Recent reports indicate that the demand for Indian wheat has picked up in recent years. At the same time, the government is seeking to step up exports further with a 50 percent jump during the current fiscal.

 

The Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Turkey, Algeria and Lebanon are among other countries on the radar, with Agricultural & Processed Food Products Exports Development Authority (APEDA) sending delegations to explore the possibility of boosting wheat exports. India’s wheat exports, which went up 3.5 times last year, were driven mostly by the demand from countries such as Bangladesh, UAE, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Oman and Malaysia.

 

Both the Union Finance and Agriculture ministers have repeatedly made known the government’s intent to take measures for enhancing higher agricultural productivity through the use of latest technology and high-yielding crop varieties to help double the farmers’ income. However, experts have suggested an increased focus on harnessing potential of allied activities such as animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries which have helped raise incomes as farm holdings are fragmented.

 

In an endeavour to make agriculture high-value, experts have recently suggested encouraging States to undertake reforms, create corpus fund for promoting farm mechanisation and micro irrigation as well as provide interest subvention for term loans, among others, to increase incomes within next five years.

 

While the need for agriculture exports cannot be denied, these are related with issues of long term sustainability and domestic food security concerns. The thrust is in areas of spices, tea, cotton etc. In recent years, rice and wheat are too being exported, though these entail a huge cost on environment, as their production uses lot of water. It has been estimated for one kg of produce it typically takes between 3,000 and 5,000 litres of water for rice, 2,000 litres for soya, 900 litres for wheat and 500 litres for potatoes. Plus, one kg rice generates up to 4 GHG while wheat, which needs a high application of chemical fertilizers, emits up to 200 kg of CO2 per tonne produced.

 

Depleting water tables due to excessive use of groundwater is a major concern vis-à-vis the sustainability of farming. Exporting more would only hasten the destruction of the agricultural ecosystem. Thus, there is need for a rethink if we want to prevent irreparable damage to the environment. Incentives which reward farmers for shifting to producing environment-friendly crops, could be an option even if they don’t get the country more in export earnings.

 

In fact, an environment-friendly readjustment of agricultural production need not necessarily be contradictory with farm incomes. Instead of focusing on rice production, there is a need for agriculture diversification into pulses, not just because imports are stopped but also the per capita consumption of protein-rich pulses has increased. Besides, unlike rice, pulse cultivation can improve soil health as these help in increasing nitrogen content, which is a crucial soil nutrient.

 

Notably, after the green revolution, white revolution helped in raising milk production and yellow revolution increased cropped area of oilseeds. However, there’s still scope of increasing all-round production to cope up with the huge population demand. There is need for people to treat agriculture as a profession, in the true sense of the term, and carry out activities accordingly. Meanwhile, the government has initiated steps to address two major areas – soil health and water conservation, both critical to improved agricultural production.

Thus, it goes without saying that agricultural incomes need a boost to make it lucrative and ensure higher returns for farming community. Apart from increasing productivity, diversification of agriculture is also a very viable need and successful scientific inputs and technological support necessary. While not much has been done over the years, some successful initiatives have been noted.

 

For one, the lab-to-land approach has been spoken of for a long period but strictly not implemented. What augurs well is that sub-divisions and blocks, which earlier received support from agricultural universities, will now get IITs to take up experimentation projects in villages, as per a government directive. This shall help in higher output and diversion plans. Such as in rice fields, where experts opine it would increase the cropping intensity with additional returns and generate more job opportunities. This is particularly relevant to Assam as rice is the major crop which occupies 2.5 million hectares of land area.

 

Integration of horticultural plants with field crops such as rice and pulses becomes extremely important to achieve inclusive growth so that together it can boost production in the agriculture sector. The main objective of this combination is to grow rice, pulse, kharif and rabi vegetables on the same field during the same period of time, contributing towards nutritional security and ensure soil sustainability in the long run.

 

Agricultural scientists have pointed out that the main advantage is that vegetable crops grown on soil columns can make effective use of resources applied on rice fields with reduced requirement of irrigation, which makes it cost effective. Adding the horticulture sector, would provide greater economic importance as its demand is growing at both national and international markets.

Thus, diversification of the agri sector with value addition in horticulture, floriculture and spices and on-farm processing for production of various types of oil, both for domestic and export markets, is the need of the day to ensure higher incomes on a sustained basis. Oil seeds production in the country is way below world average and needs to be given a boost with proper usage of micronutrients and mechanisationother than raising processing centres with latest technology.

 

Production of fruits with an eye on the export market should too get special attention. Agricultural institutes must help small and medium farmers to increase all-round production and productivity, specially of value-added crops. Demo farms would bring in more efficacies in helping raise output.

 

Recently, Rajasthan has come up with a unique initiative with its first olive oil brand in the country to reduce dependence on imports for edible oil. India imports 50 to 55% of edible oil needs and virtually all the olive oil its urban consumers use, which is 14,000-odd metric tonnes. The State has 1000 hectares under cultivation, which over next three years should increase five times. The idea is said to have emerged from Israel, which is highly successful with olive plantations in the Negev desert.

 

As per reports, farmers have started earning Rs 3-4 lakh per acre from olive cultivation as against Rs 1 lakh from traditional bajra or millet. As India consumes over 25,000 metric tonnes this would further rise to 40,000 metric tonnes by 2025. This is just one example of how oilseeds production in the country could be substantially increased to cope up with domestic demand and bring down steadily the imports. Other States should consider emulating this trend.

 

In sum, efforts must be made on priority basis to raise income of the farming community through experimentation and producing value-added crops. The government has assured support by making available appropriate technology or in developing software applications. Much more is needed. Unless agriculture drawbacks are tackled in an all-round professional manner, it would be difficult to stall the growing lack of disinterest among generation next in the sector. Serious thinking and growth of fresh ideas is urgently required. — INFA

Luxembourg financial ecosystem, with 125 banks, more than 5000 management companies and more than 3500 funds in its jurisdiction, is the 2nd biggest centre in the world for investment funds after the US. Post Brexit, Luxembourg has also emerged as an important hub for financial companies, which were previously operating in the UK. During a visit to India for Raisina Dialogue, Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, spoke to ET’s Dipanjan Roy Chaudhury on tremendous opportunities that his country offers to India to expand partnership in financial sector.

 

Luxembourg has been a strong economic partner of India in the European Union. In the 2020 virtual summit three MoUs were signed -- India International Exchange and Luxembourg Stock Exchange; State Bank of India and Luxembourg Stock Exchange; Invest India and Luxinnovation. Can you elaborate on the progress in the economic partnership based on these three MoUs.

Indeed, the economic cooperation between Luxembourg and India has grown over the years. As you rightly mentioned, three MoUs were signed in the margins of the virtual bilateral summit between Prime Minister Bettel and Prime Minister Modi in November 2020 and significant developments have taken place since.

 

To name but a few, I would e.g. like to highlight the dual listing of USD 650 million green bonds from the State Bank of India (SBI) at Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) and India International Exchange (India INX) in Gandhinagar last November. This was a milestone as it was the first dual listing from an Indian company at LuxSE and India INX.

 

In order to pave the ground for a future cooperation in the financial sector, another key development which took place last year was the signing of an MoU between our financial regulators i.e. the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Here I may recall here that the Luxembourg financial ecosystem, with 125 banks, more than 5000 management companies and more than 3500 funds in its jurisdiction, is the 2nd biggest centre in the world for investment funds after the US. Post Brexit, Luxembourg has also emerged as an important hub for financial companies, which were previously operating in the UK. Specific to the area of payments, Luxembourg’s strong payment ecosystem has attracted companies such as Amazon and PayPal, which serve global markets from Luxembourg.

