Atal Dulloo, additional chief secretary for the Agriculture Production Department (APD), said the government is also considering GI labelling for Kashmiri honey and is developing a proper plan for the same.

 

He remarked that Bee Keeping is a viable and attractive occupation in Jammu and Kashmir and a large number of youth are taking it.

 

The ACS made these comments while addressing a day-long Kissan Samellan on Bee Keeping Progressive Farmers here.

 

Addressing the gathering, Atal Dulloo maintained that this Samellan will provide a roadmap for future progression of Bee Keeping sector and the feedback from this Samellan will give better insights for the government to approach the sector as per the needs of beekeepers. The ACS said that Bee Keeping has very much potential and sustainability in J&K and it is emerging as one of the viable sectors having maximum chances of employability.

 

Atal Dulloo further highlighted that the Government will provide e-marketing platforms for the Bee Keepers to sell their products which will eventually give them hood returns. He also said that GI tag for Kashmiri honey is also under the consideration of the government and a suitable plan for the same is being worked out.

 

The ACS further said that the Organic Certification for honey is also under the thought of the government besides Disease Diagnostic labs as well as Mobile vans for testing as well as upkeeping of bee colonies will be established to provide best possible support for the community.

 

Atal Dulloo also highlighted that the plants which are most responsible for the production of honey will be protected under the National Honey Mission and the government will utilise all its efforts for the revival of SOLAI plant.

 

In his welcome address, Director Agriculture Kashmir said that this Samellan will provide a platform to interact with Kisans and listen their problems and concerns.

The 59th Foundation Day function of Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University, Jabalpur was organized online today. The Chief Guest, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar said on the occasion that if Madhya Pradesh has emerged amongst the leading states in the field of agriculture today, the role of Agricultural University, Krishi Vigyan Kendras and Indian Council of Agricultural Research lies at its strong foundation.

 

Shri Tomar said that the Jabalpur Agricultural University is known across the country as an Institute of Excellence and this is a matter of pride for the people of the state working in the agriculture sector. Ever since this university was established in the year 1964, it has made a great contribution in advancing and upgrading the agricultural sector in the state. Madhya Pradesh has repeatedly received the prestigious Krishi Karman Award in the field of agriculture, for which the state deserves commendation. Greeting all associated with the University on its Foundation Day, Shri Tomar said the inauguration of the Girls Hostel on this occasion is a new milestone in its glorious history.

 

Describing the relevance of Indian Agriculture, Shri Tomar said that even during the Covid crisis, when all other sectors had come to a standstill across the world, even then all farming activities including sowing and harvesting was done in our fields and with the bumper yield, the government set up more procurement centers and transportation was also increased and all this while strictly following the two yards distance norm of Covid protocol. Later, with the sowing of next summer crops, record production was achieved. The GDP rate of Agriculture sector remained very positive even in adverse situation, for which our farmers and agricultural scientists deserve congratulations. Shri Tomar said that the use of mechanization in agriculture should increase and more and more farmers should join the new 10,000 FPOs being set up, on which the Central Government is spending Rs 6,865 crore. Small farmers can take the advantage of mechanization, use technology, shift towards remunerative crops and use government facilities including processing, then they will definitely get better returns for their produce.

 

Shri Tomar said that in the era of climate change, our challenge has multiplied even more. The farmers have to depend on nature in spite of the availability of sufficient resources. In this regard, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has provided a shield to the farmers in the form of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. Claims worth Rs. 1.22 lakh crore have been settled against crop loss to farmers during the last 6 years. In view of the changing climate, research should be done in the direction of which methods the farmers should adopt, which processes and crops are tolerant to the climate and also sustain our production and productivity. He said that education plays an important role in the agriculture sector. An attempt has been made to integrate agricultural education in the new National Education Policy.

 

Madhya Pradesh Agriculture Minister Shri Kamal Patel and Assistant Director General (Seeds), Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Dr. D.K. Yadav were the Special Guests at the function. Dr. Pradeep Kumar Bisen, Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University presided over the function.

