With India and Peru agreeing to resume talks for a free trade agreement, the South American nation is looking to export avocados, fresh grapes, blueberries, and gold to India, Vice Foreign Trade Minister of Peru Teresa Stella Mera Gomez said. She said that technical teams of India and Peru would meet to start talks on modalities and scope of the proposed agreement.

 

The two countries started negotiations for an FTA in 2017. Five rounds of talks were held until August 2019 before the COVID pandemic disrupted the process.

 

'We are going to talk again about that (the modalities). Due to the pandemic many things changed so we want to replan additional modalities and our technical teams will hold that conversation,' Gomez has said.

 

When asked about areas of interest for Peruvian businesses in India, she said Peru's main interests are in exporting agricultural products like avocados, fresh grapes, and blueberries, and natural resources like gold, copper and calcium phosphates.

 

Most of the blueberries that are sold in India are sourced from Peru, she said adding the proposed agreement will at least deal with trade in goods and services.

 

'If areas like investments are to be made part of it will be decided by the technical teams,' she said.

 

India-Peru trade in 2022-23 stood at USD 3 billion. While India's imports from Peru were USD 2.2 billion, exports stood at USD 865 million.

 

India's main exports to Peru include automobiles, motorcycles and three-wheelers, polyester and cotton yarns, pharmaceuticals, iron and steel products, plastic products, and tyres. Main imports from Peru are gold, copper, synthetic filaments, phosphates of calcium, fresh grapes, fish flour and blueberries.

 

'In manufactured products also we are interested in finding space in India,' the minister said. She was here recently for the India-LAC conclave.

 

She added that Peru has free trade agreements with all major economies like the US, EU, China and Japan and is also a member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

 

'We are not competing in the same product. Our economies are complementary, which is very helpful in the negotiation process,' she said.

 

On investments, she said there is huge scope for Indian investments.

 

'We are in the centre of South America and we are developing a new port at Chancy (80 km north of Lima). It is going to be ready next year and would be able to take in bigger ships and reduce time to connect with Asian countries. That could be an opportunity for Indian businesses to manufacture products there,' Gomez said.

 

'We want Mahindra, Tata and all the Indian brands doing business in Peru. Indian automobiles, two-wheelers, and three-wheelers are very well known there…We need to have your products (manufactured) there in order to compete with the rest of the countries we are importing from,' she said.

Paradip Port achieved a major milestone by clocking record cargo throughput of 50.16 MMT Cargo on 8th August, 2023, by exhibiting 6.5% growth over the corresponding period of previous fiscal. This feat has been achieved by the Port in 129 days in the current fiscal compared to 140 days during the previous year. PPA has also handled record 942 nos. of Vessels in comparison to 812 nos. handled in the corresponding period of previous fiscal.

 

For the above feat, Shri P.L. Haranadh, Chairman, PPA expressed his gratitude to Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, Union Minister of Port Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) under whose dynamic leadership and guidance, PPA could turn a new chapter. He said, 'Together, with the unwavering support of our dedicated workforce and the collective will of our nation, we shall continue to script remarkable success stories for Paradip Port—a story that exemplifies growth, sustainability, and a brighter tomorrow for generations to come.'

 

Shri Haranadh also congratulated all Officers/Employees, the user Industries, Stevedores, Steamer Agents, Trade Unions, PPP Operators to have their continued faith in the ability of the Port to serve them.

 

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S  Jagan Mohan Reddy has officially launched 11 food processing units, which were established with a budget of Rs 1,719 crore. The inauguration ceremony was held virtually, with six units being inaugurated and the foundation stones being laid for five additional units from the camp office.

 

These units have a combined production capacity of 3.14 lakh tonne of food items annually, around 40,307 farmers would benefit from these initiatives.

 

The Chief Minister announced the launch of four primary vegetable and fruit processing centres in the Annamayya and Chittoor districts, a millet processing unit at L Kota in the Vizianagaram district and an onion and tomato dehydration cluster at Thadakanepalle in the Kurnool district.