 

And on the investment side, the Luxembourg based global leader in vaccine cold chain for over 4 decades, B Medical Systems, has started producing sophisticated medical cold chain equipments in India from their manufacturing facility in Mundra, Gujarat after its launch in January this year. The company is thereby contributing to ‘Make in India’. This cooperation was possible due to the full support provided by both governments, the relevant authorities, as well as investment agencies such as Invest India. As of today, B Medical Systems has registered more than 100 patents in Luxembourg alone and its products are considered as indispensable in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

What are Luxembourg's plans to enhance financial sector cooperation with India?

 

Some of Luxembourg’s overall priorities also apply to the financial sector. My country has been actively pioneering initiatives targeting social responsibility, environmental protection, and measures to curb climate change for years. And hence it did not come as a surprise that Luxembourg was indeed the first European country, as well as the first AAA-rated country worldwide, to have launched its sustainability bond framework, in September 2020. And briefly afterwards this was followed by the launch of a sustainability bond.

 

I may also recall that the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE), was the 2nd Stock Exchange in the world to list Masala Bonds, bonds in Indian rupees, in 1998. Currently, more than 50 Indian companies have their Global Depository Receipts (GDR) listed at the LuxSE.

 

Today, 5 years after the launch of the Luxembourg Green Exchange, LGX has become the world’s leading platform for sustainable finance with over 1,200 sustainable bonds on display, totaling more than USD 725 billion. And with an increased interest of Indian companies in sustainable finance and investment amidst the push from Indian Government, Luxembourg indeed presents a gateway for Indian investors for the listing of sustainable securities and bonds. Luxembourg stands ready to further explore how our solutions can help India make its mark in the field of sustainable finance.

 

India and Luxembourg have a longstanding cooperation in the Steel sector. What are plans to expand this cooperation?

Between the mid-19th Century and the late 20th Century, Luxembourg’s fate was intrinsically linked to the steel industry. It brought fortune to the country and its population, and left a significant mark on Luxembourg's economy and its society.

 

As you rightly pointed out, the cooperation between Luxembourg and India in the steel sector is one of the oldest ones. In the past, the Luxembourg-based steel company, Paul Wurth has worked with various steel producing companies in India and has been equipping their blast furnaces. And it continues to do so today.

 

Let me also highlight that the Luxembourg headquartered ArcelorMittal, one of the largest steel producing companies worldwide, is contributing actively to ‘Make in India’ through the presence of ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel (AM/NS) across different states in India. ArcelorMittal has committed an investment of more than EUR 20 billion in the state of Gujarat and another EUR 12 billion in the state of Odisha among other investments across different projects in India. Through the key projects it is implementing in India, it continues to contribute to India’s development.

 

Going forward, I believe that the cooperation in the steel sector will continue to develop and will further strengthen the relations between the two countries.

 

What are plans for expansion of partnership in the space sector?

There are immense opportunities for cooperation in the space sector between Luxembourg and India. I am happy to note that Luxembourg and India have entered into a space cooperation earlier this year, which will allow for further engagement between the space agencies of the two countries i.e. Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

 

I was also happy to learn about the recent cooperation between Luxembourg based global leader in operational satellites, SES, which entered into a joint-venture with India’s Reliance Jio to provide high performance satellite based broadband services in India.

 

And at this point I may also recall the launch of 4 nanosatellites of the Luxembourg based company, Kleos Space, from ISRO’s PSLV C-49 mission in November 2020. This cooperation underlines the existing strong relations in this sector.

 

Today, Luxembourg’s space sector contribution to the GDP is amongst the highest in Europe, and the Government has taken concrete steps to support and encourage commercial space ventures, including through the creation of a Masters in Space Programme at the University of Luxembourg. This interdisciplinary programme, which has been developed jointly with the Luxembourg Space Agency, prepares students for a successful career in the dynamic, growing commercial space sector. We hope that this programme will continue to attract interest from the Indian students, who wish to pursue their higher studies in Luxembourg.

 

And finally, I wish to highlight the opportunities for the Indian startups in Luxembourg which houses the European Space Resources Innovation Centre (ESRIC). In addition, accelerator programmes in Luxembourg, such as ‘Fit4Start’, have in the past attracted interest from Indian startups not only in the space sector but also more widely from other sectors like as ICT, FinTech and HealthTech.

