Impacting Farmers’ lives through Science Biotech-Kisan & Cattle Genomics

[Hindustani78]

The Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Smt. Krishna Raj calling on the Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh, in New Delhi on January 23, 2018.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
25-January, 2018 14:00 IST
Status of Cane Price Arrears

Despite higher production and lower sugar prices in the current season as compared to previous sugar season, the cane price arrears are relatively lower than the previous season as a consequence of various measures taken by the Government of India and efforts of the State Governments. As on date, cane price arrears in current season on SAP basis is at Rs 7826 Crore in comparison to Rs.8982 Crore during the corresponding period of last sugar season. Even the cane price arrears for sugar season 2016-17 have been reduced to only Rs.52 Crores (on FRP basis) and Rs.1076 Crores (on SAP basis) against cane dues payable of Rs. 57,608 Crore. Thus, about 99.9% of cane dues (on FRP basis) in respect of sugar season 2016-17 have been cleared. Even in respect of 2015-16 sugar season, only Rs. 122 Crores (on FRP basis) and Rs. 710 Crore (on SAP basis) are pending and payments for earlier year arrears are in process.

2. The crushing of sugar cane during the current season is in full swing and the mills will be able to liquidate their cane dues by the sale of sugar and their by-products in coming days.

*****

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
30-January, 2018 16:08 IST
Shri Radha Mohan Singh Launches the Rapid Detection Kits for Adulterants in Fresh Fish

Rapid Detection Kits for Adulterants in Fresh Fish developed by Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT), Kochi

Rapid Detection Kits to help in protecting the Consumers’ health from the chemical used for fish Preservation: Shri Singh

Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh today launched the Rapid Detection Kits for Adulterants in Fresh Fish, developed by Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT), Kochi. Ammonia helps in preventing ice from melting and use of formaldehyde increases the shelf life of fish therefore many people in the fisheries sector are using these chemicals. The kit helps in detecting both the chemicals in the fish. Shri Singh informed that continuous ingestion of ammonia and formaldehyde can lead to many health issues including abdominal pain, vomiting, unconsciousness, and sometimes even cause death. Union Agriculture Minister said it today at the launch of kit in New Delhi.

Shri Singh said that fish consumption is beneficial for health. Since fresh fish is highly perishable in nature, so fish don’t have a long shelf life. India’s domestic fish market is reported to be selling formaldehyde-adulterated fish, especially in markets located far away from landing centres or production sites. According to Indian and International regulations, the fresh fish and shellfish should be preserved only by means of ice and use of substances other than ice to maintain quality is a fraudulent practice

Union Agriculture Minister said that continuous monitoring of these contaminants in a laboratory is time-consuming and requires expertise but some people use toxic chemicals in the form of contaminated substances. Today's consumer is conscious about the food quality and safety issues and they need rapid, sensitive, and portable screening methods. Taking these aspects into consideration, ICAR-CIFT has developed two rapid detection kits for checking adulteration of fresh fish with formaldehyde and ammonia. The kits are handy and consist of simple paper strips, reagent solution, and standard chart for comparing results. Formaldehyde is potential cancer-inducing chemical, which is a major health concern, therefore, its use needs to be curbed. For handling, processing, storage, transportation, and display for sale of fish and fish products only cold chain should be used.

SS
****
The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Radha Mohan Singh launching the Rapid Detection Kits for Adulterants in Fresh Fish, in New Delhi on January 30, 2018. The Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and other dignitaries are also seen.

 

[Hindustani78]

CMFRI Director A. Gopalakrishnan explaining cage fish farming to fishermen with the help of a model of a cage.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities...age-fish-farming-launched/article22581269.ece

5,000 fishers to be offered training as part of the initiative

The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has launched a project to boost open-sea cage farming as part of efforts to trigger a Blue Revolution in the context of stagnating catch. The project envisages acceleration of cage fish production by providing effective training to 5,000 fishermen across the country with a financial assistance of nearly ₹1 crore from the National Fisheries Development Board under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.

CMFRI has launched the first phase of the project to train fishermen in all maritime States. Accordingly, a three-day training programme began at CMFRI on Monday. As many as 50 fishermen from Ernakulam and Thrissur districts who have registered with the Kerala Fishermen’s Welfare Fund Board are attending the programme. As part of the project, CMFRI will offer training to 1,000 fishermen in the State, said a statement from the institute.

CMFRI Director A. Gopalakrishnan said that cage fish farming technology had proved 70 times more productive than the normal methods of fish farming. “Conventional pond culture of marine fish produces an average 0.5 kg per cubic metre or 5,000 kg per hectare, whereas cage farming offers a production of 35 kg per cubic metre,” he said.

Fisheries Deputy Director S. Mahesh, who inaugurated the training programme, said that the Fisheries Department had formulated plans to extend cage fish farming to the Kerala sea waters with the support of CMFRI.

Four cage farming units with 10 cages per unit have been identified at an estimated cost of ₹82 lakh. According to the plan, the State government will provide ₹75 lakh to the units, while ₹7 lakh will be raised by beneficiary groups formed by fishermen, he added.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
01-February, 2018 16:36 IST
Salient features of Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Budget 2018-19

The budget of 2018 clearly reflects the commitment of the government towards agriculture and farmers welfare as well as Prime Minister’s pledge to double farmers income by 2022. The budgetary allocation of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ministry was Rs. 51,576 crore for the year 2017-18 which has been increased to Rs. 58,080 crore for this year. It is worth noting that if we compare budgetary allocation during Congress regime from the year 2009 to 2014 which was Rs. 1,21,082 crore has been increased to Rs. 2,11,694 crore for the 5 years of the Modi Government that is 2014-19. This is an increase of 74.5%.

The 5 year comparative sectoral budgetary allocation is as follows:

Sector
Budgetary Allocation (in crore)
Increase in %
2009-14
2014-19

Crop Insurance
6,182
33,162
436%

Micro Irrigation
3193
12711
298%

Soil Health Management
162
1,573
871%

Agricultural Mechanization
254
2408
846%

Sub-Mission on Agricultural Extension
3163
4046
28%

Agricultural Marketing
2666
6150
131%

Rain fed Area Development
189
1322
700%

Dairy Development
8114
10725
32%

Blue Revolution
1772
2913
64%

Agricultural Education, Research and Extension
12252
13748
12%

Apart from budgetary allocation:

• Micro irrigation fund Rs. 5,000 crore.

• Dairy Processing and Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF) Rs. 10,881 crore.
• Agri Market Infrastructure Fund – Rs. 2,000 crore.

Fishery & Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund + Total Rs. 10,000 crore
Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund

On one hand, our government is working towards increasing production and productivity of various agricultural crops, on the other hand, the government is focusing efforts to ensure that the farmers get right value of their produce. Under the guidance of Hon’ble Prime Minister, two important announcements have been made to achieve this.

1. Minimum Support Price (MSP) for various agricultural crops will be 1.5 times more than the input cost. With this decision, Modi Government has fulfilled the most important promise made in its manifesto.

1. Our government has reiterated time and again that we merely don’t want to declare MSP but also want to ensure that farmers receive the benefit of MSP. Modi Government has made unprecedented progress in the procurement of pulses, oilseeds and crops in the last 4 years.

Going further in this direction, budget also declares that NITI Aayog will develop a mechanism in coordination with Centre and State Governments to ensure that farmers get the MSP for their produce.

1. Government also proposes to make an institutional mechanism for export and import policy in the long run. We propose to achieve an ambitious export target of US $100 billion by the year 2022-23. For this, modern testing facilities would be set up in all mega food parks.

1. The budget also proposes an institutional mechanism for price and demand forecasting. With this, farmers will be able to take timely decisions about which crop and in how much quantity it would be profitable.