India displaced Vietnam as the top supplier of rice to China between January and August this year before the Narendra Modi government curbed rice exports from September 9. 

 

According to China’s General Administration of Customs (GAC), the Communist nation’s rice imports increased by 42.5 per cent during the January-August period this year to 4.56 million tonnes (mt) with the value declining by 11.5 per cent.

 

Used as feed

During the same period a year ago, Beijing imported 3.2 mt of rice, which was 1.5 times more than in 2020. Since 2020, China has increased its rice imports, particularly broken rice which is used for making noodles and as animal feed.  

 

Chinese media said rice was used as feed grain and hence its imports were higher. Lower global prices encouraged more purchases, they claimed quoting experts. 

 

However, trade analysts said the moot point was that Chinese rice imports had increased by 34.8 per cent in August and over 70 per cent in July. They said China probably upped its imports after it realised the impact of the 75-day heatwave that the Communist nation experienced since June.  

 

Heatwave impact

According to the Chinese Agriculture Ministry, the heatwave has affected the paddy crop in southern Chinese provinces such as Jiangsu and Anhui. So far, hardly 15 per cent of its 11.3 million hectares under autumn paddy has been harvested. 

 

Data from Agriculture and Processed Food Products Exports Development Authority (APEDA) showed China was the top importer of rice from India during the April-July period of the current fiscal, buying 1.07 mt.  The value of Chinese rice import was $1.90 billion.  

 

The GAC data showed that China imported 0.48 mt of rice in August and in July it almost touched 0.5 mt. Vietnam media reports said Hanoi had lost its status as the top rice exporter to China since the latter cut down imports of glutinous rice.  

 

Indian export curbs

However, the situation is set to change with the Indian government banning exports of non-basmati white rice and broken rice. Last year, broken rice made up over 90 per cent of the rice imports by China from India.

 

India curbed its rice exports to ensure that its people are not affected by the rise in the prices of the foodgrain, while the Centre is also looking to use the cereal in the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) scheme, under which people below the poverty line are supplied free foodgrains. 

 

On Wednesday, the Cabinet decided to extend the PMGKAY scheme, set to expire on September 30, to December 31. 

 

India’s export curbs will result in China cutting its rice imports in 2022-23 by 0.5 mt mainly due to the Indian ban on exports of broken rice, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has said. It also cut India’s exports to 20 mt, including Basmati, from its earlier estimate of 22 mt due to the curbs and higher domestic consumption.

The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) organised the ‘Kisan Sampark Yatra’ during September 27-29 in the rice growing region of Haryana and Punjab to obtain farmers’ feedback on the three newly released IARI Basmati varieties. The IARI had distributed 1 kg per acre seeds of the newly developed disease resistant Basmati rice to farmers during the Krishi Vigya Mela held at Pusa, New Delhi earlier this year for cultivation. Briefing the media today, Dr. AK Singh, Director, IARI said farmers were advised not to sell the produce of these seeds in the market, instead provide it to other farmers so that the new varieties could multiply and be grown in larger volumes.

 

Basmati rice is an export commodity with annual forex earning of Rs. 25,053 crores during 2021-22. Pusa Basmati rice varieties namely, Pusa Basmati 1121, Pusa Basmati 1509 and Pusa Basmati 6 occupy more than 90% of the area under Basmati rice cultivation in GI area of Basmati rice in India and account for more than 90% of the Basmati rice exports from India. Bacterial blight and blast are the most devastating diseases in Basmati rice which cause significant yield losses as well as affect the Basmati grain and cooking quality. Conventionally, these diseases are managed by use of chemicals like streptocyclin and tricyclazole. However, there has been concerns raised by the importing nations especially from the European Union of use of some chemicals in Basmati rice, and in some cases rejection of Basmati rice consignments from the importers. During recent years, European Union has reduced the MRL (residue limit) of tricyclazole (one of the most commonly used fungicide in managing neck blast disease) to 0.01ppm. Therefore, there was an urgent need to address this issue in order to maintain the leading position in the international trade of Basmati rice.

 

On the directions of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar tasked the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to address the concerns. IARI, New Delhi, a premier institute under the ICAR, pioneered the research to incorporate resistance to the two diseases through incorporation of genes governing resistance to bacterial blight and blast diseases in the genetic background of the three major varieties, Pusa Basmati 1121, Pusa Basmati 1509 and Pusa Basmati 6 through molecular marker assisted breeding. Through concerted research, ICAR-IARI developed improved version of these three Basmati rice varieties with inbuilt resistance to Bacterial blight and blast diseases with the aid of molecular marker assisted breeding resulting in development and release of Pusa Basmati 1847, Pusa Basmati 1885 and Pusa Basmati 1886 in 2021. The three improved Basmati rice varieties with resistance to both Bacterial blight and blast diseases, would pave the way for sustaining India’s leadership in Basmati rice exports across the world, said Dr. AK Singh.

 

A brief description of each of these varieties are presented below:

 

Pusa Basmati 1847 - an improved Bacterial blight and blast resistant version of popular Basmati rice variety, Pusa Basmati 1509:

 

Pusa Basmati 1847 is an improvement of popular Basmati rice variety, Pusa Basmati 1509 with inbuilt resistance to bacterial blight and blast disease developed through molecular marker assisted breeding. This variety possesses two genes each for bacterial blight resistance namely, xa13 and Xa21; and blast resistance namely, Pi54 and Pi2. It is an early maturing and semi-dwarf Basmati rice variety with average yield of 5.7 t/ ha. This variety was released for commercial cultivation in 2021. Pusa Basmati 1847 is highly resistant to blast disease (susceptibility index of 2.5) as compared to Pusa Basmati 1509, which is highly susceptible (susceptibility index of 7.0). It also exhibits highly resistant reaction against bacterial blight disease (susceptibility index of 3.0) as compared to Pusa Basmati 1509, which is highly susceptible (susceptibility index of 7.0).

 

Pusa Basmati 1885 - an improved Bacterial blight and blast resistant version of popular Basmati rice variety, Pusa Basmati 1121:

 

Pusa Basmati 1885 is an improved version of Pusa Basmati 1121 with inbuilt resistance to bacterial blight and blast diseases. This variety has been developed through molecular marker assisted breeding incorporation of two genes each for bacterial blight resistance namely, xa13 and Xa21; and blast resistance genes Pi2 and Pi54. It has semi-tall plant stature with extra-long slender grains and cooking quality similar to Pusa Basmati 1121. It is a medium duration Basmati rice variety with seed-to-seed maturity of 135 days with an average yield of 4.68 t/ha. Pusa Basmati 1885 is highly resistant to blast disease with a susceptibility index of 2.3 as compared to Pusa Basmati 1121, which is highly susceptible (susceptibility index of 7.3). It also exhibits highly resistant reaction against bacterial blight disease (susceptibility index of 3.3) as compared to Pusa Basmati 1121 which is highly susceptible.

 

Pusa Basmati 1886 - an improved Bacterial blight and blast resistant version of popular Basmati rice variety, Pusa Basmati 6:

 

Pusa Basmati 1886 is an improved version of popular Basmati rice variety, Pusa Basmati 6, possessing two genes for bacterial blight resistance xa13 and Xa21; and two genes for blast resistance, Pi54 and Pi2, developed through molecular marker assisted breeding. It has a seed-to-seed maturity of 145 days and average yield of 4.49 t/ ha. Pusa Basmati 1886 is highly resistant to blast disease (susceptibility index of 2.5) as compared with Pusa Basmati 6, which is highly susceptible (susceptibility index of 8.5). Further, it also exhibits very high resistance against bacterial blight (susceptibility index of 3.3) as compared to highly susceptible reaction exhibited by Pusa Basmati 6 (susceptibility index of 7.3).