 

The ceremony also marked the foundation stone laying for three primary tomato processing centres in Satya Sai and Anantapur districts. Additionally, a groundnut processing unit was initiated at Dharmavaram in the Satya Sai district and a Mondelez India foods unit in Sri City, Chittoor district.

 

Reddy has emphasised Andhra Pradesh's remarkable commitment to farmers, disclosing that the state has allocated an impressive 8,000 crore for intervening and ensuring Minimum Support Price (MSP) during price drops. The state stands alone in providing MSP even for millets, intricately connecting them with the Public Distribution System (PDS) through Rythu Bharosa Kendras (RBKs). Reddy also highlighted the state's proactive approach, extending MSP coverage to crops not encompassed by the Central government.

 

Furthermore, the Chief Minister unveiled plans for significant agricultural advancements, including an expansive 55,620mt-capacity groundnut processing unit in Dharmavaram, set to benefit 15,000 groundnut farmers. He also revealed upcoming projects such as four vegetable and fruit processing centres in Annamayya and Chittoor districts, catering to 2,414 farmers, along with proposed tomato processing units in Satya Sai and Anantapur districts, aimed at supporting 3,588 farmers. Additionally, he noted the emergence of 32 primary and 13 secondary processing units for millets, with a notable 7,200mt-capacity secondary millet processing unit in Vizianagaram district, aimed at aiding millet farmers.

As Mushkibuji, a fragrant rice variety, grown in Sagam village of south Kashmir’s Anantnag district received the Geographical Indication (GI) Tag, the farmers associated with its cultivation are ecstatic.

 

The tag was granted to this product on Tuesday after a long legal process.

 

Talking to Greater Kashmir, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Farmers Producers Organisation (FPO) said, 'It really is great news for the farming community as it is likely to help in boosting the production of Mushkubudji.'

 

Ahmad, a postgraduate and a native farmer of Sagam, has been cultivating Mushkibuji on 9 kanal of his agriculture land.

 

'Packaging and marketing were the major challenges we were confronting. The counterfeit variety was being sold in the market ruining our reputation. But now with GI tagging this will stop,' he said.

 

The other farmers Greater Kashmir spoke to were also jubilant.

 

'The higher prices of aromatic rice limit its consumption to special occasions like weddings and festivals. But now we hope that we are able to take this precious variety to national and international markets,' said Haji Abdul Qadir, another farmer and a member of FPO.

 

He said that the scented variety was presently sold at Rs 20,000 per quintal and now the rates are expected to go up.

 

'It is most likely that more and more farmers would switch over to its cultivation, boosting the production,' Qadir said.

 

He said that the customers would also not now be reluctant to purchase the variety as they would be sure that they are getting the original product.

 

Experts opine that the GI tag would not only help the product to reach the international market but also preserve its Intellectual Property Rights.

 

District Development Manager NABARD, Rouf Zargar told Greater Kashmir that with the product now getting the GI tag, the intellectual property rights and geo-specific character of this niche crop produced in Sagam would be protected.

 

He said that it would also be a deterrent to the institutes in developing counterfeit varieties with the same fragrance.

 

'No person can copy it from beyond their geographical areas and now the FPO can even take legal action against the offenders,' Zragar said.

 

Chief Agriculture Officer Anantnag, Ajaz Hussain Dar said that the Mushkubudji farmers would now have access to global markets and this would fetch them a very good price.

 

'After GI tagging only an authorised user has the exclusive rights to use the GI in relation to these products,' Dar said.

 

Last month NABARD promoted Mushkbudji Farmers Producers Organisation (FPO) with more than 500 members, becoming the first in J&K to get the import-export license.

 

The FPO aimed to promote the scented variety of rice and help its marketing and sale across the country was incorporated as Farmers Producers Company in July 2019.

 

Around 2000 farmers are cultivating the aromatic rice in Tangpawa, Sagam village of Anantnag on approximately 5000 kanal land.

 

The fragrant quality of milled rice diminishes over time, making storage challenging and the district administration is now in process of establishing a rice mill unit in Kokernag area.

 

The variety is specially served to the groom and his companions (Baraties) at brides place alongside Kashmiri Wazwan, a multi-course traditional cuisine mostly comprising mutton delicacies.