This Budget embarks to bring new reforms in agriculture markets with the objective to provide right value of the yields to the farmers. In this budget, an announcement of Rs. 2000 crore for Agri Market Development Fund has been made which shows the importance of retail market in the sector of agriculture marketing. These markets have been called as GRAM (Gramin Retail Agriculture Market). Through these markets infrastructure of 22,000 Rural Haats and 585 AMC markets will be developed.

Tomatoes, Onions, Potatoes are consumed throughout the year in the entire country. During the last 70 years, farmers and consumers have incurred loses. For the first time, a new initiative titled “Operation Green” has been taken so that farmers can get right price and products are also available to the consumers at suitable prices. For this purpose, a provision of Rs. 500 crore has been made.

To get high growth rate in agriculture sector, capital investment needs to be increased. By continuing the reforms made in the last 2 budgetary years, a provision of Rs. 10,000 crore has been made in this budget for Fisheries and Aquacultures Infrastructure Development Fund and Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund. Through this, State Governments, Cooperatives and individual investors will get loans at cheap rates for fisheries and animal husbandry infrastructure. This will help to speeden the pace of construction of fish landing centres, cold storages, ice plants, transport facilities, processing units and hatcheries etc.

Providing timely loan to the farmers is also very important. For this, agriculture credit which was Rs. 10 lakh crores during last year has been increased to Rs. 11 lakh crore this year.

This credit will also be made available to those farmers who are engaged with in animal husbandry and fisheries.

With a view to increase agriculture and non-agricultural activities, this budget proposes to reinvigorate National Bamboo Mission with a fund of Rs. 1290 crore. This will not only help in the establishment of small industries but will create new employments opportunities.

All FPOs which include farmer producer companies also have been exempted from income tax in the budget. Small and Marginal Farmers FPOs/FPCs will be benefitted through this initiative. On the other hand, the problem of small holdings and partition will also be addressed.

A declaration of Model Land Licence Cultivator Act has also been made in this budget through which farmers doing farming on rent and sharing basis will also get the benefit of institutional loan arrangements. For this, NITI AYOG will take necessary action with the help of state governments.

In our country, resilient farming climate region for medicinal and aromatic plants farming is also done. A decision to promote such farming has been made in this budget. This will help not only the farmers but also promote small and marginal industries. A provision of Rs. 200 crore has been made in the budget for this purpose.

Declaration of Organic Farming has also been made in this budget at a large scale. For successful implementation of this, cluster based farming will be promoted and will be linked with the markets. North East and hilly states will get benefit of this scheme.

For district wise horticultural crop, cluster based farming will be promoted. For this purpose, coordination between Food Processing Ministry and Commerce Ministry will be done.

Special scheme to support management of crop residue to tackle pollution in Delhi NCR region will be brought.

***

Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
01-February, 2018 17:54 IST
Shri Ram Vilas Paswan congratulated Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley for presenting an inclusive and historic budget

Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Shri Ram Vilas Paswan said that Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley has presented an inclusive and historic budget under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. Shri Paswan said that budget 2018-19 is targeted for empowerment of farmers, youth, women and all categories of society. The life standard of common people will definitely improve with this budget.

Shri Paswan said that the production of food grains has reached the record level. More than 300 Million Tons of fruit and 275 Million Tons of food grains have been produced during the year 2017-18. Our government has made continuous efforts for the welfare of farmers. These efforts have been continued in this budget. The income of farmers will increase with the provisions made in this budget for providing minimum support price 1½ times of the cost.

He further stated that the Government has committed for construction 51 lakh new houses, electricity connection to 4 crore poor people, construction of 2 crore toilets, free gas connection to 8 crore poor women. It will benefit the poorest persons of society, which will contribute in the development and create opportunities of employment.

The scheme for medical reimbursement for providing rupees 5 lakh per family to 10 crore families is the largest health scheme of the world, is a welcoming step indeed.

Adequate provisions have been made for infrastructure i.e. roads and electricity, extension of railways, improvement of education and creation of jobs. In the field of IT, 5 lakh wi-fi hotspot for the benefit of 5 crore rural people will prove to be a revolutionary step.

Shri Paswan said that the government has made no changes in the rates of food grains to be distributed under the Food Security scheme. The poor people are getting wheat @ Rs. 2/-, rice @ Rs. 3 and coarse grains @ Rs. 1/-. Transparency has been brought by the use of IT in the Public Distribution System. Seeding of ration cards with Aadhaar has been made to ensure that the food grains should reach the right beneficiary. Shri Paswan said that the scheme for providing food grains to 84 crore people has been successfully implemented throughout the country under the able leadership of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. Shri Paswan assured that the prices of essential commodities will not be allowed to increase in any condition.

Paswan further stated that the overall, this budget is beneficial for farmers, women and poor, especially for persons belonging to Scheduled Tribe. I again congratulate Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley for presenting a historic budget under the guidance of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

*****

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Finance
01-February, 2018 13:45 IST
Doubling farmers’ Income: government keeps MSP of all hitherto unannounced Kharif crops at least at one and half times of production cost

Finance minister announces raising institutional credit for agriculture sector to Rs.11 Lakh crore for 2018-19 from Rs.10 Lakh Crore in 2017-18

Rs. 500 Crore ‘operation greens’ announced to address price volatility of perishable commodities like potato, tomato and onion and benefit both producers and consumers

Rs.200 Crore allocated to support organized cultivation of highly specialized medicinal and aromatic plants and associated industry

22,000 rural Haats to be developed and upgraded into Gramin agricultural markets (grams) for farmers to directly sell to consumers and bulk purchasers

Rs.2000 Crore fund to be set up for developing and upgrading agricultural marketing infrastructure in the 22000 grams and 585 APMCS

Doubling allocation for food processing sector to Rs.1400 Crore, government to promote establishment of specialized agro-processing financial institutions

Facility of Kisan credit cards extended to fisheries and animal husbandry farmers to help them meet their working capital needs; Rs.10,000 Crore funds announced cumulatively for infrastructure development in the two sectors

Rs.1290 Crore re-structured national bamboo mission announced to promote bamboo sector in a holistic manner

Special scheme to be implemented to support haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and the Delhi to address air pollution and to subsidize machinery required for in-situ management of crop residue

The Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Shri Arun Jaitley, while announcing the General Budget 2018-19 in Parliament today said that Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi gave a clarion call to double farmers’ income by 2022 when India celebrates its 75th year of Independence. “Our emphasis is on generating higher incomes for farmers. We consider agriculture as an enterprise and want to help farmers produce more from the same land parcel at lesser cost and simultaneously realize higher prices for their produce”, the Minister added while announcing a slew of new initiatives for the farm sector in Budget 2018-19.

Shri Jaitley was pleased to announce that the Government has decided to keep Minimum Support Price (MSP) for all hitherto unannounced crops of Kharif at least at one and half times of their production cost. “This historic decision would prove an important step towards doubling the income of our farmers and NITI Ayog in consultation with Central and State Governments will put in place a fool proof mechanism so that farmers will get adequate price for their produce”, the Minister said.

As a primary measure, the Government announced raising institutional credit for agriculture sector to Rs.11 lakh crore for the year 2018-19 from Rs.10 lakh crore in 2017-18. Taking Government’s vision ahead, the Finance Minister, in Budget 2018-19, announced the launching of ‘Operation Greens’ to address price volatility of perishable commodities like potatoes, tomatoes and onions, at an outlay of Rs. 500 crore. ‘Operation Greens’, on the lines of ‘Operation Flood’, shall promote Farmer Producers Organizations (FPOs), agri-logistics, processing facilities and professional management in the sector. Also, Shri Jaitley announced 100% deduction in respect of profits to Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs), having turnover up to Rs. 100 crore, for a period of 5 years from FY 2018-19, in order to encourage professionalism in post harvest value addition in agriculture.