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) in a notification no. 46/2022-Customs dated 31st August, 2022, has extended existing concessional import duties on specified edible oils up to March 31, 2023. The move is aimed at increasing domestic supply and keeping prices under control.

 

The concessional customs duty on edible oil import has been extended by another 6 months, which means that the new deadline will now be March 2023. Prices of edible oil have been on declining trend driven by fall in global prices. With falling global rates and lower import duties, retail prices of edible oils have fallen considerably in India.

 

The current duty structure on crude palm oil, RBD Palmolein, RBD palm oil, crude soybean oil, refined soybean oil, crude sunflower oil and refined sunflower oil remains unchanged till March 31, 2023. The import duty on crude varieties of palm oil, soyabean oil and sunflower oil is currently zero. However, after taking into account 5 per cent agricess and 10 per cent social welfare cess, the effective duty on crude varieties of these three edible oils touches 5.5 per cent.

 

The basic customs duty on refined varieties of palmolein and refined palm oil is 12.5 per cent, while social welfare cess is 10 per cent. So, the effective duty is 13.75 per cent.For refined soyabean and sunflower oil, the basic customs duty is 17.5 per cent and taking into account 10 per cent social welfare cess, the effective duty comes to 19.25 per cent.

To help Indian industry leverage Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with partner countries better and maximise use of the negotiated concessions, the Commerce and Industry Ministry is mulling a series of steps, including setting up an FTA export advisory panel and launching websites and social media platforms to provide online resources.

 

'While India has signed a number of promising FTAs recently, such as ones with the UAE and Australia, and is negotiating several others with developed partners like the UK, the EU, and Canada, the fact that the country’s utilisation rate of such pacts is low cannot be ignored and the government wants to focus more on it,' a person tracking the matter told businessline.

 

Based on various studies, India’s utilisation rate of its FTAs is pegged very low, between 5 per cent and 25 per cent, compared to many developed nations where it is as high as 70-80 per cent.

 

At a recent Board of Trade meeting, the Commerce Department highlighted various ways in which it plans to help industry leverage old and new FTAs better, the source said.

 

Advisory panel

One of the plans is to constitute an FTA export advisory panel, consisting of senior personnel from a range of industry groups, to promote the benefits of the FTA. 'Such an advisory panel can provide details of how particular sectors can go about exploring market opportunities in specific countries with which FTAs have been signed or are in the pipeline,' the source explained.

 

 

FTA websites and social media platforms as one-stop online resource sites is another avenue being explored. Such online platforms can also be used to get feedback from the industry on the proposed FTA, the source said.

 

India has signed a total of 13 FTAs, including three recently concluded FTAs, including the India-UAE FTA, the India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement and the India-Mauritius Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA).

 

The Commerce and Industry Ministry has set a goal of achieving $1 trillion in exports of goods by 2030, up from $422 billion in 2021-22, partly through judicious signing and use of FTAs with major trading partners.

 

India hopes to finalise FTAs with the UK, Canada, and the EU soon, while one with New Zealand is also in the pipeline.

The retail and wholesale prices of wheat and rice reported a decrease and prices of wheat atta remained stable during last week.

During last two years prices of wheat and rice has gone up more or less corresponding to the MSP increase during the relevant years. During 2021-22 the prices were comparatively on lower side because approximately 80 LMT of food grains were offloaded in the open market through OMSS to contain the prices.

 

Government of India is regularly monitoring the price scenario of essential commodities including wheat and rice and taking corrective measures, wherein required.

 

Because of the unprecedented geo-political situation, procurement remained bit on a lower side therefore, Govt of India had not intervened in the market through OMSS so far. However, Govt. of India is well aware of the prices scenario and monitoring it regularly on weekly basis. Govt. has taken proactive steps to avoid any further price rise and export regulations were imposed in case of wheat w.e.f 13.05.2022 and w.e.f 08.05.2022 in case of rice. Thereafter, there was a immediate containment in the prices of wheat and in case of rice.

