Agriculture - Current Affairs for September, 2015

India is the fourth largest producer of crop protection chemicals globally. The domestic crop protection industry's valuation stood at USD 2.3 billion in 2014 with the sector tipped to reach USD 4.2 billion by FY2018-19. Proliferation of non-genuine products amounting to Rs 3,475 crore per annum, 25 per cent of total domestic market, adds to problems of this sector. Report is part of FICCI's policy advocacy paper and highlights systemic failure in tackling the menace of spurious pesticides.

To deal with the huge stockpile of sugar in the country to prevent further price cashing and poor industry health, food ministry has established an MIEQ for manufacturers to export 40 lakh tonnes in the next sugar season in October 2015. UP millers will have to export 10 lakh tonnes and manufacturers in Maharashtra will have to export 13 lakh tonnes. This comes when India is recording surplus sugar production for the 6th consecutive year. Total domestic consumption is projected at 284 lakh tonnes. Exports from India continue to remain unviable and the industry will seek the government’s help.

Conventional method of rice cultivation uses 5000 litres of water for producing 1 kg of rice from which 2000 litres is lost due to seepage losses and flooding. New approach called aerobic rice cultivation involves growing crops in aerobic condition, where there is plenty of oxygen in the soil. Suitable areas for aerobic rice cultivation comprise irrigated lowlands where there is lack of rainfall to sustain rice production. TN, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Odisha, Karnataka and east UP are areas where this method of rice cultivation is practices. Water productivity is said to be higher in aerobic rice by 64-88 percent and utilises only 3500 litres of water to produce 1 kg of rice.

Organic cash crops are being cultivated via special programmes in numerous parts of the spice bowl of India, Kerala. The state government is aiming on increasing organic production of pepper and coffee(Wayanad); cardamom, tea and cocoa(Idukki); and vegetables and other products (Kasargod).

Exports of close to 10 agricultural products have seen negative growth in the month of July. This is because of the price contraction in the international commodity market. Items which recorded negative growth include cereals, oil meals, oil seeds, vegetables, marine products, fruits, dairy and poultry products.

Domestic cotton production in 2014-2015 was 354.75 lakh bales each weighing 170 kgs down from 359 lakh bales in 2013-2014. With weak monsoon and whitefly attack, an agricultural crisis is growing in two key cotton growing areas of the nation-Gujarat and Punjab currently as well as Haryana