Agricultural sector will require an annual growth rate of 10.4% to achieve the target. But for the last few years, this rate has remained between 2.8% and 3.4% Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on February 28, 2016, had announced that by the time India celebrated its 75th Independence Day in 2022, its farmers’ income would have doubled. The Union Budget 2021-22 presented on February 1, 2021 was, in fact, the penultimate budget before this deadline. It was a great opportunity for the Union government to outline what it had been doing to achieve this target, or at least give an
Agriculture
Maharashtra’s farmers stand united with the farmers’ protesting on Delhi’s borders
IN what has become symbolic of the farmers’ struggle in Maharashtra, hundreds of them marched down Nashik’s winding Kasara Ghat on January 24 to mark their protest against the controversial farm Acts. It was a river of red that was similar to what was seen during the March 2018 Long March. On that occasion, close to 40,000 farmers wearing red caps and scarves and waving Communist Party of India (Marxist) red flags walked the 180 kilometres from Nashik to Mumbai to present the State government with a charter of demands, which would essentially ease their debt burden and improve the procurement system.As the nationwide struggle by farmers intensified, Maharashtra’s farming community, led by several farmers organisations, has been showing
Allahabad High Court halts the Uttar Pradesh government’s attempts to intimidate farmers
The Uttar Pradesh government’s latest attempts to intimidate farmers of western Uttar Pradesh have been temporarily halted by the intervention of the Allahabad High Court. In a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by the social activist and independent researcher Arundhati Dhuru, the Lucknow Bench of the High Court pulled up the State authorities and asked them to explain “under what circumstances” the sub divisional magistrates (SDMs) had issued notices to farmers with tractors and asked them to furnish “exorbitant amount of personal bond and two sureties”.During January 19-22 this year, thousands of farmers across various districts of Uttar Pradesh were served notices by the respective SDMs under Section 111 of the Criminal Procedural Code (CrPC), stating that they
Simply Put: Double trouble
Simply Put: Double trouble Source link
How India can be ‘atmanirbhar’ for edible oil production
In 2019, India imported around 15 million tons of edible oils worth approximately Rs 7,300 crore Edible oils are indispensable in the Indian kitchen. But it might be surprising to many that India imports most of the oil it consumes, unlike most other agricultural products which are produced locally. Even after having a diverse agro-climatic conditions, abundant land and large sections of population depending on agriculture, why does India have to import edible oils? What is the burden of importing edible oils on the government’s exchequer? What can we
A tale of two protests: farmers’ protest and Shaheen Bagh
India has experienced two successive winters of discontent, winters which on the one hand have given a glimmer of hope to the larger society and, on the other, exposed the strong-arm tactics of the government.In December 2019, India woke up to news of the gutsy women of Shaheen Bagh rising in a peaceful protest against the allegedly discriminatory Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). The protest started with merely half a dozen women on December 15 but soon drew greater numbers and then spread across the country. Throughout the winter, with the temperature dropping to 2 degree Celsius in some places, women chanted slogans against the new Act, sang songs of resistance, and stood up for the national anthem on December
Simply Put: Talks with barbs
Simply Put: Talks with barbs Source link
Farmers’ agitation: The setback and then the surge
The ongoing farmers’ agitation on the outskirts of Delhi and elsewhere against the three controversial farm laws—the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020—is now more than two months old and has withstood many challenges. But after the kisan parade of January 26 and the events of that day, the hostilities took a completely different turn.The farmer unions had jointly decided on a peaceful parade with tractors on Republic Day, and it was made clear that there was no intent to sabotage the Republic Day parade on Rajpath. In consultation with the Delhi Police, each protest site
New targets to protect biodiversity must include farmers and agriculture
Africa’s protected areas cover an area of 20.4 million km² or 15.1% of the landmass. But experts say this isn’t enough. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity is a treaty that aims to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of a country’s natural resources, or biological diversity. This is a general strategy that all countries must then adopt at the local level. The Convention – a legally-binding international treaty – is currently negotiating new targets for the next 30 years. Decisions are made by
Agricultural Adaptation to Climate Change in Africa: Food Security in a Changing Environment
Agricultural Adaptation to Climate Change in Africa: Food Security in a Changing Environment The purpose of this book is to document the effects of climate change on agriculture in Africa and to discuss strategies for adaptation to hotter weather and less predictable rainfall. Source link