 

In 2007, the government announced a revival programme of Mushkubuji rice varieties in Sagam village of Kokernag.

 

This precious and aromatic variety had fallen out of cultivation in the 1970s due to blast disease.

 

But with the support from the Agriculture Department and Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Kashmir (SKUAST-K), the unique suitability of Sagam’s climate and cold water, the stage was set for its resurgence.

 

Drawn by its unique qualities and the prospect of higher revenues, more and more farmers started cultivating this fragrant variety on their lands.

 

Recognising the transformative potential of Sagam, Tangpawa, the government declared it a model village for Mushkibudji rice in 2017.

 

To support this initiative, a substantial sum of Rs 1 crore was allocated for procurement and marketing efforts, bolstering the confidence of farmers and positioning Sagam-Tangpawa as a beacon of success.

In a major boost to the prospects of fruit exports, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), which works under the aegis of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has facilitated the export of the first trial shipment of fresh pomegranate to the United States through air route.

 

The first export consignment of pomegranate to the US was initiated by APEDA in collaboration with National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of India, the US’s Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (US-APHIS), Maharashtra State Agricultural Marketing Board (MSAMB), ICAR-National Research Centre on Pomegranate, Solapur (NRC-Solapur) and others.

 

APEDA Chairman Abhishek Dev said that the increase in pomegranate exports to the US would result in higher price realisation and increase in farmers’ income. There has been an encouraging response from the importers of the pomegranate shipment.

 

The trial shipment of pomegranate was carried out by the APEDA registered ‘INI Farms’, which is amongst the top exporters of fruits and vegetables from India. It has built a value chain of banana and pomegranate by working directly with farmers.

 

As a part of Agrostar group, complete services from agronomy, agri-inputs and off-take is provided to farmers with the produce exported to over 35 countries across the world. As the long-distance market and high cost was prohibitive in commencing commercial operations, the export of trial shipment of pomegranate would help in building capacities amongst Indian exporters and US importers by ensuring that quality fruits are exported.

 

Buoyed over the acceptance of Indian mangoes in US markets, exporters are hopeful that pomegranate would also become a successful product in the US. For ensuring traceability in the export value chain of pomegranate, APEDA organises sensitisation programmes on a regular basis in association with state governments to register farms under AnarNet – a system developed by APEDA.

Government has undertaken significant initiatives to promote economic growth besides converting the disruption caused by COVID 19 into an opportunity for growth and investment. These includes Atmanirbhar packages, introduction of Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme in fourteen (14) sectors, investment opportunities under National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) and National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), India Industrial Land Bank (IILB), Industrial Park Rating System (IPRS), soft launch of the National Single Window System (NSWS), etc. An institutional mechanism to fast-track investments has been put in place, in the form of Project Development Cells (PDCs) in all concerned Ministries/ Departments of Government of India. All the above initiatives/schemes are implemented across various Ministries/Departments, Central Government, State Governments.

 

Further, to improve Ease of Doing Business ecosystem in the country, DPIIT coordinates with Ministries/Departments and States/UTs for initiatives to reduce compliance burden on citizen and business activities. The objective of this exercise is to improve Ease of Doing Business and Ease of Living by Simplifying, Rationalizing, Digitizing and Decriminalizing Government to Business and Citizen Interface across all the States/UTs. In order to have a continuous evaluation framework, DPIIT initiated a dynamic reform exercise called Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP) for assessment of business environment in the States/Union Territories (UTs). Under BRAP, States and UTs are assessed on the basis of implementation of designated reform parameters contained in the Action Plan. BRAP covers both the Business-centric and Citizen-centric reforms spread across various reform areas. Some of the reform areas are Investment Enablers, Access to Information and Transparency, Online Single Window System, Land Allotment, Construction Permits Enablers, Labour Regulation Enablers, Environment Registration Enablers, Inspection Enablers, Obtaining Utility Permits, Contract Enforcement, Citizen- centric Certificates, Public Distribution System, Healthcare, etc.