Will look to increase opportunities for Australian agricultural commodities, which contribute to Indian manufacturing: India Economic Strategy Australia plans to ask India for tariff reduction on a number of agricultural commodities such as nuts, pulses, grains, oilseeds, packaged food and cotton, which were not included in the free trade agreement (FTA) signed between the two countries earlier this month. The tariff concessions will be sought as part of the negotiations for the  full-fledged comprehensive pact, likely to begin within the next two months 

 

'The government is working to position Australia as India’s primary partner in agribusiness, key supplier of agricultural commodities and critical partner in technical knowledge….customs duties and import tariff remain key issues for our industries and we will continue to seek tariff reduction in negotiations towards the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement,' according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), which has come up with an update on the country’s India Economic Strategy to 2035.

 

Progress on technical market access issues in both markets helped two-way agricultural trade exceed $714 million in 2020, the report pointed out.

 

Bilateral trade

The India-Australia FTA, signed on April 2, is an ambitious pact under which Australia has agreed to provide zero-duty market access for 96.4 per cent value of Indian exports on the first day of implementation of the agreement, while India has agreed to do so for 85 per cent of Australian goods. The FTA seeks to double bilateral trade to $50 billion by 2030.

 

Agricultural products, however, have been largely excluded from the FTA, because of the sensitivity of the sector in India. But with both countries agreeing to start negotiations on a full-fledged CECA, which is to include more products and sectors such as government procurement and digital trade within 75 days, there is a scope to get tariff reduced on more items.

 

'Commodities such as nuts, pulses, grains, oilseeds, cotton and wool remain among Australia’s priorities. In addition, we are also working to expand market opportunities for Australian exporters beyond our traditional export strengths, including in horticultural products, packaged food and beverages,' said the update.

 

Launching the Indian Economic Strategy Update on Tuesday, Australia’s High Commissioner to India Barry O Farrell said that India and Australia have complementary economies and Australia remains committed to lift India into its top three export markets by 2035 and make India the third-largest destination in Asia for outward Australian investment.

 

Australia will look to increase opportunities for Australian agricultural commodities, which contribute to Indian manufacturing such as Australian wool and cotton for India’s textile producers, the update said. 'The government will also look to India as a source of agricultural chemical and fertiliser imports, as part of our broader efforts to diversify supply chains for key agricultural inputs,' the report said.

To commemorate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Ministry of Agriculture is organizing a week long special campaign on ‘Kisan Bhagidari Prathmikta Hamari’ to create awareness on various schemes and their benefits for the farming community across the country. As part of the campaign, MoA&FW, Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Rural Development will hold wide range of awareness activities tomorrow.

 

As part of the campaign, the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare will organize demonstration on farm machinery through their FMTTIs (Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute) at different locations across the country tomorrow. FMTTIs will also impart training to the women farmers simultaneously. Along with the physical field visits, online webinar will also be organised to provide interface between innovators and industries.                       

 

The Ministry will organise field visits to Sunflower cultivation sites in Ambala Kurukshetra (Haryana) Fatehgarh Saheb (Punjab) and mustard farms in Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur (JK). Kisan Goshti, programmes will also be organised to make farmers aware about the benefits of cultivation of cash crops.

 

Webinar & Awareness Programme on improved production technology of high value & exotic vegetable crops under protected cultivation will also be organised at CIH, Nagaland & State Horticulture Department of NER. Training on microrhizome based disease free planting material production in Ginger and Turmeric will be provided by Directorate of Arecanut and Spices Development at Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur. Various online activities will also be held on beekeeping by National Bee Board (NBB). Krishi Mela on Cashew will organised by the Directorate of Cashew & Cocoa Development. A Webinar on ODOP Products, Horticulture Cluster Development will be organised by National Horticulture Board (NHB) at State Level Offices of National Horticulture Board and at State Horticulture Missions.