Further, Shri Jaitley informed that the Government has promoted organic farming in a big way. Organic farming by Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and Village Producers’ Organizations (VPOs) in large clusters, preferably of 1000 hectares each, will be encouraged. Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) will also be encouraged to take up organic agriculture in clusters under National Rural Livelihood Programme. Also, a sum of Rs.200 crore have been allocated to support organized cultivation of highly specialized medicinal and aromatic plants and aid small and cottage industries that manufacture perfumes, essential oils and other associated products, the Minister added.

Announcing the development and upgradation of existing 22,000 rural haats into Gramin Agricultural Markets (GrAMs), the Finance Minister said that more than 86% of farmers in India are small and marginal who are not always in a position to directly transact at APMCs and other wholesale markets. In these GrAMs, physical infrastructure will be strengthened using MGNREGA and other Government Schemes and would be electronically linked to e-NAM and exempted from regulations of APMCs. This would provide farmers facility to make direct sale to consumers and bulk purchasers, the Minister added.

Shri Jaitley said that in the last Budget, the Government had announced strengthening of e-NAM and to expand coverage of e-NAM to 585 APMCs. Out of that, 470 APMCs have been connected to e-NAM network and rest will be connected by March, 2018. Further, an Agri-Market Infrastructure Fund with a corpus of Rs.2000 crore will be set up for developing and upgrading agricultural marketing infrastructure in the 22000 Grameen Agricultural Markets (GrAMs) and 585 APMCs, the Minister informed.

Announcing doubling of allocation for Ministry of Food Processing from Rs.715 crore in RE 2017-18 to Rs.1400 crore in BE 2018-19, Shri Jaitley said that the Prime Minister Krishi Sampada Yojana is our flagship programme for boosting investment in food processing and the sector is growing at an average rate of 8% per annum. With the increased allocation for the sector, the Government will promote establishment of specialized agro-processing financial institutions in this sector and to set up state-of-the-art testing facilities in all the forty two Mega Food Parks, the Minister added.

Announcing a major step to help small and marginal farmers in fisheries and animal husbandry sector to meet their working capital needs, the Finance Minister extended the facility of Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) to the sector. This would give benefit of crop loan and interest subvention, so far available to agriculture sector only under KCC, for rearing of cattle, buffalo, goat, sheep poultry and fisheries. Further, the Finance Minister also announced setting up of a Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FAIDF) for fisheries sector and an Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) for financing infrastructure requirement of animal husbandry sector. Total Corpus of these two new Funds would be Rs.10,000 crore.

Calling Bamboo as ‘Green Gold’, Shri Jaitley announced the launch of the Rs.1290-crore Re-structured National Bamboo Mission, which is based on a cluster based approach to address the complete bamboo value chain and promote bamboo sector in a holistic manner. With a focus on linking bamboo growers with consumers; creation of facilities for collection, aggregation, processing, marketing, MSMEs, skill building and brand building, this announcement would contribute in generating additional income for farmers, employment opportunities for skilled and unskilled youth especially in rural areas.

As a measure to tackle the challenge of air pollution in the Delhi-NCR region, Shri Jaitley said that a special Scheme will be implemented to support the efforts of the governments of Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and the NCT of Delhi to address air pollution and to subsidize machinery required for in-situ management of crop residue.

*****

************

Ministry of Finance
01-February, 2018 13:44 IST
Government undertakes various Programmes to benefit Farmers, Poor and other vulnerable sections

Series of fundamental structural reforms are helping Indian economy achieve stronger growth in the medium and long run

The Union Finance Minister asserted that Shri Narendra Modi, Government had worked sincerely and without weighing political costs. Presenting the General Budget 2018-19 in Parliament here today, the Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Shri Arun Jaitely said that the Government had taken up programmes to benefit farmers, poor and other vulnerable sections and also to uplift the under-developed regions of the country.

Government is providing free LPG connections to the poor through UjjwalaYojana. Under Saubhagya Yojna 4 crore households are being provided with electricity connections. More than 800 medicines are being sold at lower price, through more than 3 thousand Jan Aushadhi Centers. Cost of stents has been controlled. Special scheme for free dialysis of poor have been initiated. Persons belonging to poor and middle class are also being provided a great relief in interest rates on housing schemes. Efforts are being made to provide all government services, whether bus or train tickets or individual certificates on line. These include passports which may be delivered at doorstep in two or three days or Company registration in one day time. The Finance Minister has said that all these facilities have benefited a large section of our country. Certificate attestation is not mandatory; interviews for appointment in Group C and Group D posts have been done away with. These measures have saved time and money of lakhs of our youth. Our government by using modern technology is committed to provide a relief to those who suffer because of rigid rules and regulations, he said.

The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that four years ago, the present Government pledged to give an honest, clean and transparent Government. We promised a leadership capable of taking difficult decisions to restore strong performance of Indian economy. We promised to reduce poverty, expedite infrastructure creation and build a strong, confident and a New India, the Finance Minister said.

He said the Government has successfully implemented a series of fundamental Structural Reforms. The Indirect Tax system, with introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST), has been made simpler. Benefits to the poor have been targeted more effectively with use of digital technology. The demonetization of high value currency has reduced the quantum of cash currency in circulation. It has increased the taxation base and spurred greater digitization of the economy. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) has changed the lender-debtor relationship. The recapitalized banks will now have greater ability to support growth. All these structural reforms will help Indian economy achieve stronger growth in the medium and long run.

The Finance Minister said that the result, India stands out among the fastest growing economies of the world, IMF, in its latest Update, has forecast that India will grow at 7.4% next year, he added. Shri Jaitley asserted that India is firmly on course to achieve a high growth of 8% plus after Indian society polity and economy have shown remarkable resilience in adjusting to such structural reforms.

The Finance Minister said that India achieved an average growth of 7.5% in first three years of our Government. Indian economy is now 2.5 trillion dollar economy – seventh largest in the world. India is expected to become the fifth largest economy very soon. On Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis, we are already the third largest economy, the Finance Minister added.

Shri Jaitley said that this year’s Budget will consolidate these gains and particularly focus on strengthening agriculture and rural economy, provisioning for good health care to economically less privileged, taking care of senior citizens, infrastructure creation and working with the States to provide more resources for improving the quality of education in the country.

Terming the Journey of Economic Reforms, during the past few years, as challenging, Shri Jaitley said they have led to growth of foreign direct investments and also making it much easier to do business in India. He said to further carry the business reforms for ease of doing business deeper and in every State of India; the Government of India has identified 372 specific business reform actions. All States have taken up these reforms and simplifications in a mission mode constructively competing with each other. Evaluation of performance under this Programme will now be based on user feedback.

Saying that the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has always stressed importance of good governance, the Finance Minister said that such a vision has inspired Government agencies to carry out hundreds of reforms in policies, rules and procedures. He said Natural resources are now being allocated in a transparent and honest manner and there is a premium on honesty. This transformation is reflected in improvement of India’s ranking by 42 places in last three years in the World Bank’s ‘Ease of Doing Business’ with India breaking into top 100 for the first time.

The Finance Minister said that the Government is also ensuring that benefits of Governmental programmes are delivered directly to eligible beneficiaries. Aadhar which provided an identity to every Indian has eased delivery of so many public services to our people, he said. Many services and benefits are being delivered to the people at their doorsteps or in their accounts. It has reduced corruption and cost of delivery and has eliminated middlemen in the process. Direct Benefit Transfer mechanism of India is the biggest such exercise in the world and is a global success story. The Finance Minister pointed out that every enterprise, major or small, also needs a unique ID. He said that the Government will evolve a Scheme to assign every individual enterprise in India a unique ID.

