-PTI/ Financial Express Paddy is the main kharif (summer) crop, besides pulses, oilseeds and commercial crops like cotton and sugarcane. The Union Agriculture Ministry on Thursday laid down the standard operating procedure (SOP) to guide farmers on safety precautions that need to be strictly followed during planting of kharif crops amid the threat of COVID-19 pandemic. Paddy is the main kharif (summer) crop, besides pulses, oilseeds and commercial crops like cotton and sugarcane....

-The New Indian Express Cotton farmers in Karaikal have requested the district administration to give them and farm workers passes to carry out work in the fields in order prevent the crops from pest attack. KARAIKAL (Puducherry): Cotton farmers in Karaikal have requested the district administration to give them and farm workers passes to carry out work in the fields in order prevent the crops from pest attack. Cotton cultivation is taken...

-Outlook India Khammam district in Telangana has taken the initiative to set up temporary decentralised village level camps called “Rythu Mitra Kendras”. The administration of Khammam district in Telangana has taken the innovative initiative of setting up temporary decentralised village level camps called “Rythu Mitra Kendras” during the current agricultural marketing season. These camps are equipped with cotton moisture measurement machines. Through an aggressive communication campaign, small and marginal farmers have been encouraged...

-The Hindu The country’s hybrid seed model for cotton favours seed companies over farmers Genetically Modified (GM) pest resistant Bt cotton hybrids have captured the Indian market since their introduction in 2002. These now cover over 95% of the area under cotton, with the seeds produced entirely by the private sector. India’s cotton production in 2019 is projected as the highest ever: 354 lakh bales. Bt cotton’s role in increasing India’s cotton...

-The Hindu Border districts most affected; authorities caught napping despite FAO warning. Ahmedabad: Sharing borders with neighbouring Pakistan, Gujarat is under attack from hoppers — new-born locusts — that have flown in across the international border. As the swarms mature, they have ravaged farms in North Gujarat, devastating farmers in the three border districts Banaskantha, Patan and Kutch. The locusts, known as tiddis locally, have wreaked havoc on standing crops of castor, cumin,...