 

Simultaneously, all the allied Ministries and Departments are also organising various programmes as a part of ‘Kisan Bhagidari Prathamikta Hamari’ which include a nationwide campaign through ICAR Institutes on Bio-fortification, Nutri-Cereals, Millets cultivation and on crop Diversification. Watershed Management Division of Department of Land Resources is organizing a webinar on the subject "Integrated Watershed Development, its contribution towards sustainable utilization of natural resources, enhancing livelihood and incomes of farmers".

 

During the week-long campaign, farmers are being made aware about key schemes and their perspectives, how to avail benefits of the welfare schemes. Various field visits, interaction with the industries are also being organised to give exposure to the farmers.

India and the European Union (EU) are looking forward to deepen their partnership in connectivity sectors including exploring connectivity projects in third countries through risk-mitigation measures that can attract private sector participation.

 

'We want to explore how we can best combine our capabilities in South Asia, East Asia, Central Asia and Africa, and may be also in some regions closer to Europe,' said Ambassador Romana Vlahutin, Ambassador at Large for Connectivity, European External Action Service (EEAS), while addressing an event in Delhi on ‘India-EU Connectivity: New Context, New Horizons’, organised by RIS, along with the, Ministry of External Affairs, India, the EU External Action Service and the European Investment Bank (EIB).

 

'In order for us to be successful, we have to find the best model of supporting private investment in large scale connectivity projects,' Vlahutin added.

 

Speaking on the occasion, Sandeep Chakravorty, Joint Secretary (Europe West Division), Ministry of External Affairs, India said there is political convergence between India and the EU on connectivity including at the leaders’ level, reflecting the political will to work together on many levels.

 

Chakravorty said the India-EU Connectivity Partnership will get a huge impetus in terms of its ability to attract private capital and improve trade ties when the bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) comes into force. 'The FTA negotiations will start in June, 2022 and has a strict timeline, to end in 2023. Once the FTA is in place, we will find dramatic improvements in bilateral ties on connectivity, trade and investment,' he said.

 

Chakravorty said in order to develop connectivity projects in third countries or with third countries, the EIB could consider joining the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF). He said the EU, through its Global Gateway strategy, could also consider financing connectivity projects in India and in South Asia. He further said the model shown by South Asia Sub-regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Program (bringing together Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, and Sri Lanka for partnerships that are project-based, and funded by the ADB) could be replicated in India’s partnerships with the EU including to finance rail connectivity, especially for restoring the pre-partition rail links with Bangladesh as well as for extending the road network under the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal (BBIN) Initiative.

 

Another proposal was to replicate the Trilateral Development Cooperation Fund (meant for working with India’s developed country partners) with the help of the EU to bring in Indian expertise, talent and entrepreneurship to develop projects in third countries, he said. The official added that India and the EU could also partner to replicate the success of India’s digital payment platforms in third countries.

 

Prof. Sachin Chaturvedi, Director General, RIS, mentioned about the Connectivity Webinar Series that RIS launched today and highlighted the role that the Global Development Centre (GDC), established at the RIS, could play in advancing the connectivity partnership between India and EU.

 

With support from Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), UK and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation GDC can take India’s development experience to the Global South, including in Africa. He added that the EU could join hands to strengthen the GDC’s work in this regard.

 

Christian Kettel Thomsen, Vice President, European Investment Bank, talked about issues including the need to enhance climate finance, the importance of de-risking of projects to make them attractive for private players as well as the crucial aspect of ensuring transparency in government procurement.

India needs to remove trade restrictions, reduce tariffs and provide seamless connectivity at the borders to reap the trade benefits in the South Asian region, Cecile Fruman, director, regional integration and engagement, South Asia, World Bank, said in an interview with ET’s Yogima Seth Sharma. Edited excerpts:

 

How will integration of countries in the South Asian region help?

Integration is the key to boosting trade, transport connectivity, electricity transmission and climate change in the region. If the countries lift some of the policy restrictions and create a more modern trade infrastructure, we estimate the total inter-regional trade to increase by $44 billion.