 

To attract more FDI, the Government has put in place an Investor friendly Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy, wherein most sectors, except certain strategically important sectors, are open for 100% FDI under the automatic route. Further, the policy on FDI is reviewed on an ongoing basis, to ensure that India remains an attractive and investor friendly destination. FDI policy provisions have been progressively liberalized and simplified across various sectors such as Pension, Other Financial Services, Asset reconstruction Companies, Broadcasting, Pharmaceuticals, Single Brand Retail Trading, Construction & Development, Power Exchanges, e-commerce activities, Coal Mining, Contract Manufacturing, Civil Aviation etc. In the recent past, reforms in the FDI Policy have been undertaken in sectors such as Defence, Insurance, Petroleum & Natural Gas and Telecom. Further, all proposals seeking Government approval under FDI route are now filed on National Single Window System (NSWS) Portal.

 

Some of the key measures and initiatives undertaken to promote exports and enhance market access are holding Periodic engagement at G-G level with partner countries. One such engagement is that of the West Asia and North Africa (WANA) region under the existing Institutional mechanisms with specific objective to propel bilateral Trade and Investments forward including through addressing any issues/hurdles affecting Trade and Investments. Various Export promotion events, including under the Market Access Initiative (MAI) scheme, have been organized in target markets in the WANA region, by the Department, in association with Export Promotion Councils, Industry Associations, and respective Indian Missions in the region. For instance, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in February, 2022, on the side-lines of the India-UAE Virtual Summit which provides for an institutional mechanism to encourage and improve bilateral Trade and Investments between the two countries.

 

Make in India initiative was launched on September 25, 2014, to facilitate investment, foster innovation, building best in class infrastructure, and making India a hub for manufacturing, design and innovation. The development of a robust manufacturing sector continues to be a key priority of the Indian Government. Since its launch, Make in India initiative has made significant achievements and presently focuses on 27 sectors under Make in India 2.0. which is implemented across various Ministries/Departments, Central Government, State Governments.

 

In addition to ongoing schemes of various Departments and Ministries, Government has taken various steps to boost domestic and foreign investments in India. These include the introduction of Goods and Services Tax, reduction in corporate tax, improving ease of doing business, FDI policy reforms, measures for reduction in compliance burden, measures to boost domestic manufacturing through public procurement orders, Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP) and QCOs (Quality Control Orders), to name a few.

 

Further, in order to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation, startups and encouraging private investments in the startup ecosystem of the country, the Government launched the Startup India initiative on 16th January 2016. Since the launch of Startup India initiative in 2016, DPIIT has recognized 98,119 entities as startups as on 30th April 2023. The recognized startups have reported to have created over 10.34 lakh direct jobs.

 

Keeping in view India’s vision of becoming ‘Atmanirbhar’, PLI Schemes for 14 key sectors have been announced with an outlay of Rs. 1.97 lakh crore (over US$26 billion) to enhance India’s Manufacturing capabilities and Exports.

 

With the announcement of PLI Schemes, significant creation of production, employment, and economic growth expected over the next 5 years and more. The PLI Schemes will help achieve following objectives:

 

Attract investments in sectors of core competency and cutting-edge technology;

Ensure efficiency and economies of scale in the manufacturing sector; and

Make Indian companies and manufacturers globally competitive so that they can penetrate global markets and integrate with global value chains.

The 14 key sectors are: (i) Mobile Manufacturing and Specified Electronic Components, (ii) Critical Key Starting Materials/ Drug Intermediaries & Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients, (iii) Manufacturing of Medical Devices (iv) Automobiles and Auto Components, (v) Pharmaceuticals Drugs, (vi) Specialty Steel, (vii) Telecom & Networking Products, (viii) Electronic/Technology Products, (ix) White Goods (ACs and LEDs), (x) Food Products, (xi) Textile Products: MMF segment and technical textiles, (xii) High efficiency solar PV modules, (xiii) Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery, and (xiv) Drones and Drone Components.

 

PLI Schemes for all 14 Sectors have been notified by the concerned Ministries/ Departments after approval of the Union Cabinet. These Schemes are in their various stages of implementation. Approvals to 733 applications have been accorded under all 14 PLI Schemes so far.