***

Ministry of Finance
01-February, 2018 13:42 IST
Tax Incentive for Promoting Post-Harvest Activities of Agriculture

In order to encourage professionalism in post-harvest value addition in agriculture, the Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Shri Arun Jaitley proposed to allow hundred per cent deduction to companies registered as Farmer Producer Companies and having annual turnover up to Rs.100 crores in respect of their profit derived from such activities for a period of five years from financial year 2018-19. This was announced by the Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley while presenting the General Budget 2018-19 in Parliament here today.

The Finance Minister mentioned that at present, hundred per cent deduction is allowed in respect of profit of co-operative societies which provide assistance to its members engaged in primary agricultural activities. Over the last few years, a number of Farmer Producer Companies have been set-up along the lines of co-operative societies which also provide similar assistance to their members. Thus, Shri Jaitley said, such tax incentive will encourage “Operation Greens” mission announced earlier and it will give a boost to Sampada Yojana.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
05-February, 2018 16:32 IST
National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change


“The National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC) is a Central Sector Scheme which was set up in the year 2015-16. The overall aim of NAFCC is to support concrete adaptation activities which mitigate the adverse effects of climate change. The activities under this scheme are implemented in a project mode. The projects related to adaptation in sectors such as agriculture, animal husbandry, water, forestry, tourism etc. are eligible for funding under NAFCC. National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is the National Implementing Entity (NIE). The details on financial support sanctioned, period of support, implementation and executing agencies, State-wise, project-wise and year-wise since 2015-16 are enclosed as Annexure I.


The States/UTs are required to prepare the project proposal in consultation with NIE i.e. NABARD. The project proposals are required to be approved by the State Steering Committee on Climate Change to be eligible for consideration under NAFCC. It is the discretion of the State Government to engage any organization to assist in project preparation, as per their requirement”



ANNEXURE-I



S. No.
States
Title of the Project
Total Cost of the project (Rs. in Crores)as per DPR
Amount Sanctioned(Rs. in Crores)
Project Duration in Years
Executive Entity


2015-16


1
Punjab
Towards Climate Resilient Livestock Production System in Punjab” prepared under State Action Plan on Climate Change for financial assistance from National Adaptation Fund on Climate Change
17.40
13.92
5
Punjab State Council for Science & Technology (PSCST).


2
Odisha
Water Conservation through runoff management to improve ground water recharge for vulnerability reduction and resilience enhancement in water basin of Nuapada district for climate adaptation
20.00
16.00
4
Department of Water Resources, Govt. of Odisha.


3
Himachal Pradesh
Sustainable Livelihoods of agriculture – dependent Rural communities in drought prone district of Himachal Pradesh through climate smart solutions.
20.00
10.00
5
Department of Environment, Science & Technology, Govt. of Himachal Pradesh.


4
Puducherry
Integrated Surface Water Management for Climate Resilient Agriculture through Rejuvenation of Traditional Tanks
16.76
3.95
2
Department of Science and Technology (DST), Govt. of Puducherry.


5
Manipur
Model Carbon Positive Eco-Village in Phayeng of Manipur
10.00
5.00
3
Directorate of Environment, Govt. of Manipur.


6
Kerala
Promotion of integrated farming system of Kaipad in coastal wetlands of North Kerala
25.00
12.50
4
Agency for Development of Aquaculture, Kerala (ADAK).


7
Tamil Nadu
Management and rehabilitation of coastal habitats and biodiversity for climate Change Adaptation and Sustainable Livelihood in Gulf of Mannar, Tamil Nadu, India
24.74
12.37
4
Department of Environment, Government of Tamil Nadu.


8
Chhattisgarh
Climate Adaptation Strategies in Wetlands along Mahanadi River Catchment areas in Chhattisgarh
21.47
10.73
4
State Centre for Climate Change.


9
Jammu & Kashmir
Climate Resilient Sustainable Agriculture in Rain – Fed Farming (Kandi) Areas of Jammu & Kashmir
22.51
11.26
4
Agriculture Production Department, Government of Jammu and Kashmir.


10
Telangana
Resilient Agricultural Households through Adaptation to Climate Change in Mahbubnagar district, Telangana.
24.00
6.00
4
Environment Protection Training & Research Institute (EPTRI).


11
Meghalaya
Spring-shed development works for rejuvenation of springs for climate resilient development in the water stressed areas of Meghalaya
22.91
11.45
4
Meghalaya Basin Development Authority.


12
Mizoram
Sustainable Agriculture Development through Expansion, Enhancement and Modelling in the state of Mizoram
10.38
5.19
3
Department of Agriculture.


Total Cost
235.17
118.37




2016-17


1
Andhra Pradesh
Climate Resilient interventions in Dairy Sector in coastal and Arid areas in Andhra Pradesh.
12.71
6.36
5
Department of Animal Husbandry, Government of Andhra Pradesh.


2
Madhya Pradesh
Increasing Adaptive Capacity to Climate Change through developing climate-Smart Villages in Select Vulnerable Districts of Madhya Pradesh
24.87
12.44
3
State Knowledge Management Centre on Climate Change Environmental Planning and Coordination Organization (EPCO) Urban Development and Environment Department Govt. of Madhya Pradesh.


3
Karnataka
Conservation and Management of Indigenous varieties of livestock (Cattle and Sheep) in the Wake of Climate Change in Karnataka.
24.22
12.11
4
Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, Govt. of Karnataka.



4
Haryana
Scaling-up Resilient Agriculture Practices towards Climate Smart Villages in Haryana
22.09
8.77
3
Department of Agriculture, Government of Haryana.


5
Assam
Management of Ecosystem of Kaziranga National Park by creating Climate Resilient Livelihood for Vulnerable Communities through Organic farming and pond based Pisciculture
24.56
12.43
3
Kaziranga National Park (KNP) under Department of Environment & Forest (DoEF), Govt. of Assam.


6
West Bengal
Rain Water harvesting and sustainable water supply to the hilly areas in Darjeeling adaptive measures climate change impacts
23.12
11.56
4
Dept. Of Environment, Govt. of West Bengal.


7
Maharashtra
Efficient water management and agriculture technology adoption for climate adaptive and resilient farming system in 51 villages of Nundurbar and Buldhana districts of Maharashtra
22.95
11.47
4
Department of Rural Development and Water Conservation, Government of Maharashtra and Vasundhara Watershed Development Agency (VWDA), Pune.


8
Sikkim
Addressing Climate Change vulnerability of Water Sector at Gram Panchayat Level in drought prone areas of Sikkim.
24.67
10.00
3
Rural Management and Development, Government of Sikkim


9
Gujarat
Climate Change adaptation for Natural Resource Dependent communities in Kachchh, Gujarat.
21.36
8.79
4
Gujarat Ecological Education and Research (GEER) Foundation the autonomous body of the Forests & Environment Department.


Total Cost
200.55
93.93




2017-18


1
Rajasthan
Mukhya Mantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyaan (MJSA)
24.98
12.49
2
Dept. of Watershed Development & Soil Conservation, Jaipur, Govt. of Rajasthan.


2
Bihar
Scaling up Climate Smart Agriculture through Mainstreaming Climate Smart Villages in Bihar
23.06
11.53
3
Department of Agriculture, Govt. of Bihar


Total Cost
48.04
24.02




TOTAL
483.76
236.32


This information was given by Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Dr. Mahesh Sharma in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.