 

 In order to contain the prices and to avoid any hardships to the vulnerable sections of the society, Govt of India has extended Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) for another three months (Phase VII) from Oct 2022 to Dec 2022 to ensure that poor and needy of the country do not face any hardship during the forthcoming festival season and to keep them immune from the adverse forces of the market.

 

Government of India has ensured that sufficient stock of food grains to meet the requirement of National Food Security Act (NFSA), other welfare schemes and additional requirements of PMGKAY are available in the central pool and prices remains under control.

India Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA), the apex body for India’s pulses trade and industry, recently hosted Tin Htut Oo, Union Minister, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation, Myanmar and the trade delegation from Myanmar, recently in Mumbai to discuss various opportunities, avenues and platforms wherein Myanmar and IPGA can collaborate and work together to address issues impacting the trade.

 

The productive meeting also focused on promoting trade relations, exchange ideas and research knowledge to improve sustainable business between India and Myanmar.

 

The trade delegation from Myanmar was led by Tin Htut Oo, Moe Kyaw Aung, Embassy of The Republic of the Union of Myanmar and had representation from Oversea Agro Trader Association, Myanmar Pulses, Beans, Maize and Sesame Seeds Merchants Association and India Myanmar Chamber of Commerce. Bimal Kothari, chairman, IPGA along with key management committee members felicitated the dignitaries.

 

In his opening remarks, Kothari said, 'It's a great delight to extend a hearty welcome to Tin Htut Oo, Moe Kyaw Aung and the high-level delegation from Myanmar. This visit provides a great opportunity to further cement the already strong bond that exists between India and Myanmar and boost trade, investment and research in the area of agriculture and value-added agribusiness.

 

I foresee opportunities for collaborative efforts in pulses production technology. Our team of farm scientists is arguably among the best in the world. India and Myanmar can undertake joint research to enhance production, productivity, and nutritional quality of pulses. Myanmar has been one of the most reliable and oldest partner as far as the pulses business is concerned. We have been importing pulses like pigeon peas, urad whole and mung beans from Myanmar since more than four decades.'

 

'Bilateral trade between the two countries has the potential to grow exponentially. To further foster the trade relationship between India and Myanmar and augment the volume of the same, we at IPGA would recommend that import and export between the two countries shall be conducted directly between the business entities located in India and Myanmar and the trade maybe denominated in Indian Rupees,' he added.

 

'Keeping in mind our similarities and for the sake of mutual and shared prosperity, we at IPGA also recommend that Myanmar is a potential location for investment in agriculture sector for Indian entrepreneurs for which the Government of Myanmar should incentivise the investments in Myanmar from India. For this, we will urge the Government of Myanmar to conduct a series of roadshows in the major Indian cities highlighting the opportunities in the agricultural sector in Myanmar. We at IPGA would be happy to assist the Government of Myanmar in this endeavour. To take the idea forward I recommend a joint group of IPGA and Agriculture Ministry of Myanmar may be set up which shall contribute pro-actively to further strengthen the relationship between the two countries,' he concluded.

 

Tin Htut Oo said, 'I would like to thank IPGA for this very warm welcome. This is a very important step for the future co-operation between our two countries. Memorandum of Understanding will help us to work even closer for food and agricultural development. We also need to look beyond our boundaries. Myanmar is investing further in the food and agriculture sector. We need to transform to adapt to the needs of the new generation. We have to create a conducive environment for the private sector to invest. On the Government to Government relation, we have to assure that there is a stable trade and agreements between the two countries so that the producers and the traders are assured of doing long term trading. We need to open up more investment opportunities for the development of the pulses industry. On the government side, we need to focus more on research and development. The MOU for the exchange of technology between the two agricultural ministries is a step in that direction.'

 

'Government and private sector partnership is required to achieve the larger objective of food security. We are pleased to be aligned with the vision and mission of IPGA. We should work together towards enhancing the pulses sector as it has a very big potential in the future,' he concluded.