 

Please elaborate on the policy restrictions that you are referring to?

In terms of trade, this is the region that has restrictive trade policies, and that results in high tariffs and non-tariff barriers. So the cost of trading is very high. Also, the cost of moving goods across the border is very high and there is a need for customs modernisation with focus on moving towards digitalisation and risk space inspection.

 

What is the role of the World Bank in strengthening inter-regional trade and addressing some of these challenges?

Our role is to support our client countries. We come in where there is demand. For instance, we are working on the policy side in creating an enabling environment for a shared electricity market. We are also working on some of the investments in terms of production, distribution and transmission of electricity.

 

How significant is India in the South Asia region?

India has a big role to play in the South Asia region with 72% of the region’s population and 76% of its GDP. Therefore, India has a very important leadership role to play in terms of setting the agenda for inter-regional integration, cooperation and supporting and implementing that agenda.

 

What are some of the big things that India needs to do to reap the benefits of trade in the South Asian region?

India has signed FTAs with most of the countries in the region. However, there are still a number of tariffs and non-tariff barriers that are very high and that can sometimes be a very high bar to reach for exporters. So, greater openness on the policy front is important, which means modernising the trade policy and tariffs.

 

Further, seamless connectivity and thinner borders are essential to ensure benefits accrue to India and particularly to the states in the north-east. It will open up opportunities for greater trade in agricultural goods and for tourism as well.

 

There is also a need to support the private sector. While some firms grow into exports on their own, others need support in terms of capacity building, knowing their neighbours and understanding the market needs to help them improve on their competitiveness.

 

Investment is required in improving infrastructure connectivity, including improving roads and waterways, while making sure those investments are inclusive and the benefits of those investments accrue to the communities.

 

The South Asian region has one of the highest rates of poverty in the world and the pandemic has worsened the situation. What are the urgent steps that can be taken to pull a huge population out of poverty?

The World Bank’s core mission is to reduce poverty and boost shared prosperity. So a large part of our work is in this space. From a regional perspective, we see that further regional integration can have very significant growth and poverty benefits.

 

By supporting greater trade openness, by reducing the transactions on connectivity and by bringing cleaner and cheaper energy sources we can make services more accessible to the poor and can also create new opportunities in terms of livelihood and jobs.

The UK's minister driving the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations with India said on Wednesday that the Diwali deadline set for a deal is a good 'landing point' as there is 'real optimism' on both sides.

 

UK Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan was giving evidence to the House of Commons International Trade Committee when she was asked about the timeline announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his visit to India last week.

 

The minister said the negotiating teams, currently in India for the third round of FTA talks, have been 'going at pace' and if they come across 'bumps in the road', those will be dealt with accordingly.

 

 

'Diwali seems like a good landing point. Like all of these things, if you provide a political anchor it helps drive the energy,' said Trevelyan, in response to questions from the cross-party parliamentary committee.

 

'But we may yet come across areas of disagreement and need more time on (them). But our respective Prime Ministers have given us that landing zone and there is real optimism and real effort on both sides… the team are out there this week moving into the next stage, looking at the various chapters where those areas of agreement are and indeed looking at the text already, which is really exciting,' she said.

 

'The Prime Minister was out last weekend, helping champion all the work that my team are doing to move forwards on an India FTA,' she added.

 

The senior Cabinet minister also indicated that while an interim agreement by mid-April ahead of a full-fledged FTA by year-end had been on the agenda, there has been a mindset shift on the Indian side to go ahead for a completed agreement by October.

 

'It (interim agreement) is a tool, but their mindset has changed since doing deals with Australia and UAE. Getting an interim agreement by mid-April fell away by virtue of resource capacity within their trade team,' said Trevelyan, with reference to India's recently concluded trade agreements with Australia and the UAE.

 

'Actually, now having had two rounds of talks with their fantastic team, there is a sense that we probably can do more than perhaps those early conversations; which is why we have all set ourselves the challenge to see if we can draw what will be the broad FTA that both parties want to see through the course of this year,' she said.

