Climate Change... it’s in our hand

The Global Language Monitor has announced the Top Word of the Decade is ‘Global Warming’ and ‘Climate Change’ was the top phrase. Of course both are caused by greenhouse gases (Water Vapor, carbon, Methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone.) major caused by Carbon dioxide and Methane. The greenhouse gases emission is increasing the earth’s temperature. The consequences are raise in sea levels, more rainfall, extreme weather conditions, melting glaciers, and uneven seasons.
Affect to Indian agriculture:
Agriculture is extremely vulnerable to climate change. The impacts of climate change on agriculture are expected to be negative, threatening Indian food security. Higher temperatures are eventually reducing yields of crops and encourage the weed and pest. Changes in precipitation patterns may increase of short-run crop failures and long-run production declines. Climate change will have varying effects irrigated yields for all crops like Rice, wheat, and soybeans which will cause food shortages and dramatic price increases. Increase in temperatures need more fertilizers which cause to higher emissions.Climate change is likely to aggravate the heat stress in dairy animals, adversely affecting their productive and reproductive performance. A preliminary estimate indicates that global warming is likely to lead to a loss of 1.6 million tones in milk production in India by 2020.Indian council for agriculture research (ICAR) studies on the effects of climate change found that a temperature increase of one degree Celsius would mean 3 to 7 per cent fall in wheat, soybean, mustard, groundnut and potato crops.
Climate change is reality and it’s in our hand. We need to take the necessary steps and adopt new technologies. Government has to teach the farmers by switching to crop varieties that could withstand heat, because climate change could improve the chickpea, maize, sorghum and millet crops in the West Coast and the potato and mustard crops in northwest India. Investment in agriculture research is needed to develop heat- resistant crop strains. We need to reduce carbon emissions sharply soon and encourage Bio fuels rather than fossil fuels.
For more details on UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen COP 15:United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

Systematic exploitation of tribals

Prime Minister Dr. Man Mohan Singh had announced that the empowerment of tribal is essential for equitable growth of the country. He agreed that “The systematic exploitation and social and economic abuse of our tribal communities can no longer be tolerated”. But actually Man Mohan sing government is trying to set up more projects which leads to destroying the natural resources and exploiting the tribal.
TATA and ESSAR are plans to invest Rs.20, 000 crores in a steel plants in Chhattisgarh in 6,500 acres of land, eventually ten villages and 350,000 tribal have to be evacuated and use a large quantity of water from the river Sabari and will pollute the Indravati.Tribal people make up only 9 per cent of the country’s population, but more than 40 per cent of the land used to build development projects has been theirs, according to government estimates.Most tribal don’t want to sell their ancestral land they feel it’s a crime in tribal culture, the State government is forcibly acquiring the land which was not totally voluntary. Some of the tribal are not satisfied with the compensation packages like Land for Land package, Land exchange for Money and Job offer for family.
Facts:
* Government is telling these projects are necessary for attracting investors and GDP growth.
* Tribals are demanding their first right on forest, forest resources and against to “Illegal diversion” of forest land for corporate projects.
* Iron Companies are in upset that all Iron ore bearing blocks in our country are covered with forests. The environment authorities will not give permission so easily to fell trees to clear the land for mining.

A short film on Dongria Kondh tribe is to live in the Niyamgiri Hills in Orissa state, they are suffering due to a bauxite refinery, built and operated by a British mining company Vedanta Resources.

village for Sale

In India lot of villages are being sold by the governments for setting up of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) claiming that’s for people well being and development. Government is acquiring the villages forcefully or villagers’ own accord by announcing attractive (in papers) rehabilitation packages. Of course... the compensation package is not adequate and not up the market rates.Sometimes these lands are sold and resold for higher prices changing hands to real-estate people.
My fear and emotion is that India’s food security could be weakened by commercialization of agriculture land and lot of villagers are going to loose their livelihood. Why don’t we dare to compare with China, how the agriculture and Industrialization can flourish evenly. China produce food grains almost double than India with less cultivate land and industrial sector also producing more than India. We must protect our agriculture, agriculture based occupations and villages. Humans cannot survive without food and nature.

Father of Green Revolution- Norman Borlaug

The Father of Green revolution Norman Ernest Borlaug has died on September 12th 2009 (March 25, 1914 – September 12, 2009). Dr.Borlaugh introduced high-yield crop innovations for bumper harvests across the fields of India in 1970s that was a turning point in India’s food production pattern. Borlaug is considered the brain behind India’s Green Revolution. He began working with wheat production in Mexico at the end of World War II. He developed varieties of wheat that were resistant to disease and yielded higher crops. He took these varieties to other continents, where in certain places grain yields more than quadrupled. He has collaborated with scientists from India and Pakistan, in adapting the new wheat to new lands and in gaining acceptance for their production.

The Government of India awarded PADMA VIBHUSHAN in 2006 in Science and Engineering for his role in spreading the Green Revolution to India. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for developing disease-resistant wheat that helped developing world in fighting famine and He was also awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor bestowed by US Congress, in 2007.In addition to those Dr. Borlaug has received extensive recognition from universities and organizations in six countries: Canada, India, Mexico, Norway, Pakistan, and the United States.
“Food is the moral right of all who are born into this world” -Norman Borlaug

Aug,15th 2009 Declared as “Drought India”

India is facing the threat of drought with 60% of rain shortfall and the poorest in 83 years. Farmers are unable to sow crops in this kharif season, India declared 177 districts are in drought among 626 districts. Monsoon rains are critical to India's farm prospects and vital for paddy, sugarcane, oilseeds and other crops. Up to 70 percent of Indians are dependent on farm incomes, and about 60 percent of India's farms depend on rains. This state of calamity will negatively impact on food prices and economy.
The government should take measures to maintain the sufficient food stocks of food grains to distribute in drought affected areas. Necessary steps should be planned for next crop season “Rabi”. We wish the drought couldn’t become famine.

Support Farmers

Farming First

Interim Budget 2009

The India Budget places an importance on agriculture since most of the Indian population is dependent on agriculture. Budget continued the highest priority of rural development.
Highlights of Indian Interim Budget 2009 in agriculture and rural development are:
*Government has set the target for the agriculture credit flow for 2009-10 at Rs 3, 25,000 crore.
*Fertilizer subsidy to go to farmers directly which will be based on nutrients.
*Interest subvention scheme for short term crop loans up to Rs.3 lakh per farmer at the interest rate of 7 per cent per annum to be continued. Additional subvention of 1 per cent to be paid from this year, as incentive to those farmers who repay short term crop loans on schedule.
*Time given to the farmers having more than two hectares of land to pay 75 per cent of their over dues under Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme extended from 30th June, 2009 to 31st December, 2009.
*Taskforce to be set up to examine the issue of debt taken by a large number of farmers in some regions of Maharashtra from private money lenders who were not covered by the loan waiver scheme .
*Additional allocation of Rs 1,000 crore for Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Program (AIBP).
*Allocation under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) stepped up by 30 per cent in B.E. 2009-10 over B.E. 2008-09.
*Central assistance for storm-water drainage project increased to Rs 500 crore from Rs 200 crore provided by the interim Budget
*Allocation under National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme increased by 144 per cent to Rs.39, 100 crore in B.E. 2009-10 over B.E. 2008-09.
*New scheme Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY) with an allocationof Rs.100 crore launched on pilot basis for integrated development of 1000 villages having population of scheduled castes above 50 per cent.
More Details:indiabudget.nic.in

Mayday Song for Farmers and Peasants

Elect pro-farmer representatives

2009 General elections need to bring relief measures to farmers. Farmers and Farmers organizations should come together to support candidates, who are work for agricultural and rural development. They should consider only candidature not the political parties. As everybody know that 60% of our population depends on agriculture and its subsidiaries. Now agriculture sector is facing crisis and decline phase. We need the support and growth in agriculture sector and protect the rural economy. The elected representatives must look in to the farmer’s issues like:
Minimum Support price, rural development, separate Budget allocation for agriculture, Marketing facilities, agriculture credit, irrigation, crop insurance, modernization of agriculture and implementation of Mr. Swami Nathan Committee recommendations.

I would like to request the Local farmer’s organizations to identify the MLAs, MPs based on their party’s manifestos and Candidatures and educate the farmers to elect them

Recession - Agriculture

Now recession is the trend and Buzzword. India is dependent on USA and other developed nations for its trade. Eventually developing nation’s economy affected by recession due to globalization. The services sector in India is facing some liquidity problems, industrial sector and financial sectors are largely affected by world recession.

Recession- Agriculture:
Indian agriculture has not impacted by global economy crises, except some export oriented crops. About 60-65% of India’s population and workforce depend on agriculture. Country’s agriculture sector will save the India from the huge impact of the global economic recession. Right now agriculture is the key for Indian growth in this difficult time. Agriculture is an absolute necessary, producing the basic human needs of food and clothing and exciting reason is Bio fuels. An Investment in agriculture is considered as a conservative and tangible Investment with consistent returns.Agriculture is the best solutions to maintain economic growth this year. Even in down markets agriculture companies performed very well in 2008 and will do the same in 2009. I wish that the agriculture sector will continue to provide support to our economy.