***

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers
06-February, 2018 13:22 IST
US$ 1.08 million saved during April-December 2017 due to decline in Urea Imports: Shri Rao Inderjit Singh

Shri Singh gives details on Current Progress on Revival of 5 Closed Fertilizer Units

Minister of State for Planning (IC) and Chemicals & Fertilizers, Shri Rao Inderjit Singh, in a written reply to a question on status of Urea Imports and steps taken by Government to increases fertilizer production in the country, in Lok Sabha today, informed that the import of urea is made on Government account to bridge the gap between estimated indigenous production and assessed demand in the country. The import during the year 2017-18 (Apr-Dec) was 49.83 Lakh MT as against the import of 49.88 Lakh MT in the year 2016-17 for the same duration. Thus there is a decline of 0.05 Lakh MT in import of urea during 2017-18 (Apr-Dec) over previous year. Based on the weighted average price of urea imports during the current year i.e. US$ 216.86 PMT CFR, the saving work out to US$ 1.08 million, the Minister informed.



Informing the House that the production of other fertilizers has also increased in the country, Shri Singh gave details of the production of urea and other fertilizers during the last three years and current year (up to Dec, 17) are as below:



Year
Urea
A/S
DAP
Complex
SSP
Total

2014-15
225.85
4.41
34.44
78.32
42.36
385.39

2015-16
244.75
4.14
37.87
83.01
43.39
413.14

2016-17
242.01
4.90
43.65
79.66
44.18
414.41

2017-18(upto Dec,17)
177.84
4.14
36.88
63.01
30.03
311.90

The Minister also informed about the initiative taken by the Government for revival of closed fertilizer units and stated that during the last two years Government of India has approved revival of five units namely, Ramagundam, Sindri, Gorakhpur and Talcher units of FCIL and Barauni unit of HFCL. Shri Singh gave details on current progress, which is as given below:



Ramagundam Unit:

Ramagundam unit of FCIL is being revived on nomination basis by consortium of PSUs namely Engineers India Limited (EIL), National Fertilizers Limited (NFL) and FCIL by setting up a gas based fertilizer plant of 1.27 MMTPA capacity. The Joint Venture agreement was signed on 14.1. 2015. JV Company named Ramagundam Fertilizers & Chemicals Limited has been formed. Project construction activities are under progress. As on 15th January 2018, 69.5% of physical progress of the project has been made. The project is likely to be commissioned by 31.12.2018, the Minister added.



Gorakhpur & Sindri units of FCIL and Barauni Unit of HFCL

Gorakhpur, Sindri and Barauni units are being revived by means of a Special Purpose Vehicle of Public Sector Undertakings namely, National Thermal Power Corporation, Coal India Limited, Indian Oil Corporation Limited and Fertilizer Corporation India Limited/Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited by setting up gas based fertilizer plants of 1.27 MMTPA capacity each. A Joint Venture company by name Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Limited (HURL) has been formed. Progress made so far is as under:



Pre project activities are under progress. The following pre-project activities have been completed in respect of all the three project:

• Pre-feasibility
• Geo technical investigation and topographic studies
• Hydro geological and ground water study for water availability
• Environment clearances have been obtained
• Building/office renovation work has been started and full-fledged site offices have been established at all the 3 locations.
• Pre project works like site development, construction water and power facility have already begun at Gorakhpur & Barauni.
• The technical and commercial evaluation of all the bids for all three projects have been completed.

The above three projects likely to start production by 2020, the Minister added.



Talcher Unit:



Talcher Unit of FCIL is being revived on ‘Nomination basis’ by a Consortium of PSUs namely RCF, GAIL, CIL and FCIL by setting up a coal based fertilizer plant of 1.27 MMTPA capacity. A JV Company Talcher Fertilizers Limited (TFL) has been formed.



Progress made so far as under:

• Coal gasification technology has been selected.
• Pre project activities are under progress.
• Environment clearance has been obtained.
• Power Price Parity for Bridge Linkage Coal approved by Coal Ministry.
• MoU with IOC for Pet-coke signed on 10.08.17

The Talcher project is likely to start production by 2021, the Minister added.



*****


Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers
06-February, 2018 13:23 IST
Steps taken by Government to attract fresh investments in the Urea Sector

Commercial Production of 1.3 MMTPA Coal Bed Methane based Greenfield Ammonia-Urea complex of Matix Fertilisers & Chemicals Limited at Panagarh, West Bengal started on 1st October, 2017: Shri Rao Inderjit Singh

Minister of State for Planning (IC) and Chemicals & Fertilizers, Shri Rao Inderjit Singh, in a written reply to a question on concrete steps taken by the Government to attract fresh investments in the urea sector and to make the country self-sufficient in this sector, in Lok Sabha today, informed that the Government has announced New Investment Policy – 2012 (NIP-2012) on 2nd January, 2013 and its amendment on 7th October 2014 to facilitate fresh investment in urea sector and to make India self-sufficient in the urea sector.

Shri Singh informed that under the provisions of NIP-2012 and its amendment, Matix Fertilisers & Chemicals Limited (Matix) has set up a Coal Bed Methane (CBM) based Greenfield Ammonia-Urea complex at Panagarh, West Bengal with the installed capacity of 1.3 MMT per annum. The commercial production of Matix has started on 1st October, 2017. Chambal Fertilizers & Chemicals Limited (CFCL) has also proposed to set up a brownfield project with capacity of 1.34 MMT at Gadepan, Rajasthan, which is likely to start commercial production in January, 2019.

The Minister further informed that the installed capacity of 30 urea manufacturing units is 207.54 LMT against which the total indigenous urea production during the year 2015-16 and 2016-17 was 244.75 LMT and 242.01 LMT respectively. In order to increase the production of fertilizers by Central PSUs, Government has decided to revive closed units namely Gorakhpur, Sindri, Talcher and Ramagundam units of (FCIL) and Barauni unit of Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited (HFCL) by setting up of 1.27 Million Metric Tonne per annum urea plant at these units. All of these units are targeted to become operational by 2020-21, Shri Singh added.

In addition to above, the Government has also decided to install a new Urea plant of 8.646 Lakh Metric Ton (LMT) per annum in the existing premises of Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizer Corporation Limited (BVFCL), which will subsequently replace the existing Namrup II (Capacity 2.40 LMT) and Namrup III (Capacity 2.70 LMT) units, the Minister added.

In a written reply to a separate question in Lok Sabha today, Shri Singh informed that the total urea capacity in the country capacity after revamping of the five units at Gorakhpur, Sindri, Talcher and Ramagundam and Barauni is likely to be 304.5 LMTPA. In addition, two plants of combined capacity of 26.4 LMTPA are also being set up/commissioned in the private sector. This will further augment capacity to nearly 33 MMTPA. This augmentation in production capacity should help India in moving towards achieving self-sufficiency in urea, the Minister added.



*****

 

[Hindustani78]

President's Secretariat
09-February, 2018 13:57 IST
President of India addresses 56th convocation of Indian Agricultural Research Institute

The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, graced and addressed the 56th convocation of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) today (February 9, 2018).

Speaking on the occasion, the President said that IARI played a critical role in the Green Revolution that changed the course of food production in the country. He was happy to note that students from 14 countries are being educated in this institution. And that IARI is helping in the development of agricultural capacities and research in neighbouring countries.

The President said that Mahatma Gandhi had observed that agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy. This is relevant even today. Enhancement of income of farmers and overall development in rural areas is the priority of the entire country. In this endeavour, students of IARI could contribute through innovations. He stated that there is a relative shortage of land and water resources, in proportion to our country's population. Therefore, there is a need to continuously innovate to increase productivity.