 

The minister was also questioned about India's 'neutrality' in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and its impact on the talks. However, Trevelyan was clear that the 'trade track' of the bilateral relationship was not tied in with the diplomatic side.

 

'Every country takes a position. India's taken a neutral position… The key is that trade deals aren't the tool for the broader diplomatic agreement discussion. Those continue and there's continuing discussions around areas of policy difference, whatever they might be,' she said.

 

'What we will continue to do is encourage everybody to think about how their relationship, either with Russia or indeed with Ukraine, can be enhanced or reduced in order to bring this war to an end as quickly as we can,' she noted.

 

The minister highlighted that while historically, FTAs have been very much about 'straight forward movement of goods', they are now about looking beyond to areas such as innovation.

 

On a specific question on whether her negotiating team has a mandate to raise issues around the Russia-Ukraine conflict, she said: 'No, they have a very clear mandate to continue discussing the broad range of trade issues that we want to see in a trade deal with India.'

 

The minister reiterated that the UK wants to see a 'broad partnership' covering defence and strategic ties and as part of those discussions UK minister of state for defence procurement Jeremy Quin has been out in India for the last few days talking to his counterparts in India.

 

'So, lots of different tracks going on but for the FTA, we have a mandate from across Whitehall and the team are cracking on with making progress and we'll see how we go. We hope we can make good progress, but we may yet encounter challenges,' she said.

 

During his two-day visit to India, Johnson had announced that he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have told the negotiators to get the FTA done by Diwali, which falls on October 24 this year.

 

On the eve of the visit, officials had confirmed that four out of 26 chapters within the FTA have been finalised during the first two rounds since the negotiations began in January and 'significant progress' has been made in the remaining 22 chapters.

India is scheduled to ship its first wheat cargo to Egypt, following the latter's phytosanitary approval of India-origin crop earlier in April.

 

Around 55,000t of Indian wheat is due to be loaded by trading firm Meera International at Kandla port for shipment to Egypt, line-up data show. The Mana is expected to arrive at Kandla on 29 April, with the shipment date yet to be announced.

 

The shipment comes after Egypt's agriculture ministry authorised wheat imports from India, as it seeks to replace Black Sea supply, which has seen disruptions since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February. Egypt's lower wheat purchases this year have left the country more exposed to Black Sea supply disruptions than the rest of the Middle East and north Africa region.

 

India's bumper wheat output has pressured prices, which have been the most competitive internationally since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out. This brought the country's wheat exports to a record 8.5mn t last marketing season (April 2021-March 2022). Exports are forecast to rise to 10mn t in 2022-23, according to the US Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agriculture Service.

 

India has already exported close to 950,000t of wheat in April, with another 180,000t scheduled to be shipped later this month and including other rare destinations such as Israel and Mozambique. An additional 435,500t is in the line-ups for arrival at Indian ports at the end of April, for shipment at an unannounced date.

Three Tamil Nadu-based products — the Puliyankudi acid lime, Thooyamalli rice and Virudhunagar sambha vathal (Chilly) have applied for a Geographical Indication (GI) tag here in Chennai on Monday.

 

Details on all these three products were collated and prepared by IPR attorney P. Sanjai Gandhi on behalf of the applicants.

 

The application for the Puliyankudi acid lime was made by the Tamil Nadu State Agricultural Marketing Board and Melapuliyankudi Farmers’ Association. The NABARD Madurai Agri Business Incubation Forum was the facilitator.

 

Puliyankudi, a village in Tenkasi, is famous for acid lime cultivation. Among local people this place is called the lemon city of Tamil Nadu. Kadayam lemon here is popular for its taste and juiciness. Acid lime trees are small and bushy with sharp spines. Leaves are small with narrowly winged petioles. The flowers and fruits are small. The lemon grown in this region weighs about 50g and each tree bears around 950 fruits. It is grown in Puliyankudi, Sankarankovil, Kadayam, Kadayanallur and Kuruvikulam and adjoining areas.

