Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shri Chouhan initiated a series of meetings with State Agriculture Ministers to discuss in detail the issues related to their ministries and resolve them expeditiously In sequence, the Union Minister today held a meeting with the Agriculture Minister of Sikkim, Shri Puran Kumar Gurung at Krishi Bhawan in New Delhi.

 

Sophie Primas, Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and French Nationals Abroad, attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France is scheduled to undertake a three-day visit to India starting on Wednesday, seeking to enhance ease of doing business and investment flows between both nations.

 

India has drawn up an ambitious agenda for the ongoing Global Cooperative Conference being attended by leaders from several nations and UN representatives here, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi calling for international cooperation and shared financial platforms to boost a sector the country is pushing to the forefront of its economy.

 

India's milk production rose nearly 4 per cent annually to 239.3 million tonnes in 2023-24 on better productivity, even as milk output of buffaloes declined 16 per cent annually, according to government data on Tuesday.

 

Emphasising the need to explore export opportunities for milk and its products, GS Rajorhia, member of the Board of Directors, National Dairy Development Board, Anand (Gujarat), and former president of the Indian Dairy Association, New Delhi, highlighted India’s potential to boost the economy through dairy exports.

 

Exports of fruits and vegetables from India saw an 11 percent increase in value to $1.8 billion during the financial year 2023-24, despite a 10 percent decline in volume to 3.91 million tons. Floriculture exports also rose by eight percent to $208 million, with a slight decrease in volume to 34,132 tons, as reported by the Agricultural And Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda). Hyderabad International Airport has witnessed a 25 percent growth in the export of fruits and vegetables in the first half of FY2024-25, according to Pradeep Panicker, CEO of Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA). Poultry exports, notably hatching eggs, resumed during this period with a volume exceeding 800 tons. This growth is attributed to the addition of new exporters and the advanced infrastructure at GMR Aero Cargo Logistics Terminal.

 

Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Vikram Doraiswami, said on Tuesday that the Keir Starmer government is ready to restart negotiations with India and added that the Free Trade Agreement is an 'ongoing process' as they completed their internal review in July.

 

India has pitched for easing of mobility rules in the European Union under the proposed trade deal, while also seeking lowering of non-tariff barriers, along with duty cuts to ensure that exports from the country actually benefit, instead of getting stuck in a maze of complicated rules and standards that the trading bloc is known to erect.

 

India has rejected consignments of apples, nuts, alcoholic beverages and sushi from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Japan, China and Turkey this year because they fell short of the standards set by it.

 

Observed annually on November 26, National Milk Day commemorates the birth anniversary of Dr.Verghese Kurien, celebrated as the 'Father of the White Revolution' in India. Born on November 26, 1921, in Kozhikode, Kerala, Dr. Kurien was instrumental in transforming India from a milkdeficient nation to the world's largest producer of milk. This day underscores the transformative impact of India’s dairy sector, a key contributor to nutritional security, rural empowerment, and economic growth.