The President said that IARI should start 'Innovation Centres' or 'Incubation Centres' to help students to launch start-up ventures in the agricultural sector. There are several schemes of the Central and State Governments that offer special incentives to enterprises engaged in the agriculture sector. There are also many venture capital funds that can come forward to invest in agriculture-based enterprises. Students should use these opportunities, set up their ventures and become job creators.

*******
The President, Shri Ram Nath Kovind at the 56th Convocation of the Post Graduate School of the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, in New Delhi on February 09, 2018. The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Radha Mohan Singh and the DG, ICAR, Dr. T. Mohapatra are also seen.

The President, Shri Ram Nath Kovind releasing the publication at the 56th Convocation of the Post Graduate School of the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, in New Delhi on February 09, 2018. The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Radha Mohan Singh, the DG, ICAR, Dr. T. Mohapatra and other dignitaries are also seen.

The President, Shri Ram Nath Kovind addressing at the 56th Convocation of the Post Graduate School of the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, in New Delhi on February 09, 2018.

The President, Shri Ram Nath Kovind in a group photograph, at the 56th Convocation of the Post Graduate School of the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, in New Delhi on February 09, 2018. The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Radha Mohan Singh, the DG, ICAR, Dr. T. Mohapatra and other dignitaries are also seen.

The President, Shri Ram Nath Kovind in a group photograph, at the 56th Convocation of the Post Graduate School of the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, in New Delhi on February 09, 2018. The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Radha Mohan Singh, the DG, ICAR, Dr. T. Mohapatra and other dignitaries are also seen.

 

[Hindustani78]

The Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Shri J.P. Nadda at the launch of the National Deworming Day, 2018, in Gurugram, Haryana on February 10, 2018. The Minister of State for Planning (I/C) and Chemicals & Fertilizers, Shri Rao Inderjit Singh and other dignitaries are also seen.

The Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Shri J.P. Nadda addressing at the launch of the National Deworming Day, 2018, in Gurugram, Haryana on February 10, 2018. The Minister of State for Planning (I/C) and Chemicals & Fertilizers, Shri Rao Inderjit Singh and other dignitaries are also seen.

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
10-February, 2018 16:57 IST
Shri J P Nadda launches National Deworming initiative

National Deworming initiative to benefit more than 32 crore children Government of India is committed to ensuring high quality healthcare accessible to every child and upto the last mile: J P Nadda

Shri J P Nadda, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare launched the National Deworming Day at a function at Gurugram, today. Speaking on the occasion he said, “Government of India is committed to ensuring high quality healthcare, accessible to every child and upto the last mile. One of the interventions, the National Deworming Day, is one of the largest public health initiatives in the world. ”.

Shri Rao Inderjit Singh, Hon’ble Minister of State- Chemicals & Fertilizers, Govt. of India, Shri Rao Narbir Singh, Hon’ble PWD Minister, Govt. of Haryana and Shri Manoj Jhalani, AS & MD (NHM) were also present at the occasion.

Speaking at the function, the Union Health Minister announced that for this round of National Deworming Day, the Government is aiming to reach more than 32.2 crore children. Shri Nadda further stated that the Ministry had first launched National Deworming Day (NDD) in 2015 which was implemented in 11 States/UTs across all Government and Government-aided schools and Anganwadi centres targeting children aged 1 to 19 years. Since then the program has been scaled up throughout the country. Shri Nadda further informed that last year 25.6 crore children in the February 2016 round and 22.8 crore children in the August 2016 round were successfully reached and treated with deworming treatment on National Deworming Day. He also released the ‘Deworming Factsheet’ at the event.

Speaking at the function, Shri Nadda said that the government prioritizes the wellbeing of children no matter which part of the country they live in and what their circumstances are. “We follow a life-cycle approach in devising all our health programs, right from pregnancy till adolescence, we take care of the mother and the child to make them healthier and get their timely access to healthcare. Our programs like National Deworming Day, which is for all children, are ensuring prevention of cognitive disability as well decreasing the school drop-out rate of children by improving overall health of the children. All these initiatives move us closer to overall wholesome development of the country,” Shri Nadda added.

Urging all the stakeholders to come forward and participate in this initiative, Shri Nadda stated that the aim of a worm-free India can be true only if we all join hands to make this program a success. “I would request all health functionaries and health leaders to participate in the program and see to it that we make this program a success. Also I salute all our healthcare workers who have ensured the reach of this program to the grass root level”, Shri Nadda said. He also urged all stakeholders and especially all public representatives to talk, generate awareness and discuss about health, as it is an very important factor in development of the country.

Shri Nadda said: the National Deworming Day will mobilize health personnel, state governments and other stakeholders to prioritize investment in control of Soil Transmitted Helminth (STH) infections—one of the most common infections. Further he said, “It aims to create mass awareness about the most effective and low-cost STH treatment— administering Albendazole tablets. The tablet has no side effects and in case the dose gets missed, MoHFW carries out ‘mop-up’ sessions, to ensure no child is left out. Along with Albendazole administration, behaviour change practices in terms of cleanliness, hygiene, use of toilets, wearing shoes/chappals, washing hands etc. is also important to reduce incidents of re-infection”.

The National Deworming Day is a single fixed-day approach to treating intestinal worm infections in all children aged 1- 19 years and is held on 10 February and 10 August each year. Having conducted five rounds of National Deworming Day since February 2015, the mass deworming program aims to reach all children at schools and anganwadis with the deworming treatment. Any child not dewormed on National Deworming Day due to absenteeism or sickness, will be dewormed on mop-up day, 15 February.

Anganwadi and school-based mass deworming program is safe, cost-effective, and can reach crores of children quickly. Deworming has been shown to reduce absenteeism in schools; improve health, nutritional, and learning outcomes; and increase the likelihood of higher-wage jobs later in life. Deworming with the safe and beneficial Albendazole tablet is an evidence-based, globally-accepted, and effective solution to controlling worm infections. National Deworming Day has, thus, been designed to reach all children, regardless of socio-economic background. In addition to including government and government-aided schools and anganwadis, all states will make special efforts to reach out-of-school children, who are most vulnerable to worm infections. Private schools across the country, since they have high enrolment of children, have also enthusiastically joined the program, so that children in these schools, too, get deworming treatment and contribute to overall reduction in worm prevalence in communities.

To prepare for National Deworming Day, teachers and anganwadi workers have been trained to administer the tablet to children, while ASHAs and other functionaries will generate awareness and mobilize children to be dewormed on the day. Other ministries and departments from Panchayati Raj, Youth affairs are also deploying their resources of panchayat members, youth volunteers and other community-based groups to engage communities towards a worm free India.

Deworming may have very few side effects and some children, especially those with high worm infections, might experience nausea, mild abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, and fatigue. In line with the guidance from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, comprehensive adverse event protocols have been put in place. Apart from being dewormed, maintaining healthy and hygienic practices will help children and communities remain safe from worm infections. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare envisions an open-defecation-free India which holds the capacity to reduce the overall worm burden in a community. The efforts of Swach Bharat Abhiyan towards a clean India will further facilitate the progress and benefits of the National Deworming Day.

The first AMRIT pharmacy for the state of Haryana was also inaugurated by the Hon’ble Minister of Health and Family Welfare at the event. Also present at the event were, Shri Amit Jha, Principal Secretary (Health & Family Welfare), Govt. of Haryana, Smt. Amneet P Kumar, MD(NHM), Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Haryana and other senior officers of the Union Health Ministry and from the Government of Haryana.



