'Those who call for war from far-off places should realise the repercussions it has on the people who are actually affected.'
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday attributed early arrival of the southwest monsoon and heavy rainfall in a short span for the inundation of low-lying areas in Mumbai, which disrupted road and railway traffic.
A local official confirmed the incidents but said the causes of these suicides were yet to be ascertained.
There has not been a large impact of untimely rain and hailstorm so far in several major wheat-growing areas, and those might have damaged around 3 per cent of the standing crop -- not enough to make a big dent in the expected 112 million tonnes of production in FY24, a senior government official said on Tuesday. Relentless rain pounded most North Indian states all through March. Separately, the chairman of Food Corporation of India (FCI), Ashok K Meena, told reporters the agency was on track to achieve the targeted 34 million tonnes of procurement in FY24 on the back of a strong start to the purchase season from Madhya Pradesh.
After a steady surge, prices of pulses, except those of urad and masoor to some extent, are showing signs of stabilising amid a revival of monsoon rains over major growing areas of Maharashtra and Karnataka, and on expectations of a rise in imports. Chana prices, which too had moved up in recent months, have dropped by almost 3 per cent since the end of August due to increased liquidation of government stocks, official data shows. Monsoon rains seem to have benefitted the standing soybean crop as well.
There are challenges galore before him, and it is not going to be easy. In the next four years, he has to conjure a system that changes the optics about him and the BJP both nationally and internationally so that he can ride back on his own, claim the top slot, and not have to lean on a coalition, asserts Ramesh Menon as Modi 3.0 completes a year in power.
A Madhya Pradesh farmer has claimed that he lost his crop because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposed rally in the state on February 18.
A 15-member SKM delegation met with Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar at Krishi Bhawan in the afternoon and submitted a demand charter, farmer leader Darshan Pal said.
Scenario is precarious for urad with almost half the crop damaged in major growing states, tur quota of 400,000 tonnes already exhausted.
Almost 30% or a third of the agriculture ministry's budget, is spent on premium for the PMFBY every year
The accused, a non-tribal man, was operating a tractor on the woman's agricultural land, causing damage to crops, to which she protested.
Power supply was yet to be restored in around 50,000 households in cyclone-hit areas in Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Balasore districts, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has said.
The unprecedented rainfall and floods in Andhra Pradesh over the past three days affected about 450,000 people leading to the evacuation of more than 30,000 to relief camps.
At least 16 people lost their lives in various rain-related incidents in Telangana while the unprecedented rainfall and floods in Andhra Pradesh over the past three days affected about 4.5 lakh people leading to the evacuation of more than 30,000 to relief camps.
The Delhi High Court has reserved its order on a plea by jailed MP Rashid Engineer, facing trial in a terror funding case, seeking custody parole to attend the ongoing Parliament session. Engineer, a Baramulla MP, was opposed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) who argued that he has no vested right to attend Parliament and there were security concerns. The court said though there might not be a vested right to attend the session, it could exercise its discretion. The NIA also argued that Rashid misused the telephone facility in Tihar jail and that allowing him to attend the session would be a security risk.
Cyclone 'Biparjoy' has an extensive damaging potential and it is likely to impact Kutch, Devbhoomi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts of Gujarat the most, the India meteorological department said on Tuesday.
The landfall process of the severe cyclonic storm Dana was complete on Friday morning and the system took at least eight and half hours to enter the landmass, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
The worst-hit districts include Kendrapara, Balasore and Bhadrak, while the human casualty 'still stands at zero,' he told reporters in Bhubaneswar.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the repo rate cut in the February meeting of the monetary policy committee (MPC) was due to inflation aligning with the target and recognising the fact that monetary policy is forward-looking.
Unprecedented rains and floods in the northern region in the past few days have not only caused extensive damage to lives and property but have also impacted business and commercial establishments. Vegetable prices have gone through the roof in the national capital and many other parts of the country since rains started pouring earlier this month. Traders say vegetable prices would come down only after roads open and skies clear, even as water in the fields will take time to recede.