 

This information has been provided by the Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Shri Som Parkash in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

 

Bhutan has requested India to allow rice export to the country after India banned overseas shipments of non-basmati rice, causing global rice prices to rise. Bhutan has made a diplomatic request for rice shipments of up to 90,000 tonnes. India's rice ban allows for exemptions for export under government-to-government deals and in cases of requests made by "friendly countries" with genuine food-security needs. India's share in global rice exports is nearly 40%.

 

Bhutan has requested India to allow rice export to the Himalayan kingdom, following India’s July 20 ban on overseas shipments of non-basmati varieties of the grain , a person aware of the matter has said. India’s decision has sent global rice prices soaring.

 

The world’s biggest rice exporter imposed the ban over growing concerns of El Nino, a weather pattern whose effects ripple around the globe, affecting the Indian monsoon and hitting rice output, and Russia’s blockade of Ukraine’s grain shipments.

 

Bhutan has made a diplomatic request to India for rice shipments of up to 90,000 tonnes, the person said. Global prices have hit a 12-year high following India’s ban. The FAO’s All-Rice Price Index leapt 129.7 points in July 2023, up 19.6% from a year ago. India’s share in global rice exports is nearly 40%.

 

India’s rice ban allows for exemptions for export under conditional government-to-government deals and in case of requests made by 'friendly countries' which have genuine food-security needs, the person cited above said. The same relaxations also apply to the wheat-export ban instituted in May 2022.

 

The conditions also stipulate that food exported by India under such exemptions cannot be used for trade and has to be utilized for domestic consumption, the person added.

 

Such diplomatic requests are first reviewed by the ministry of external affairs, a second person said, adding Bhutan’s request for rice is very likely to be acceded to. Once the proposal is sent to the food ministry, the Food Corporation of India, the Centre’s main food agency, will process the request and release the stocks.

 

Immediately after the wheat ban last year, food minister Piyush Goyal had said that India wasn’t a significant exporter of wheat, yet the country would cater to 'genuine food-security needs of any friendly country'.

 

In September last year, India also banned the export of broken rice, but it has allowed exports to some countries.

 

'In the case of rice also, India will take up requests of any country that may face a dire need of food and seeks humanitarian assistance. This especially applies to our neighbours,' the second person added.

 

Since imposing the wheat and broken rice bans, India cleared over 300,000 tonnes of wheat shipments to Nepal, 200,000 tonnes of broken rice to Indonesia, 500,000 tonnes of broken rice to Senegal and 50,000 tonnes of broken rice to Gambia under humanitarian food assistance.

 

Global supplies have tightened since Ukraine is a major supplier of all types of grain and Russia’s blockade of its food shipments has caused a rally in global cereal prices. On July 17, Russia announced it was pulling out of the so-called Black Sea grain deal under which Ukraine could operate its ports. Days later, India clamped a ban on rice exports.

Information technologies are finding increasing use in the agricultural value system, and farmers are increasingly becoming more informed. The Government has taken various measures to provide access to technology and information across the country, through various Digital Initiatives, such as:

 

National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGP-A) wherein, funds are provided to the State(s)/UT(s) for project involving use of modern technologies viz. Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Robotics, Drones, Data Analytics, Block Chain etc. After receiving proposals from the States, funds are released for development of various solutions.

The Government has announced for development of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for agriculture as an open source, open standard and inter-operable public good to enable inclusive farmer centric solutions through relevant information services for crop planning and health, improved access to farm inputs, credit and insurance, help for crop estimation, market intelligence etc. In this regards, following action has been taken so far:

Architecture of three core registries i.e. Farmer registry, Geo referencing of village map registry, crop sown registry has been finalized.

To generate crop sown registry, Digital crop survey has been launched on pilot basis in 12 states from Kharif 2023.

An MoU has been signed with Pixxel Space India Pvt. Limited to develop use cases with the hyperspectral data of Pixxel for crop identification and mapping, crop health monitoring and soil organic carbon estimation over selected regions on pilot basis.

Sub Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) is being implemented w.e.f April, 2014.The scheme aims at 'reaching the unreached' by bringing to the small and marginal farmers in the core and giving the benefits of farm mechanization, by Promoting 'Custom Hiring Centers' , creating hubs for hi-tech & high value farm equipments, distribution of various agricultural equipments, creating awareness among stakeholders through demonstration and capacity building activities, and ensuring performance- testing and certification at designated testing centers located all over the country.

National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) is a pan-India electronic trading portal which networks the existing Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) mandis to create a unified national market for agricultural commodities. Digital services are provided to traders, farmers, Farmers Producer Organizations (FPO), Mandis through various modules of e-NAM platform such as FPO trading module, warehouse based trading module.

Under PM KISAN Scheme, fund is directly transferred into the bank accounts of the eligible farmers under Direct Benefit Transfer mode. Farmers can do their self- registration through the Farmers Corner in the portal. PM-KISAN Mobile App was launched to broaden the reach of the scheme where farmers can view beneficiary status, update or carry out corrections of name based on their Aadhaar card and also they can see history of benefits transferred to their bank accounts. Recently, face authentication feature has also been included in PM-KISAN mobile App.

Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF): To mobilize a medium - long term debt finances facility for investment in viable projects for post-harvest management Infrastructure and community farming assets through incentives and financial support in order to improve agriculture infrastructure in the country. Financial assistance is provided digitally in the form of Interest Subvention and Credit Guarantee for setting up post- harvest management Infrastructure to beneficiaries such as Farmers, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), Farmer Producers Organisations (FPOs), Self Help Groups (SHG), State Agencies/APMCs.

National Mission on Horticulture: It Promotes holistic development of Horticulture sector (including bamboo & coconut) HORTNET project is a web enabled work flow- based system for providing financial assistance under MIDH. It is a unique intervention to accomplish e-Governance in NHM where-in total transparency has been envisaged in all the processes of workflow i.e., online application filing, authentication, processing and online payment to the beneficiary’s bank account through DBT.

National Project on Soil Health and Fertility:-Issuance of soil health cards to farmers of the country, so as to provide a basis to address nutrient deficiencies in fertilization practices. Soil Health Card Portal is available where farmers can track soil samples.

Several new technological initiatives has been taken under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana such as Yield Estimation System, based on Technology (YES-Tech), Weather Information Network Data Systems (WINDS) portal and door to door enrollment app AIDE/Sahayak.

YES-TECH, a technology-driven yield estimation system, offering methodologies, best practices, and integration insights for accurate yield assessments at the Gram Panchayat level.

WINDS Portal is a centralized platform that hosts, manages, and processes hyper-local weather data collected by Automatic Weather Stations and Rain Gauges at Taluk/Block and Gram Panchayat levels. The portal enhances risk assessment and decision-making in crop insurance, agriculture advisories, and disaster mitigation, supporting the agricultural sector and rural economy.

The AIDE app's aims to revolutionize the enrolment process, bringing it directly to the doorstep of farmers. This door-to-door enrolment ensures a seamless and transparent process, making crop insurance more accessible and convenient for farmers.

The Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) has also compiled more than 100 mobile apps developed by ICAR, State Agricultural Universities and Krishi Vigyan Kendras and uploaded on its website. These mobile apps developed in the areas of crops, horticulture, veterinary, dairy, poultry, fisheries, natural resources management and integrated subjects, offer valuable information to the farmers, including package of practices, market prices of various commodities, weather related information, advisory services, etc.

Further, ICAR has developed a Digital multimedia platform named as 'Kisan Sarathi' which is being used to provide advisories to the farmers through 731 KVKs across the Country.

 

This information was given by the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

In order to address the existing infrastructure gaps and mobilize investment in agriculture infrastructure, Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) scheme was launched in 2020 with an objective to mobilize a medium – long-term debt financing facility for investment in viable projects for post-harvest management Infrastructure and community farming assets through incentives and financial support. The scheme envisages provision of Rs. 1 Lakh Crore by banks and financial institutions as loans with interest subvention of 3% per annum and credit guarantee coverage under Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) for loans up to Rs. 2 Crores. As on date, loans amounting to Rs. 26,064 Crores have been sanctioned for 33,369 projects and these sanctioned projects have mobilized an investment of Rs. 44,208 crores in the agriculture sector.