***

 

[Hindustani78]

The Minister of State for Tourism (I/C) and Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Alphons Kannanthanam holding a discussion with stake holders of rubber sector, at Rubber Research Institute, Kottayam, Kerala on February 11, 2018.

The Minister of State for Tourism (I/C) and Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Alphons Kannanthanam briefing the media after the discussion with stake holders of rubber sector, at Rubber Research Institute, Kottayam, Kerala on February 11, 2018.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Commerce & Industry
12-February, 2018 11:44 IST
National Productivity Council

The National Productivity Council is observing National Productivity Day today, and National Productivity Week till 18th February. It is the 60th Anniversary of the National Productivity Council and is being celebrated as Diamond Jubilee Year. "Industry 4.0 Leapfrog Opportunity for India " has been selected as the theme for the National Productivity Week -2018.

Industry 4.0 or the fourth industrial revolution as it is called, is emerging globally as a powerful force and is being called as the next industrial revolution. It is characterized by the increasing digitization and interconnection of products, value chains and business models. Industry. Industry 4.0 would mean the convergence of real and virtual worlds-the next phase in bringing together conventional and modern technologies in manufacturing. This will result in the "Smart Factory", which is characterized by versatility, resource efficiency, ergonomic design and direct integration with business partners.

The first industrial revolution was triggered by water and steam power to move from human labour to mechanical manufacturing. The second industrial revolution built on electric power to create mass production. The third used electronic and information technology to automate manufacturing. The fourth is the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies.

Manufacturing today is cutting edge and requires a high level of skill. Today, the global manufacturing sector is undergoing a structural transformation. Though India banks heavily on its Service Sector for growth, the Manufacturing Sector needs to fuel the high growth in India. Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, launched the 'Make in India' program to place India on the world map as a manufacturing hub. The Manufacturing Sector especially MSMEs play a pivotal role in the Indian economy and provide the largest share of employment after agriculture. In order to converge the aims of growth with employment it is important to increase the share of manufacturing in the country's Gross Domestic Product from 16% to 25% by 2022 and to create 100 million additional jobs by 2022.

Over its 59 years of existence, NPC has built extensive experience in problem solving right from the shop floor level to strategic and policy issues at the macro level. With nearly 140 full time consultants on its roll possessing a wide repertoire of skill/ expertise and a network of 13 regional offices at all major State capitals/industrial centres, NPC has the requisite professional strength as well as country wide presence.





******

Ministry of Science & Technology
12-February, 2018 17:53 IST
“Budget gives big boost to investment in Science and Technology for brighter future”

It is heartening to note that the recent budget announcements have once again reiterated the Present Government’s intent and resolve to give full support to Science and Technology endeavours for the cause of national development.

Ministry of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences cover a very large canvas of R&D from deep oceans to mysteries of universe. The range personnel in these Ministries/ Departments encompasses grassroots innovators to top class of scientists. Their activities impact right from a farmer in a remote corner of the country to sophisticated industries such as aerospace.

To cater to such a large audience, it is necessary that adequate investments are made in scientific research, innovation and technology development. Present Government has consciously provided higher allocations for Science, Technology and Innovation promotion.

Budget allocation for Department of Science and Technology during last 5 years was Rs.19764 cr, which is a whopping 90% increase over the preceding 5 years (2009-10 to 2013-14). Similarly, there was an increase of 65% for Department of Biotechnology; almost 43% increase for Council of Scientific and Industrial Research; and 26% increase for Ministry of Earth Sciences during the last 5 years. The upward trend continued for budget allocation for 2018-19.

During the last 3-4 years our activities of Ministries of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences have been realigned and now there is a judicious mix of fundamental science and application science. This year’s budget announcement on Mission for Cyber-Physical-Systems is one such example of application science. Mission projects on Super computing; Aroma; Sickle cell anemia; and Biopharma are some illustrative examples of application and solution science initiatives. The list of such initiatives is very large.

Innovation and start-up activities have received a big support during this period. Business incubation facilities have almost been doubled. During 2018-19 itself, 15 new Biotechnology Incubators and 15-20 new Technology Business Incubators will be established to incubate start-ups. Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) alone would support 3000 additional start-ups next year.

CSIR, amongst 100 top organisations in the world, spearheads the industry relevant research. The R&D efforts of CSIR are aligned to the needs of the domestic industry and the social needs of the nation. They cater to the initiatives such as Make in India; Swachch Bharat; Clean Ganga; Swastha Bharat; Smart Cities; Smart Villages; Clean, efficient, affordable and renewable energy technology solutions; and Innovate in India etc. in a significant way.

Any S&T intervention which facilitates farmers and farming activities to improve crop productivity makes a huge impact on rural economy. Agrometeorological advisories to farmers is one such mechanism which benefits them in their day to day farming operations. During 2018-19, these advisories will reach 50 million farmers from the present 24 million. ‘Biotech Kisan’ is another such initiative which is assisting farmers in 15 agro-climatic zones. Similarly, thousands of farmers are getting benefitted under Aroma Mission for cultivation of aromatic plants.

Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyay Vigyan Gram Sankul Pariyojana for integrated development of cluster of villages in Uttarakhand through S&T interventions utilising local resources and local skills to provide opportunities of better livelihood at the local level is another example of a project targeted to benefit the common man.

Development of clean energy options and providing water related solutions and demonstration and deployment of other successful technology solutions will be pursued vigorously during the next financial year.

The way the present Government has made investments in Science and Technology endeavours and the new thrust given to several new initiatives which directly benefit the common man by the Ministry of S&T and Earth Sciences would translate such measures into prosperity and general welfare of the masses.

***
The Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan addressing the press conference on the subject of increased budgetary allocations to the Science & Technology sector, in New Delhi on February 12, 2018. The Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Prof. Ashutosh Sharma and the DG, CSIR, Dr. Girish Sahni are also seen.

The Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan addressing the press conference on the subject of increased budgetary allocations to the Science & Technology sector, in New Delhi on February 12, 2018. The Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Prof. Ashutosh Sharma and the DG, CSIR, Dr. Girish Sahni are also seen.

The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh addressing a press conference, organised by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, in New Delhi on February 10, 2018. The Secretary, DoPT, Shri Ajay Mittal and the Secretary, DARPG & Secretary, Pension & Pensioners' Welfare, Shri K.V. Eapen are also seen.

The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh addressing a press conference, organised by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, in New Delhi on February 10, 2018. The Secretary, DoPT, Shri Ajay Mittal and the Secretary, DARPG & Secretary, Pension & Pensioners' Welfare, Shri K.V. Eapen are also seen.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav inaugurating the International Training Programme on Financing Small Enterprises for Rural Development, at NIRD&PR, Rajendra Nagar, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav addressing the International Training Programme on Financing Small Enterprises for Rural Development, at NIRD&PR, Rajendra Nagar, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav in a group photograph with the delegates, at the International Training Programme on Financing Small Enterprises for Rural Development, at NIRD&PR, Rajendra Nagar, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav inaugurated the 3KW Solar Power Generation Unit, at NIRD&PR, Rajendra Nagar, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav reviewing the various training activates, at NIRD&PR, Rajendra Nagar, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav reviewing the various training activates, at NIRD&PR, Rajendra Nagar, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018.

The Minister of State for Rural Development, Shri Ram Kripal Yadav taking review meeting with official of Department of Rural Development, Resources, Revenue and Social welfare of Government of Telangana, at Telangana state institute of Panchayati raj and Rural Development, in Hyderabad on February 12, 2018. The Minister for Panchayati raj and Rural Development, Telangana, Shri Jupally Krishna Rao is also seen.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
13-February, 2018 15:49 IST
Union Agriculture Minister Shri Radha Mohan Singh lays foundation stone for the first dairy plant of East Champaran District in Motihari.

India reaches such a stage that it is providing opportunities galore for entrepreneurs at international level: Agriculture Minister India is the prime producer of milk and holding the number one position globally over the past two decades: Radha Mohan Singh

The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Radha Mohan Singh today laid the foundation stone for the first dairy plant in Motihari of East Champaran District. Addressing the gathering, Shri Singh said that India has reached such a stage that it is providing opportunities galore for the entrepreneurs at the international level. Agriculture Minister said that the growth in the dairy sector is a result of the initiatives taken by the Government by implementing various schemes to increase productivity of milch animals. Shri Singh said that India is the prime producer of milk and has been holding the number one position globally over the past two decades. Milk production, which was around 17 - 22 million tonnes in the 1960s, has increased to 165.4 million tonnes in 2016-17. During the year 2016-17 milk production increased by 20.12% as compared to 2013-14.

Shri Singh further said that the Per Capita availability of milk grew by 15.6% during the year 2016-17 taking it to 355 grams from 307 grams in 2013-14. Likewise, the income of the dairy farmers grew by 23.77% during 2014-17 as compared to 2011-14. In the last three years, milk production in India grew by 6.3% every year thus surpassing the annual global growth rate of 2.1%.

Agriculture Minister also said that dairy farming has become a source of livelihood and food security at the rural level, especially for landless and marginal farmers. About 80 million farmers are connected with the dairy business and they rear 80% of the total milch cattle.

The Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying & Fisheries has initiated a number of schemes with the objective of doubling the dairy farmers’ income in line with Hon’ble Prime Minister’s mission to double farmers’ income by the 75th anniversary of India’s independence (the year 2022). In this direction, dairy farmers’ income could be raised in two ways – first, by increasing milk production by improving their productivity and second, through raising the price of raw milk per kilogram.

Shri Singh said that for the first time in the country Rashtriya Gokul Mission was launched in December 2014 for the conservation and promotion of the indigenous breeds. Under the scheme, so far Rs.1350 crore have been approved for the proposals from 28 states and Rs.503 crore have already been released for the same. The Agriculture Minister said establishing Gokul Grams is one of the components of the Rashtriya Gokul Mission. Gokul Grams will act as a centre for the development of the indigenous species and it will also supply animals to the farmers for breeding. Currently, 18 Gokul Grams in 12 different states are being established. Apart from this, the Government is undertaking the establishment of two National Kamdhenu Breeding Centres for the conservation and development of indigenous bovine breeds in Chintaladevi, Nellore in the Southern region and in Itarsi, Hoshangabad, in the Northern region. Out of the two, Chintaladevi Centre in Andhra Pradesh is complete. Under this scheme, 41 bovine breeds and 13 buffaloes will be preserved.

The Minister said that in November 2016 we have also started National Mission on Bovine Productivity Scheme under Rashtriya Gokul Mission with an allocation of Rs.825 crores. The aim is to accelerate milk production and productivity and to also make the milk production more profitable. Meanwhile, Pashu Sanjivn component is identifying 9 crore milch animals through UID, and the government has already sanctioned funds for this scheme. The scheme also includes the provision of providing 'Nakul Swasthya Patra' to all these animals.

 

[Hindustani78]

President's Secretariat
14-February, 2018 18:12 IST
President of India in Kanpur; inaugurates international conference ‘Agricon 2018’ and ‘Agriexpo 2018’

The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, inaugurated the international conference ‘Agricon 2018’ and ‘Agriexpo 2018’ at Chandrashekhar Azad University of Agriculture & Technology (CSAUT), Kanpur today (February 14, 2018).

Speaking on the occasion, the President said that in a country as vast as India, problems of farmers in different regions are different. We will have to find solutions according to their needs. Water is a common concern. In this regard, the Government has promoted the concept of “per drop, more crop” and this message should reach every farmer in the country.

The President emphasised the need to see grain production, dairy farming, animal husbandry and fisheries, poultry, horticulture and sericulture as part of a composite approach to modern agriculture. There is also need to encourage the food processing industry to give farmers a better price and a better deal for their produce.

The President said that it should be remembered that when any farm-based product is exported from the country, the name of India is associated with it. Therefore, there can be no compromise with quality. For demand for such products to be sustainable, quality has to be maintained and people have to have faith in it being of international standard.

The President said that in today’s age the slogan of “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan” has become ever more relevant. While our Army is valiantly battling terrorists and continuously striving to keep our borders and our nation safe, our farmers are working hard to ensure food security for the country. The government is fully committed to empowering both our Armed Forces and our farmers.

Later in the day, the President delivered the Barrister Narendrajit Singh Memorial Lecture at VSSD College, Kanpur.

Addressing the gathering, the President said the poor pay heavily for delay in justice delivery. To overcome such delay, we must make constant efforts for judicial reforms. He said he was happy to note that many High Courts are taking effective steps to deal speedily with long-pending cases.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
15-February, 2018 14:09 IST
‘India’s progress in Science & Technology exponential’ – Dr Harsh Vardhan

Inculcate environment-friendly lifestyle among children; “Green Good Deeds” to be broadbased to make it a national movement.

Union Minister for Science & Technology; Environment, Forest & Climate Change Dr. Harsh Vardhan today said, India’s progress in the field of science and technology is exponential and science can address most of the problems the society is facing now.

Dr Harsh Vardhan was talking to hundreds of school children, who turned up at his residence to see a limited exhibition, showcasing advancements in Science & Technology in India. He had already interacted with thousands of school children to generate scientific temperament among them. The exhibitions include the country’s advancement in aerospace, biotechnology, nanotechnology, green energy, plant genetics, technology to aid healthcare, etc.

The Minister has also been advocating the children to be ambassadors of environmental protection. He told them, the hazard of climate change and global warming is manifesting into a reality and people should take conscious efforts in mitigating stress on environment and climate. As developmental efforts need to be sustained, its impact on climate should be mitigated through a series of efforts, including environment-friendly lifestyle.

Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change has drawn up a national campaign weaving around some 500 simple lifestyle habits that can be easily adopted, in an effort to sensitise the hazards of climate and global warming. The campaign named “Green Good Deeds” can have a cascading effect, if everyone adopts even one deed a day.

During the last one month, the Ministry has invited thousands of children from various schools to enlist their support to the campaign. Besides government officials, teachers, professionals, members of voluntary organisations and general public from across Delhi have also come forward to support the cause.

“Every citizen should become a ‘Green Volunteer’ so that we could relay the environment we inherited from our ancestors to the generation that is yet to take birth. That’s our moral responsibility,” said Dr. Vardhan.

He said the present government is undertaking several good deeds including “Green Good Deeds”. He pointed there has been intervention from the highest political level to bring down the level of air pollution in Delhi and its surrounding areas, which has become an international subject of discussion. All states involved in stubble burning have been told that they need to take firm measures to curb it by the next season. In fact, even budgetary allocations were made to support the efforts of Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and the NCT of Delhi to address air pollution. The government have also decided to subsidise machinery required for in-situ management of crop residue to prevent burning of stubble in the next winter. The minister said, he would like all, particularly youth and children to understand that our deeds have to be environment-friendly. Dr Vardhan said, the hazard of climate change and global warming is manifesting into a reality and people should take conscious efforts in mitigating further stress on climate.

There should be a judicious balance of sustainable economic development and environmental protection. While the role of the government is to prepare roadmap for environmental protection, adherence to the rules and regulations is the primary responsibility of the stakeholders. Unless there is public involvement and commitment, no such drive can be taken to its logical conclusion. Like Corporate Social Responsibility, it is the Green Social Responsibility of every citizen to maintain environment.

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