Harish Damodaran
Articles By Harish Damodaran
Global opportunity: Shipping out trouble
India’s sugar exports are set to hit a record high this year, providing some respite to the beleaguered industry.
Agriculture trade: It’s only sugar ‘n’ spice for India’s farm shipments now
Barring these two, exports of most commodities have taken a hit from global headwinds this year
Bottoming out: A recovery, finally?
Prices of most farm produce are looking up. That, together with the country’s best monsoon in 25 years, holds out some hope for the economy.
Edible oil body advises against import of Malaysian palm oil
As per Commerce Ministry data, India’s vegetable oil imports were valued at Rs 69,023.79 cr in 2018-19 and Rs 27,972.27 cr during April-August 2019.
Will 1,646 fodder camps for 11 lakh cattle count in Maharashtra polls?
Out of the 1,646 fodder camps, the maximum were opened in Beed (549, with 3.49 lakh animals), Ahmednagar (507 and 3.34 lakh), Solapur (248 and 1.75 lakh) and Osmanabad (92 and 0.85 lakh) districts.
Why farmers don’t like direct cash transfers
The main reason for rejecting the DCT (as opposed to DBT) option was the belief that paying market price for fertilisers upfront would result in additional financial burden.
Explained: Why dairy is RCEP sticking point
It is the industry that is lobbying the hardest to keep its products out of the free trade agreement currently under negotiation among16 countries to India’s east and north. Why is this so?
Farm income support: States steal Centre’s PM-Kisan thunder
Andhra Pradesh government’s YSR Rythu Bharosa, being implemented from October 15, is the latest to join the bandwagon of farm income support schemes launched by states over and above the Centre's PM-Kisan scheme.
How agri MNCs are pushing their products
These companies are proactively engaging the Indian farmer more than government departments.
Hot proposition: Not every farmer can grow this
Chilli prices are good this time, but the crop is still a risky gamble.
Govt must not sacrifice rise in farm incomes at altar of short-term consumer interest
The costs of government shortsightedness aren’t small. India, in 2018-19, exported 21.83 lakh tonnes (lt) of onions, which was a tenth of its production and valued at Rs 3,467.36 crore.
An unequal burden
Farmers are paying about Rs 15,000 crore GST annually, on which they cannot claim input tax credit.
New blockbuster wheat from IARI
Called HD-3226 or Pusa Yashasvi, the new variety has recorded a weighted average yield of 57.5 quintals per hectare in coordinated trials at 56 locations over three years of testing (2015-16 to 2017-18).
Artificial insemination: Technology hits cost barrier
Govt’s push notwithstanding, farmers will not pay for sex-sorted semen unless they see value for money
Not a single Uttar Pradesh farmer has got PM-Kisan 3rd tranche, Finance Ministry concerned
Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Telangana are the top three states, having disbursed the third instalment to almost 16.35 lakh, 13.99 lakh and 11.03 lakh farmers, respectively.
First time in 30 years, why NAFED faces challenge
NAFED has been tasked with purchasing all the apples that growers bring to sell at mandis in the Valley. A bumper crop, for which there would hardly be any private buyers with all the current movement restrictions, makes it all the more challenging.
Top agricultural scientists body rejects zero budget natural farming
This comes even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing the 14th Conference of Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification on Monday, mentioned that “we are focusing on ZBNF”.
A straw that is worth clutching at
Boosting farm incomes is the best way to combat the Indian economy’s woes today.
Explained: In ethanol, government’s sugar solution
Government has hiked ethanol procurement price for blending with petrol, allowed conversion of old sugar into ethanol. How is the move expected to address problems of overproduction and unpaid dues?
RBI’s presses print more notes than in pre-demonetisation period
In other words, despite the Modi government’s emphasis on digital payments and a less-cash economy, the official printing presses are churning out more currency notes than before, both in volume and value terms.