 

The Virudhunagar Chillies’ Merchants Association, along with Tamil Nadu State Agricultural Marketing Board, has applied for GI tag for Virudhunagar sambha vathal. In Tamil Nadu, chillies are mainly grown in the districts of Virudhunagar, Ramanathapuram, Sivagangai and Thoothukudi and the major markets for them are also located here. The long slender shape of chillies grown in the Sattur, Virudhunagar and Vilathikulam areas is called Virudhunagar sambha chilli. These chillies are bright red and its length is 6-6.5 cm with a sharp tip and bulged shoulders. Having a good capsaicin content, these chillies are preferred in value addition industry, especially for oleoresin extraction.

 

The Tamil Nadu State Agricultural Marketing Board is the applicant for Thooyamalli rice and this was facilitated by NABARD Madurai Agri Business Incubation Forum. Thooyamalli rice, which literally means pure jasmine, is cultivated during the sambha season for a period of 135-140 days. The seeds are directly sown and transplanting system is used for growing this variety. It grows up to the height between 115–125cm and yields about 1,125 kg/acre and the straw yield will be 35 bundles (1,050 kg/acre). It is rich in protein and has high-fat content. In terms of minerals, it is high in iron, magnesium and zinc.

 

In the last one week, the GI head office in Chennai has also received applications from various products across the country like West Bengal’s Kolkatti jewellerry and Begampur cotton handloom saree. Application has also been filed for Goa Hilario Mango (Manghilar or Mangilar/Mangilal) and Taleigao Vayingim (brinjal) from Goa.

 

A Geographical Indication (GI) is a label that is applied to products that have a specific geographical origin and that have characteristics that are related to that particular location. The owner of the GI tag has exclusive rights over the product.

Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation (Hafed) has decided to enter the wheat export business as it looks to gain from the increase in demand for Indian wheat amid the Russia-Ukraine war.

 

The federation is targeting a six times increase in procurement in 2022-23, a move traders said will push up domestic wheat prices which have already crossed Rs 50/kg in retail.

 

Russia and Ukraine account for about a third of the global wheat exports. But the Russian invasion of Ukraine has forced their buyers to scout for other sources, opening an unprecedented export opportunity for Indian wheat traders.

 

Buyers of Indian wheat have been largely focused on states like Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Punjab and Haryana have remained on the sidelines due to their high taxes and some quality issues.

 

'We are getting a lot of export inquiries from London, the Middle East, Egypt, etc.,' said A Srinivas, managing director of Hafed. 'So we have decided to take up this opportunity and procure 2 LMT in a partnership with traders at Rs 2,025/quintal, a price which is above the MSP but below the market price.'

 

Srinivas said that 'in addition to the 2 LMT, Hafed has decided to procure another 1 LMT at Rs 2020/quintal in districts that fall in the NCR area', as lot of domestic distributors are approaching the federation. 'So far, our highest annual wheat procurement was close to 50,000 tonnes,' he said.

 

Thus, there is a six times increase in Hafed’s wheat procurement target this year to 3 LMT, when compared to its average procurement of 50,000 tonnes in any given year in the past.

 

This move by Hafed is expected to increase the inflationary pressure on domestic wheat prices, said traders.

 

According to the consumer affairs ministry, the on year all India average retail prices of wheat are up by 17%, while the wholesale prices are up by 22%.

 

Although there is good demand for Indian wheat, there are quality issues in Haryana on account of Karnal bunt disease.

 

'Only a few districts like Sirsa, Fatehabad, etc. can provide export quality wheat. Some origins like the Middle East are interested in getting wheat flour (aata) instead of whole wheat,' said Srinivas.

 

Farmers in Punjab are eager to gain from this opportunity. 'We have requested the state government to allow us to procure wheat outside the APMCs without levies, else, Punjab is likely to miss the bus,' said Puneet Singh Thind, director of the Northern Farmers Mega FPO.