After making landfall near Puducherry on November 30, Cyclone Fengal weakened on Sunday, but torrential downpour under its influence paralysed the union territory, with the Army stepping in to evacuate stranded persons in inundated streets.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that her state would sever all ties with the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) for 'unilaterally releasing water', which led to floods in south Bengal districts.
The tea sector may see a crop loss of 50 per cent (around Rs150 crore) while the damages owing to landslides washing away a 100-acre plantation in Wayanad are yet to be accounted for.
Santosh Patkar of Devgadh Taluka Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra is a worried man these days. Devgadh, which is known as the home to world famous Alphonso variety of mangoes, has seen an unusual drop in yields which is affecting farmers' income. Being one of the primary agricultural produce from the area, Santosh is not untouched by this somewhat rare phenomenon. He said in his own mango garden, yields have come down by a third from most trees.
Indian farmers depend on June-September monsoon rains, as half of the country's farmland lacks irrigation facilities.
In a significant move to control spiralling onion prices ahead of the festive season, the government will transport 1,600 tonnes of buffer stock via railways from Maharashtra to Delhi - the first such initiative using rail transport for the kitchen staple. The special rake, dubbed 'Kanda Express', will depart from Maharashtra's Lasalgaon Railway Station and reach Delhi's Kishanganj Railway Station on October 20, Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare announced on Thursday. The government expects this bulk movement to help stabilise prices in the Delhi-NCR region, where buffer stock onions are currently being sold at a subsidised rate of Rs 35 per kg.
Farmers on Saturday evening ended their three-day 'rail roko' stir that hit the movement of trains, causing inconvenience to passengers in Punjab and Haryana.
The locusts initially entered Rajasthan from Pakistan and from there the swarms moved towards Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Punjab over the last few weeks and are now threatening to enter Uttar Pradesh, putting at risk the summer crop.
A civic volunteer, identified as Chandan Das (31), died on the spot when he allegedly touched a live wire in Bud Bud in Purba Bardhaman district. The incident happened when he was out with a police team, they said.
Farmers in Nashik district, Maharashtra - a major producer of onion - have started harvesting the premature crop to cash in on the high prices in mandis. Good-quality onion was quoted at Rs 93.50 a kg on the higher side. However, the poorest-quality onion was selling at Rs 25.50 a kg on Wednesday as against Rs 20 a kg on Tuesday. Thus, the model price of onion works out to Rs 70-75 a kg in Lasalgaon, translating into Rs 100-125 a kg in the retail markets of the country.
The flood situation in Assam remained grim on Thursday even though flood waters started have receding in many parts of the state, officials said.
While conditions have improved over the last decade in western UP, there are still unfulfilled needs.
The power infrastructure and the farm sector have also suffered a considerable damage, Chief Secretary A K Tripathy said. However officials said the telecom infrastructure is largely intact.
The rains were being caused due to a cyclonic circulation lying over north east Arabian sea and adjoining Saurashtra and Kutch regions, the IMD said in its bulletin.
Tourism is badly affected. Entire apple orchards have been washed away. 2 million people are threatened with loss of livelihood.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who rushed to the district late on Sunday night, assured the people of all help from the administration.
Tomato prices in the delhi markets surged to Rs 90 per kg as supplies have taken a hit due to monsoon rains lashing many states across the country, several vegetable vendors said on Tuesday. The rates of tomatoes have also gone up in the major wholesale vegetable markets of Delhi, including Azadpur Mandi, Ghazipur Mandi, and Okhla Sabzi Mandi. Several residents in the city expressed disappointment over the rising prices of tomatoes in their local markets and online retailing platforms.
Erratic climate damages crop, could lead to 40% drop in yield from major growing regions
A group of farmers demanding relief for crop damage allegedly held 12 government officials hostage for several hours inside a sub-tehsil office in Muktsar district's Lambi, Punjab.
When the landslide hit, Sruthi's house was washed away, along with its inhabitants. She lost her entire family and some relatives. All she had left for a close confidante was her fiance Jenson. Days after the landslide and the loss of her family, Jenson died in a road accident that also left Sruthi with serious injuries. News of the accident and Sruthi's backdrop as the lone surviving member of a family wiped out in the July landslide, was picked up by the media, and people rushed to help.
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