture production in the year 2022-23 is estimated to be 2.32% higher over the previous year on account of higher output of fruits and vegetables, according to the Third Advance Estimate of 2022-23 released by the ministry of agriculture.

 

While the production of vegetables is estimated to be 213.88 million tonnes in the year 2022-23, over 209.14 million tonnes of last year due to an increase in potato and tomato output, the data for onions has not been included.

 

Sowing of rabi (winter) onions has fallen up to 20% in some main producing regions in Maharashtra and Karnataka till the first week of January due to erratic rainfall pattern and lower reservoir levels which have hampered irrigation activities.

 

Potato production is expected to be 60.22 million tonnes, while the production in the year 2021-22 was 56.18 million tonnes.

 

Tomato production is expected to be 20.37 million tonnes in the year 2022-23 as against 20.69 million tonnes in the year 2021-22.

 

The production of fruits is estimated to increase from 107.51 million tonnes in the year 2021-22 to 109.53 million tonnes in the year 2022-23.

 

The total horticulture production in the year 2022-23 is estimated to be 355.25 million tonnes, which is approximately 8.07 million tonnes more as compared to the year 2021-22, the statement issued by the ministry said.

 

The area under horticulture crops is estimated to increase marginally to 28.34 million hectares over last year’s 28.04 million hectares.