 

A new campaign named 'BHARAT’ (Banks Heralding Accelerated Rural & Agriculture Transformation) has been launched by the Government under Agriculture Infrastructure Fund Scheme to provide maximum benefits to the people and to create a competitive spirit among the Banks and lending institutions to mobilize agriculture infrastructure projects loan at a faster pace. This is a month-long Campaign from 15th July 2023 to 15th August 2023. Top performing Banks under different categories i.e. commercial Banks in public and private Sector, Regional Rural Banks, Small Finance Banks (SFBs), Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and cooperative Banks will be selected at the end of the Campaign and their special contribution will be recognized. As on 31.07.2023, overall Rs.1239 Cr. have been sanctioned by numerous banks for 1375 projects under BHARAT campaign.

 

This Campaign was launched on 12th July, 2023 which was attended by more than 100 Banking Executives that included MDs/Chairman, EDs of commercial Banks in public and private sector, Regional Rural Banks, Small Finance Banks, NBFCs and select cooperative Banks. Moreover, the daily performance under the campaign is being shared among all the Banks through messages at the closing of business hours of Banks every day. These daily updates generate much enthusiasm and competitive spirit among the Banks and lending institutions to perform and exceed their targets.  Ministry is committed to have regular interactions with the Bank Executives through various modes of communication in between with a view to review performance under the campaign and to persuade the slow movers and non-starters to perform.

 

Banks have been requested to achieve the targets considering the potential  for agri infra projects from time to time and the response of the banks is encouraging. This ministry sets AIF annual targets for individual Banks on the basis of their clientele base, geographical reach and share in the agricultural advance and past performance. The department maintains regular touch with every bank through its designated AIF Nodal Officer in the Head Office for implementation of the AIF Scheme from the submission of application to reimbursement of Scheme benefits. Interaction with Banks’ top Executives and their Nodal Officers takes place to review the progress of the Scheme and providing handholding support at regular intervals such as “Bankers are Anchors “ programme conducted at NABARD HQ in Dec.2022.

 

Further, Ministry conducts capacity building programmes at Bankers’ Training Colleges on physical mode and awareness sessions on AIF Scheme with Bank officials from Head Offices and controlling offices of various Banks on VC mode to promote the Scheme.  which displays the enthusiasm of the Banks in general. Special award giving ceremonies are also organised to acknowledge the contribution of top performing Bank Executives and their Team members. Social media groups comprising Banks’ AIF Teams serve as the fast mode of communication with Banks for persuading them to lend more and more under AIF for creation of agriculture infrastructure and this forum also helps in sorting out operational issues and providing handholding support.

 

This information was given by the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

The government will sell 5 million tonnes of wheat and 2.5 mt of rice from its stocks in the open market, an official said on Wednesday, a move aimed at stabilising prices. This is in addition to the sale of 1.5 mt of wheat and 0.5 mt of rice announced a few months ago under the open market sale scheme (OMSS).

 

The domestic prices of these staples have been rising due to low supply. On Wednesday, the price of wheat surged to a six-month high.

 

"There has been a sharp increase in prices of wheat and rice recently," food secretary Sanjeev Chopra told reporters, adding that people have been hoarding wheat in anticipation of a price rise.

 

The country has adequate stocks of wheat and rice, which the government can release in the open market to stabilise prices, he said.

 

So far, about 0.7 mt of wheat has been sold through e-auction under the OMSS, while sale of rice has been negligible.

 

On August 1, the government's warehouses held approximately 28 mt of wheat and 24.3 mt of rice.

 

The average retail price of wheat declined from Rs.31.58 a kilogram in January this year to Rs.28.74 per kilogram in May but rallied again to Rs.29.59 a kilogram in July, the government told Parliament.

 

The average retail price of rice has risen to Rs.40.82 a kilogram in July from Rs.38.09 per kg in January.

 

Wholesale cumulative inflation in FY24 till the end of June was 7.6%, having added 10.7% in FY23.

 

A combination of low production, declining stocks and rising demand has fuelled the price rise.

 

The government pegged India's wheat production at a record 112.7 mt in 2023, but private estimates peg the harvest at 101-103 mt due to unseasonal rains.