Nothwithstanding the controversy last year over private procurement of wheat, domestic and multinational companies are getting set for another round of large-scale purchases this rabi season.
Riding high on the hopes of a normal monsoon, the agriculture ministry aims to increase foodgrain production by 6.35 million tonnes to a record 298.3 million tonnes in the 2020-21 crop year. The foodgrain output in the 2019-20 crop year (July-June) is estimated at an all-time high 291.95 million tonnes, as per the second advance estimates released by the ministry in February.
Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan sought to shift the blame on states saying they are equally responsible for keeping the prices of essential commodities under control
Analysts said the demand recovery in two-wheeler and car segments was skewed towards the semi-urban and rural markets.
From the dusty lanes of Mirati, life took the scholar politician to the imposing Rashtrapati Bhavan through a warren of powerful offices he held, but the village stuck, the bond only grew stronger.
The Centre had lowered its estimate of crop damage.
The reforms will help FPOs procure directly from farmers, something that they have been pressing for long.
The government on Wednesday raised the minimum support price (MSP) of paddy marginally by Rs 72 per quintal to Rs 1,940 per quintal for the 2021-22 crop year, while the rates of pulses, oilseeds and cereals were hiked substantially. Among the commercial crops, the MSP of cotton was increased by Rs 211 per quintal to Rs 5,726 for medium staple variety, and by Rs 200 per quintal to Rs 6,025 for long-staple variety of cotton for the 2021-22 crop year (July-June). The decision taken by the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will help farmers take a call on which kharif (summer) crop to grow as sowing picks with the spread of the Southwest monsoon in the coming weeks.
A meeting convened by Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday afternoon will see the leaders of around 20 opposition parties come together on a common platform through video-conferencing.
The most serious recommendations to change the financial year came in the years preceded by deficient rainfall. The Jha committee was formed after droughts in 1979-80 and 1982-83, reports Rishika Pardikar/IndiaSpend.
Many banks are contemplating to set up additional counters for withdrawal to meet the rush
The possibility of harassment by cops and fear of the unknown have forced a large number of truck drivers to abandon vehicles at the transport centres and flee home. Transport of goods remains badly hit as confusion remains among various stakeholders and road transport becomes the victim of disconnect between policy makers and local authorities.
The Naveen Patnaik-led party bagged 112 of the 146 assembly seats despite the Modi wave in the country.
One lakh copies of the three agri laws were burnt at the Singhu border alone, said Paramjeet Singh of Samyukta Kisan Morcha.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Ramaswamy Parthasarathy, who arrested Chidambaram in the INX Media case last year, has been conferred with the President's Police Medal for Distinguished Service.
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India is expected to harvest bumper crop this year based on estimates of higher food grains production in Kharif (summer sown) and hopes of better Rabi (winter) crop with enough water in reservoirs, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday decided to leave the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 4 per cent but maintained an accommodative stance, implying rate cuts in the future if need arises to support the economy hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Vaccine manufacturer Serum Institute of India on Friday said Rabivax, the country's first Human Diploid Cell rabies vaccine launched by the company recently, would trigger the company's market share in this segment to about 30 per cent from the curre
Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com lists 11 Modi flagship schemes that may have been gamechangers in the Lok Sabha election.
Chana is majorly imported from Australia and Tanzania and it attracts an import duty of 60 per cent. A section of the traders is demanding a reduction in import duty to around 35-40 per cent to tide over any shortage of the commodity as the new crop will start hitting the market only around mid-February.
According to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research Director General Trilochan Mohapatra, the insects have attacked about 40,000 hectares of land.
On reforms in pipeline, she said the government is for universal right to minimum wages and wants to remove regional disparity through a national floor wage.
The study showed that 50 per cent of households have reduced the number of meals ever since the lockdown was imposed
'For the last two months, the menace of stray dogs has gone to scary proportions in Kerala' 'What will you do if you cannot walk on the road without fear?'
According to the ministry's statement, Tomar thanked the BKU (Kisan) leaders for coming out in support of the Farm Acts and said these laws have been welcomed in various states across the country.
As India holds its breath for the Covid vaccination to be begin, Sudhir Bisht provides a quick checklist of what you must know about the vaccines that will be administered to citizens.
In its Fifth Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Statement, 2017-18, RBI said the second quarter growth was lower than the one that was projected in the October review, and the recent increase in oil prices may have a negative impact on margins of firms and Gross Value Added (GVA) growth.
These five stocks, which have lagged the markets over the last two years, have doubled in value since March 23.
While consumers feel that petrol pinches directly, diesel hurts indirectly, as it is an input in almost all the goods and services we use.
The RBI expects non-food credit growth to pick up marginally to 15 per cent in 2013-14 from 14 per cent achieved in the previous fiscal and deposit mobilisation to be flat at 14 per cent.
It is likely the government will divide the country into different zones during the proposed extended period of lockdown and might permit a few services to function in safe zones.
In the last 15 days, the rates have gone through the roof and the key vegetable is being sold at Rs 80-100 per kg by local vegetable vendors depending on the quality and locality.
After unseasonal rains, supply disruptions and pandemic-induced woes pushed retail inflation well over the Reserve Bank's comfort zone in 2020, the scenario is likely to stay that way at least in the short term as economic recovery slowly gains foothold. For most part of this year, pricier food items pushed the retail inflation, based on Consumer Price Index (CPI), higher in the range of 6.58-7.61 per cent, except for March when the reading was 5.91 per cent. Experts believe retail inflation is likely to average around 6.3 per cent this fiscal and mostly will remain sticky going forward owing to pick-up in demand across sectors.
Last month, the agriculture ministry had projected 10 per cent fall in kharif foodgrains production at 117.18 million tonnes in view of poor rains and drought in more than 360 taluks in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
An Empowered Group of Ministers on drought headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Wednesday approved Rs 1,207-crore relief package to Maharashtra. "Rs 1,207 crore drought relief package has been approved for Maharashtra," Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, who is also a member of the EGoM, told PTI after the meeting of the minister.
Rajan had overturned the majority opinion of the members and chose to hold the rates at the last monetary policy review in October.
The fear of price rise gained momentum after reports surfaced that the NAFED procured 50,000 tonnes of onion this season.
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