Indian Railways has come to Food Corporation of India’s (FCI) rescue in flood-hit Punjab and Haryana, where part of its foodgrain stocks have been rotting due to heavy rains. The national transporter has given a discount of 35% to the public sector food procurer to carry grains from northern India to other parts of the country. The railways also expects to boost its own revenue by transporting a large volume of...

THE fast-depleting groundwater levels and subsidised electricity supply to farmers in Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh spell doom for agricultural productivity in the region regarded as the “Food Bowl of India”, and has prompted the government to turn its gaze towards the eastern region for fulfilling its food security ambitions. A background note drafted by the department of agriculture and cooperation (DoAC) for the two-daylong workshop on the theme...

The government today revised upward its estimate for foodgrain production at 218.20 million tonnes (mt) in the 2009-10 crop year. The upward revision came even as the estimates for output of rice, wheat and pulses were revised downward for the year. Even as the foodgrain production in 2009-10 is expected to surpass its earlier estimate, it continues to be lower than the output of 234.47 mt achieved in 2008-09. The fourth...

The European Commission recommended sweeping new changes to the European Union’s policy on the cultivation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on Tuesday, unveiling a proposal to grant individual member states the right to decide for themselves whether to allow their domestic farmers to grow the altered crops. “I think that this proposal reflects a balanced approach to a sensitive issue, in particular for European citizens,” European Health Commissioner John Dalli told...

India expects a strong rebound in farm output, which will substantially reduce food price inflation that has soared since last year when the country’s worst drought in 37 years hit crops, the agriculture minister said. This year’s June-September monsoon was 16% below normal last month, but rainfall has revived significantly, calming fears of shortages and higher prices. India also needs to ease tight controls on the sugar sector, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar...