Farmers being deprived due to govt’s wrong policy:
Fakhrul
09:37
PM, May 25, 2019 / LAST MODIFIED: 09:40 PM, May 25, 2019
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul
Islam Alamgir, on May 25, 2019, was speaking at a press conference at the
party's Nayapaltan central office in Dhaka. Photo: Courtesy
Star
Online Report
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul
Islam Alamgir today said the farmers are being deprived of fair price of their
paddy due to the government’s “wrong policy and corruption.”
Fakhrul, a former junior minister
for agriculture, also called upon the government to allocate additional Tk
10,000 crore to purchase paddy for the interest of farmers.
The farmers are being deprived of
the due price of paddy due to importing rice, Fakhrul also said while speaking
at a press conference at the party’s Nayapaltan central office in Dhaka this
noon.
This year, the paddy growers are
facing headship to meet their production cost and amid such situation several
ruling party leaders, even the parliamentary standing committee on agriculture,
have called upon the government to take steps to end the saga.
Fakhrul said though the government
is claiming that the country has achieved autarky in producing rice, it has
imported a huge amount of rice to ensure “benefits of the ruling party
leaders”.
He said 69 lakh metric tonnes of
rice were imported by both the government and several private channels in the
2017-2018 fiscal year.
Around 3.3 lakh tonnes of rice were
imported over the last 10 months while 97,000 more tonnes in waiting for
import, he added.
As a result, farmers are being
deprived of fair prices of paddy due to the import of the huge amount of rice.
Besides, farmers are also being
denied of fair prices as the government is allowing ruling party leaders and
activists to procure paddy only to make their pockets heavier, he alleged.
Fakhrul also blasted Mahbubul Alam
Hanif, joint general secretary of the ruling Awami League, for pointed finger
at the BNP-Jamaat men for their indulgence in the conspiracy behind the recent
farmers’ protest by setting fire on paddy filed over drastic fall of paddy
price.
“I told earlier that BNP has become
a nightmare for them (Awami League). They can see the ghost of BNP everywhere
every time,” he said.
Paddy growers want that the
government would purchase the paddy directly from them ensuring a fair price,
but the government is not putting its heed to the demand, Fakhrul said.
Fakhrul also placed a 15-point
recommendation to get rid of the crisis created over the fall of paddy price.
The recommendations include
providing an interest-free loan to farmers, renting private silos for procuring
paddy by the government, distributing huge rice among people under the social
safety net programmes, buying rice directly from farmers, cancelling the permission
that allows ruling party men to procure paddy.
Exchange Of
Food Items Among Relatives, Neighbors Adds Colours To Iftar Parties
PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan
Point News - APP - 26th May, 2019 ) :With the start of third Ashra of 10th holy
month of Ramazan, fooditems' exchange among
relatives, friends and neighbors have gained popularity in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,
which were adding colours to Iftar parties.
Food items including cooked rice,
chicken meat, pakoras, dahee galay, dates, mangoes, jalebies and sweet dishes
are being exchanged among people ahead of iftar, adding spirit of brotherhood
and love.
Dates (Kajoors), rice and Pakoras
are the most favorite items of people being exchanged ahead of Iftar parties,
which are being sold like a hot cake in Peshawar due
to its batter taste and quality.
In Peshawar,
different types of Pakoras are being prepared like palak pakora, onion pakoras,
Gobhi pakora, which are attracting people from allages
including senior citizens, children, women and
youth as special iftar item.
The delicious dish is being
prepared from different
ingredients such as onion, eggs, potatos, chicken and cauliflower after these
things are being dipped in a Pakora made flour.
"Pakora is my most favorite
item during Iftar and without it my Iftar seems incomplete," said Misal
Khan, a retired Govt official
busy in shopping at historic Ghanta Ghar chowk at Peshawar.
"Personally, I like chicken
pakora because of its better taste and energy's perspective," he said,
adding demands of onion and potato Pakora has also increased in local markets including
Hasthnagrai, Firdus, Cantonment, board, Tehkal
and Hayatabad during Ramadan.
These markets were
flooded with Pakora, Jalebi, Dahi Bhalay and Kachalo stalls and shops where
hectic buying are being witnessed when Iftar's time becomes nearer.
Like other edible items, he
said prices of
Pakora has also increased this year as one kiolgoram Pakora is being sold at
Rs220-240 per kilogram against Rs180-220 last year that needed to be checked by
the district administration. "A few Pakora are enough for me as it is a
complete food," Khan said.
This popular snack of the
subcontinent origin takes very less time in preparation and is being served as
special Iftar meal with any chutney or ketchup to people of all social
class.
It
is also popular among people of both rural and urban areas and exchanged by
relatives and families as Iftar's gifts.
"I am going to my sister home
to give her two kilogram Pakora and dates as special Iftar's gift," said
Khurshid Alam, a resident of Nowshera.
"Exchange of
food dishes among relatives increase love and
warmth," he said, adding exchange of
food items are to bring people closer to each other," he said.
Zardali Khan, a vendor shopkeeper
said he had started this profitable business because
it does not require much investment.
He said its price has
been increased this year due to hike in prices of related ingredients being
used in preparation of this spicy item of the subcontinent
Leaving rice alone
·
Published at 09:45 pm May 25th, 2019
The point is to benefit consumers Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune
Don’t mess with the markets through politics
The Finance
Minister Mustafa Kamal has announced that rice imports will be restricted,
exports allowed and subsidized to aid Bangladeshi farmers.
What actually
needs to happen is that the finance minister needs to stop interfering in the
rice market. Of course, with millions of rice farmers in the country, all of
whom have the vote, this isn’t something a politician is going to do, however
sensible it actually is.
The background
argument here is that sometimes Bangladesh doesn’t produce enough rice to feed
everyone -- the price rises and that’s bad for consumers. At other times, the
monsoon season goes well, no cyclones destroying crops, and thus the harvest is
good.
Prices, then,
are great for consumers, but the farmers are complaining bitterly about not
making money. The temptation is for politicians -- and all would like the votes
of both the consumers and the farmers -- to step in and to try and organize
this market, and the prices in it. Sadly, this doesn’t really work.
This is because
of an old problem that Friedrich Hayek pointed out in his Nobel lecture.
Government, anyone at the centre, just doesn’t know enough, cannot gain enough
information, to be able to plan matters in detail. Thus we shouldn’t be using
such decisions from the centre to change matters because such decisions will
always be made upon inadequate data.
Concerning
rice, there is this way to approach this question. We want -- as is always the
intent in matters economic -- to improve the lives of consumers as best we
can.
As Adam Smith
pointed out, the purpose of production is always and only consumption. It is
who gets to eat the rice at what price which is our concern, not who grows it
nor where.
So, if
Bangladeshi farmers can provide it better, or cheaper, than foreigners, then
good luck to them. If they can’t, then use the land for something else. Given
the Bangladeshi geography and climate, foreign supply is only ever going to be
at the margin and that’s fine.
But what do we
actually have as a system? A minister decides whether excess production may be
exported or not. Or that prices are “too high” and so imports may be allowed.
Why do we have this license system? Why do we need a ministerial decision?
Think on it --
a quick look around the internet tells us that there are at least 14 strains of
rice used for just the Aush and Boro plantings
(Sulfala,
Biblab,
Asha only
three of them) and they’ll all obviously have slightly different
characteristics.
We would trust
a minister to have the information about which of these should be planted in
which quantity on what plots of land now, would we? We know, absolutely, that
he just cannot rule the world to that level of detail.
So what makes
us think he knows what the price should be? And yes, such different kinds of
rice might well have different relative prices.
Well, of
course, the minister isn’t even claiming that he knows much about all of these
individually. What he is saying, though, is that he can see the prices in the
market and thus, must do something.
Allow those
exports, limit those imports -- which is the truly silly thing about the
system. If we didn’t have the rules on licenses for import and export then the
prices would be all we did need.
We’d not need
the intervention of the minister at all, would we? If rice was plentiful and
cheap in Bangladesh, then it would be bought for export. If it were expensive
and more was desired, then imports would be shipped in. Because this is the way
the markets work, prices change people’s behaviour.
The current
system of ministerial decisions looks at the same prices the market sees and
then takes weeks or months to make a decision. When left alone, those markets
would react to those same prices today.
All we’ve done
by having the political decision is to make the system slower and less
effective. Which isn’t, when we come to think of it, really how we want to run
a country.
All of which
gives us a useful and basic rule for our socioeconomic system. It isn’t true
that free markets and prices solve every problem. There will always be things
we want to do over and above -- those purely impersonal forces.
But the trick
is to allow the market result to play out and then see what problems are left
which then need to be addressed, instead of intervening in the markets
themselves and thereby making things worse.
Thus giving us
our basic rule: Don’t mess with markets. Clean up after them perhaps, tax and
redistribute the spoils at least a little bit, certainly, but don’t mess with
them through politics and regulation.
Tim Worstall is
a Senior Fellow at the Adam Smith Institute in London.
PHilMech identifies projects for financing from P10-B RCEF
Published May 25, 2019, 10:00 PM
By Madelaine B. Miraflor
The Philippine Center for
Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) has already identified the
mechanization projects and programs to be funded by the P10-billion Rice
Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF).
Republic Act (RA) 11203 or the
Rice Tariffication Law stipulates the creation of the RCEF that would be funded
by rice tariff collections. As part of the law, RCEF will be first injected
with P10 billion annually from 2019 to 2024 or a period of six years.
Of the P10 billion, P5 billion
will be allocated for mechanization of the local rice sector, P3 billion for
provision of high-yielding in bred rice seeds, P1 billion for credit support,
and P1 billion for extension support and education of rice farmers.
“With the formal launching of the
projects and programs under RCEF, we at PHilMech welcome the opportunity to
spearhead the modernization of the country’s rice industry through
mechanization,” said PHilMech Director IV Dr. Baldwin G. Jallorina.
PHilMech’s target is for the
agency to be able to distribute 200 sets of modern equipment across the country
every year using the fund. The agency had also set 57 priority areas across
different parts of the country for such distribution.
The reason why bulk of RCEF will
go to PHilMech is because mechanization in the rice sector could help reduce
post-harvest losses, which makes locally produced rice more expensive than the
imported supply.
Right now, the cost of producing
rice in the Philippines stand at P12 per kilo, which is more than half of the
production cost of Thai and Vietnamese rice farmers.
PHilMech believes with the
successful implementation of the different components under RCEF, the cost of
producing palay in the Philippines can be reduced by P2 to P3 per kilo.
“We should be aware that we
really need to modernize the country’s rice industry as we cannot rely forever
on imported rice to help feed our country’s growing population. That fact also
underscores the importance of the different components under RCEF that will make
the rice farmers competitive,” Jallorina said.
Last March, PHilMech Deputy
Director Raul Paz said that even if RCEF will soon be made available, his
agency — used to handling only P200 million to P300 million budget every year —
could not immediately distribute machineries all over the country.
He said that before PHilMech
could spend its RCEF allocation, the agency would first need to hire more
people, get more vehicles for effective transportation, and expand its
procurement unit. He said all of this could take months.
“PHilMech is a very small agency,” Paz said before.
“PHilMech is a very small agency,” Paz said before.
What PHilMech needs right now, he
said, is additional “administrative cost” of at least P250 million to expand
its operations and structure.
Nevertheless, he said PHilMech is
now “ready” to help the government implement the Rice Tariffication Law.
“It will take a while,” he said.
“But at this time, we are already doing preparatory activities and we are
starting to validate the municipalities.”
To be specific, RA 11203 removes
the quantitative restrictions on rice imports in place of tariffs, or 35
percent for those coming from Southeast Asia, and 50 percent for outside the
region.
Former Agriculture Secretary Dr.
William Dar said that even if the country can source cheaper rice from abroad, it
should maintain at least a 95-percent self-sufficiency level for the staple.
He explained that there will come
a time when even the leading exporters of rice worldwide will experience
production shortfalls from the extreme weather events.
Also, only 5 percent of worldwide
rice supply is traded internationally.
Imports of basic goods at 1.2mn tons in 2 months
TEHRAN, May 25 (MNA) – During the first two months of the current
Iranian calendar year (ending on May 21, 2019) Iran imported 1.2 million tons
of basic goods, the deputy agriculture minister Yazdan Seif announced on
Saturday.
According to SeifÙˆ who is also the CEO
of Government Trading corporation of Iran, the announced figure shows a growth of
28 percent in comparison with the same period in the year before.
As reported, the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) supplied over $6
billion in foreign currency for importing goods in the said two months, of
which $3 billion was allocated for importing essential goods such as rice,
vegetable oil, animal feedstock, medical equipment and pharmaceuticals.
The government has adopted the current subsidized currency plan
for importing essential goods in a move to curb the galloping prices for the
basic goods triggered by the steep decline in value of the rial against the
dollar.
Highlights of China's science news
Source:
Xinhua| 2019-05-25 16:57:27|Editor: Li Xia
BEIJING, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The following are the highlights of
China's science news from the past week:
SEAWATER POWER GENERATON
Chinese researchers have developed a low-cost underwater system
to generate electricity from seawater, offering a new approach to handle short
spikes in power demand and maintain longer-term steady power.
PRECISE NONINVASIVE SURGERY
Researchers from China and Canada have developed a new highly
targeted laser device to close blood vessels within human tissue.
Reporting on the U.S. journal Science Advances, they said the
device has the potential to diagnose diseases including skin cancer and perform
precise surgery without cutting the skin.
RICE BLAST CONTROL
An international study has found how rice blast fungus spreads,
providing insights on the control of rice blast, the most devastating rice
disease in the world.
The study is expected to help develop new approaches for the
control of rice blast fungus infection and also shed light on the study on the
virulence mechanism of plant fungi.
SATELLITE NAVIGATION JOURNAL
China will launch an international English journal called
"Satellite Navigation," according to the China Science Daily
Thursday.
The journal is coordinated by the Aerospace Information Research
Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Springer Nature. The
journal is open to submission and is expected to be published officially in
October.
AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM
Researchers have disclosed that phytoplankton diversity can
promote nutrient resource use efficiency in aquatic ecosystems.
The research is helpful for developing nature-based solutions
for aquatic ecosystem restoration. And its findings can improve peoples'
understanding on trophic transfer and nutrient cycling in aquatic ecosystems.
Bagudu Bids Farewell To Commissioners After Valedictory Session
Published 20 hours ago on 20 hours ago By YAHYA SARKI Birnin Kebbi
Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State, after presiding over the last
state executive council meeting with his Commissioners at the Government House
in Birnin Kebbi bid them farewell. At the meeting which was the last state
executive meeting before May 29th ,the governor while appreciating the
commissioners and other political appointees in his cabinet for their
performance and sacrifice during the last four years that they served the state
said the law does 
not permit him to keep them beyond May 29 when a new administration
is expected to start steering the affairs of the state. He said during the four
year period of his stewardship Kebbi State had witnessed tremendous economic progress
and development. According to him “It is because of the giant strides the state
recorded in agriculture particularly rice production that brought rice millers
such as WACOT, LABANA ,Dangote and others in different areas of the state. We
thank God they are doing well”. He said his administration also signed an MOU
with the NNPC for ethanol production and might also enter into partnership with
a German company for energy extracting plant to boost the economy of Kebbi
State. While thanking his cabinet members and those he said had helped to
contribute to the achievements recorded by his administration, he reiterated
his commitment to improving the economic status of the state and its people
not permit him to keep them beyond May 29 when a new administration
is expected to start steering the affairs of the state. He said during the four
year period of his stewardship Kebbi State had witnessed tremendous economic progress
and development. According to him “It is because of the giant strides the state
recorded in agriculture particularly rice production that brought rice millers
such as WACOT, LABANA ,Dangote and others in different areas of the state. We
thank God they are doing well”. He said his administration also signed an MOU
with the NNPC for ethanol production and might also enter into partnership with
a German company for energy extracting plant to boost the economy of Kebbi
State. While thanking his cabinet members and those he said had helped to
contribute to the achievements recorded by his administration, he reiterated
his commitment to improving the economic status of the state and its people
Alleged misappropriation in rice imports : Rishad makes
statement at FCID
26 May, 2019
0
Minister of Industry and Commerce
Rishad Bathiudeen yesterday made a statement at the Financial Crimes
Investigation Division (FCID), over alleged financial misappropriation in
importing rice through the Lanka Sathosa.
The Minister who arrived at the
FCID at about 10 last morning was in the premises till 4.30 in the evening.
After coming out of the FCID
building, the Minister told the media that he was asked to call over to make a
statement about certain allegations that existed from 2014, before he took over
the ministry.
Speaking to Sunday Observer an
official of the minister’s office said that the statements were to clarify
about the arrangement under which rice was imported by Lanka Sathosa.
“This issue started before
Minister Bathiudeen took over the Ministry. However, he can’t simply wash his
hands off citing it was before his period. He must assist with the
investigations into the matter,” an official of the Minister told the Sunday
Observer.
It is alleged that of the
approximately 250,000 mt of rice imported during the years 2014/2015 around
80,000 mt was found unsuitable for human consumption.
According to officials within the
FCID, the questioning was on investigations that had been launched in 2016 and
was not anything new.
Govt
pledges to procure paddy directly from farmers
Sunday,
May 26, 2019
Kazi Zahidul Hasan :
The Ministry of Food has strengthened its paddy procurement drive directly from farmers to help them relieving from price havoc.
The current market price of Boro paddy is Tk 450 to Tk 500 a maund (37kg). But production cost of per maund rice is about Tk 906.50, according to the Ministry of Food and Rice Mill Owners Association. Â
 "We have asked the District Food Controllers to intensify paddy procurement directly from farmers so that they can get fair price," Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder told The New Nation yesterday.
Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) and food officials are in field to supervise paddy procurement.
Earlier, the government decided to procure 1.5 lakh tons of Boro paddy and 11 lakh tons of rice from local market.
It has fixed the price of per kg paddy at Tk 26 a kg (Tk 1,040 per maund) and Tk 36 for a kg of parboiled and Tk 35 for aromatic rice.
The procurement by Food Department would continue until the end of August.
"Paddy growers deserve better treatment and it is the government's liability to help farmers sell paddy at proper prices," said Sadhan Chandra Majumder. Â
The Food Minister said that the government is looking for an effective mechanism so that the farmers  can no longer depend on middlemen and millers to sell their output.
When asked, Sadhan Chandra Majumder said that the government would increase storage capacity of its silos to create buffer stock of food grains (paddy, rice and wheat).
Silos under the Food Department have the storage capacity at best 21 lakh tons of food grains.
 "The government may buy an additional quantity of paddy and rice from the next season to deal with surplus production," said Sadhan Chandra Majumder.
 He cited that the government has already imposed high duty on rice import to encourage and support local production. The move will help farmers to get a proper price of their produce.
Despite the intensified procurement drive, many farmers are facing difficulty to sell their produce at designated centers due to lack of knowledge over maintaining moisture in paddy. The Food Department has asked farmers to maintain 14 per cent moisture in their paddy for selling it to the department. But most of the farmers do not know how to maintain the exact level of moisture leading them in confusion.
In many cases, Food officials refused to buy paddy from farmers on the ground of non-maintenance of proper moisture level, according to our local correspondents.
 "Market manipulation by a powerful millers' syndicate led the paddy prices down. Import of rice in bulk also worsened the situation. In this context, the government should put an all-out effort to paddy directly from farmers," Dr Moinul Islam, an Economics Professor at the University of Chittagong told The New Nation.
 "The government should create a buffer stock of rice buying it directly from the farmers. The stock can be sold at subsidized rate through OMS operation among marginal people. Such a measure can help protect farmers' interest as well." Dr Moinul Islam also suggested for enhancing agro-subsidy in the upcoming budget to support the farmers.
Bangladesh has become self-sufficient in food production taking advantage of good harvest in agro-crops, including paddy.
"But the growers are being deprived of fair price due to lack of an effective marketing and supply chain management. The government should look into the matter seriously to keep the agro sector afloat," said Dr Moinul Islam.    Â
The Ministry of Food has strengthened its paddy procurement drive directly from farmers to help them relieving from price havoc.
The current market price of Boro paddy is Tk 450 to Tk 500 a maund (37kg). But production cost of per maund rice is about Tk 906.50, according to the Ministry of Food and Rice Mill Owners Association. Â
 "We have asked the District Food Controllers to intensify paddy procurement directly from farmers so that they can get fair price," Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder told The New Nation yesterday.
Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) and food officials are in field to supervise paddy procurement.
Earlier, the government decided to procure 1.5 lakh tons of Boro paddy and 11 lakh tons of rice from local market.
It has fixed the price of per kg paddy at Tk 26 a kg (Tk 1,040 per maund) and Tk 36 for a kg of parboiled and Tk 35 for aromatic rice.
The procurement by Food Department would continue until the end of August.
"Paddy growers deserve better treatment and it is the government's liability to help farmers sell paddy at proper prices," said Sadhan Chandra Majumder. Â
The Food Minister said that the government is looking for an effective mechanism so that the farmers  can no longer depend on middlemen and millers to sell their output.
When asked, Sadhan Chandra Majumder said that the government would increase storage capacity of its silos to create buffer stock of food grains (paddy, rice and wheat).
Silos under the Food Department have the storage capacity at best 21 lakh tons of food grains.
 "The government may buy an additional quantity of paddy and rice from the next season to deal with surplus production," said Sadhan Chandra Majumder.
 He cited that the government has already imposed high duty on rice import to encourage and support local production. The move will help farmers to get a proper price of their produce.
Despite the intensified procurement drive, many farmers are facing difficulty to sell their produce at designated centers due to lack of knowledge over maintaining moisture in paddy. The Food Department has asked farmers to maintain 14 per cent moisture in their paddy for selling it to the department. But most of the farmers do not know how to maintain the exact level of moisture leading them in confusion.
In many cases, Food officials refused to buy paddy from farmers on the ground of non-maintenance of proper moisture level, according to our local correspondents.
 "Market manipulation by a powerful millers' syndicate led the paddy prices down. Import of rice in bulk also worsened the situation. In this context, the government should put an all-out effort to paddy directly from farmers," Dr Moinul Islam, an Economics Professor at the University of Chittagong told The New Nation.
 "The government should create a buffer stock of rice buying it directly from the farmers. The stock can be sold at subsidized rate through OMS operation among marginal people. Such a measure can help protect farmers' interest as well." Dr Moinul Islam also suggested for enhancing agro-subsidy in the upcoming budget to support the farmers.
Bangladesh has become self-sufficient in food production taking advantage of good harvest in agro-crops, including paddy.
"But the growers are being deprived of fair price due to lack of an effective marketing and supply chain management. The government should look into the matter seriously to keep the agro sector afloat," said Dr Moinul Islam.    Â
Rice prices
drop in Dhaka
Prices of rice have eased in
Dhaka as the government is trying to exert control on grain markets amidst
frustration of farmers over low paddy prices, reports bdnews24.com
bdnews24.com on
Friday found rice prices fell by up to Tk 4 per kg in different markets in the
capital in a week.
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh or BCB data showed similar
figures.
Fine varieties of rice are being sold between Tk 48 and Tk 56 a
kg, which were between Tk 52 and Tk 64 a week ago.
Coarse varieties are priced between Tk 35 and Tk 56, which were
between Tk 33 and Tk 52 last week.
Speaking to bdnews24.com, Mohiuddin Harun, a wholesaler at Mirpur,
cited bumper harvest followed by a drop in paddy prices this season as the
reason behind the fall in rice prices.
“Especially, prices of new arrivals are very low,” he said.
He is selling a sack of 50 kg Miniket rice from Kushtia at Tk
2,100 and BR Atash at Tk 1,650. The prices of these varieties were Tk 2,350 and
Tk 1,800 respectively a month ago.
Frustrated farmers are racing to make up losses by selling paddy
to government at Tk 1,040 per maund (1 maund = 37.42kg) as traders and millers
are offering half the price.
A government official on Thursday charged a leader of the ruling
party’s youth front with attempt to bar the purchase as the politician wanted
farmers of his choice on the list of sellers.
The government is procuring 1 million tonnes grains, starting
from Apr 25 and ending on Aug 31.
The harvest this season is much higher than the government’s
purchase target and farmers alleged that the government was not buying paddy
directly from them, but from millers and traders, who are forcing the farmers
to sell at lower prices.
The government is planning to export around 1 million tonnes of
surplus Boro rice after meeting the domestic demand, Agriculture Minister Abdur
Razzaque had earlier said.
“Unusually” high production has finally spoilt the joy of the
farmers, according to the minister.
To dam up the fall in prices by limiting imports, the government
raised total duty on rice import to 55 percent from 28 percent.
Bangladesh’s private traders imported 303,000 tonnes of rice in
the first 10 months of this fiscal year, forcing local farmers to incur “huge
losses”.
The new decision will help protect local farmers from future
losses, the government said.
District-wise
melas to supply quality seeds to farmers soon Hans News Service |
25 May 2019 1:59 AM
HIGHLIGHTS
He says initiatives of the Chief
Minister have brought tremendous and revolutionary changes in the agriculture
sector of the State Taking cue from Telangana, many States have been
implementing similar schemes Minister says the Farmer Loan Wavier Scheme will
be implemented once the election code comes to an end Hyderabad: Agriculture
Minister S Niranjan Reddy said the Annual Seed Mela (ASM) being organised at
Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University will be held at every
district headquarters in the State from the next year. Addressing the gathering
after the inauguration of annual seed mela organised at PJTSAU here on Friday,
he said the district-wise seed melas would also supply quality seeds to the
farmers. He said that the initiatives of Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao
with a foresight to improve the agriculture sector in the State have brought
tremendous and revolutionary changes in order to make agriculture profitable.
Advertise With Us Taking cue from Telangana, many States have been implementing
similar schemes. The Minister said that the Farmer Loan Wavier Scheme (FLWS)
will be implemented once the election code comes to an end. Niranjan Reddy said
that since the agriculture sector, which is providing large scale employment
opportunities to the people of the State, government is committed to strengthen
it by integrating various schemes to ensure that farmers would be benefitted
from the initiatives. Advertise With Us PJTSAU Vice-Chancellor Dr V Praveen Rao
said organising the Annual Seed Mela-2019 was the university's efforts to
supply quality seed to the farmers. He said the university is also planning to
release eight new varieties in rice, pulses, and maize crops in next month. He
thanked the farmers who are continuously encouraging the university scientists
and adopted newer technologies and new varieties. Advertise With Us He added
that for the benefit of the farmers simultaneously seed melas are being
organised at Regional Agricultural Research Stations (RARS) at Jagitial,
Warangal and Palem in Nagarkurnool District. Farmers in large numbers attending
and purchasing seeds have briefed the suitability of different varieties of
seeds to their lands. This year a dedicated stall has been 
arranged to explain the new
technologies to the farmers and how farmers can also avail the seed subsidy
being provided by the State government by purchasing the seeds at the mela. The
Annual Seed Mela-2019 is jointly organised by the State departments of
agriculture, horticulture, and local ICAR Research Institutes like Indian
Institute of Millet Research (IIMR), Indian Institute of Rice Research (IIRR),
Indian Institute of Oilseed Research (IIOR), Central Research Institute for
Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA), ATARI, NAARM, Directorate of Poultry, National
Seeds Corporation (NSC), Telangana State Seed Development Corporation (TSSDC),
Telangana State Seed and Organic Certification Agency (TSSOCA) and Veterinary
and Horticultural Universities. Dr Vishnuvardhan Reddy, Dr SR Oleti, Dr Vilas A
Tonapi, Dr Ravindrachary, Dr Prasad, Director Seeds Dr Pradeep, Director TSSOCA
Dr Keshavulu were among those who interacted with the farmers.
https://www.thehansindia.com/telangana/district-wise-melas-to-supply-quality-seeds-to-farmers-soon-532256
arranged to explain the new
technologies to the farmers and how farmers can also avail the seed subsidy
being provided by the State government by purchasing the seeds at the mela. The
Annual Seed Mela-2019 is jointly organised by the State departments of
agriculture, horticulture, and local ICAR Research Institutes like Indian
Institute of Millet Research (IIMR), Indian Institute of Rice Research (IIRR),
Indian Institute of Oilseed Research (IIOR), Central Research Institute for
Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA), ATARI, NAARM, Directorate of Poultry, National
Seeds Corporation (NSC), Telangana State Seed Development Corporation (TSSDC),
Telangana State Seed and Organic Certification Agency (TSSOCA) and Veterinary
and Horticultural Universities. Dr Vishnuvardhan Reddy, Dr SR Oleti, Dr Vilas A
Tonapi, Dr Ravindrachary, Dr Prasad, Director Seeds Dr Pradeep, Director TSSOCA
Dr Keshavulu were among those who interacted with the farmers.https://www.thehansindia.com/telangana/district-wise-melas-to-supply-quality-seeds-to-farmers-soon-532256
PM seeks business community role
in his poverty alleviation mission
Last Updated On 24 May,2019 09:23
pm
“We have inherited a fragile economy. I cannot let the
plunderers off,” he remarked.
KARACHI (APP) – Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday said that the
poverty alleviation from Pakistan was his mission for which the trade community
must extend its support.
In a meeting with a delegation of Federation of Pakistan
Chambers of Commerce and Industry and business community in Karachi, the prime
minister said he wanted his government to be acknowledged as the most trade and
investment friendly government.
The meeting was attended by the representatives from FPCCI,
Karachi Chambers of Commerce, Employers’ Federation of Pakistan, Pakistan
Ready-made Garments, Pakistan Leather Garments, Rice Export, Pakistan
Automotive Parts, Pakistan Bedwear Exporters, Pakistan Denim Manufacturers,
Towel Manufacturers, Pakistan Hosiery and other business sectors.
Governor of Sindh Imran Ismail, Maritime Affairs Minister Ali
Zaidi and Commerce Advisor Abdul Razak Dawood were also present, a PM Office
statement said.
The prime minister said the corruption during the previous
government had marred the economy. “We have inherited a fragile economy. I
cannot let the plunderers off,” he remarked.
He told the delegation that the government had appointed experts
at the Federal Board of Revenue and State Bank of Pakistan. He urged the trade
community to take advantage of the amnesty scheme announced by the government.
The prime minister said the government desired the private
sector to play a key role for bringing about the economic stability. The
government would extend all out facilities for promotion of investment and
business activities, he added.
He said bringing ease of doing business, reforms in the FBR and
creation of a conducive and friendly atmosphere for the business were among the
government’s foremost priorities.
The delegation expressed confidence in the government’s fiscal
policies and also put forward their suggestions to help achieve economic
stability and targets.
PM Imran seeks business community role in poverty alleviation
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday said that the poverty
alleviation from Pakistan was his mission for which the trade community must
extend its support.
In a meeting with a delegation of Federation of Pakistan Chambers
of Commerce and Industry and business community in Karachi, PM Imran said he
wanted his government to be acknowledged as the most trade and investment
friendly government.
The Premier said the corruption during the previous government had
marred the economy.
“We have inherited a fragile economy. I cannot let the plunderers
off,” he remarked.
He told the delegation that the government had appointed experts
at the Federal Board of Revenue and State Bank of Pakistan.
Khan urged the trade community to take advantage of the amnesty
scheme announced by the government.
The prime minister said the government desired the private sector
to play a key role for bringing about the economic stability. The government
would extend all out facilities for promotion of investment and business
activities, he added.
He said bringing ease of doing business, reforms in the FBR and
creation of a conducive and friendly atmosphere for the business were among the
government’s foremost priorities.
The delegation expressed confidence in the government’s fiscal
policies and also put forward their suggestions to help achieve economic
stability and targets.
The meeting was attended by the representatives from FPCCI,
Karachi Chambers of Commerce, Employers’ Federation of Pakistan, Pakistan
Ready-made Garments, Pakistan Leather Garments, Rice Export, Pakistan
Automotive Parts, Pakistan Bedwear Exporters, Pakistan Denim Manufacturers,
Towel Manufacturers, Pakistan Hosiery and other business sectors.
Governor of Sindh Imran Ismail, Maritime Affairs Minister Ali
Zaidi and Commerce Advisor Abdul Razak Dawood were also present.
Sikh Grocer Seeks Ramadan Blessings Over
Profit
May
24, 2019
Gurmeet
Singh, a grocery store owner, says he is upholding a family tradition by
offering discounts to Muslim customers.
JAMRUD,
Pakistan -- Instead of profiting from the increased demand for food and drinks
among his predominantly Muslim clientele during the Islamic holy month of
Ramadan, one Sikh shopkeeper in northwestern Pakistan is offering discounts to
earn their goodwill.
Gurmeet
Singh, a grocery store owner in Jamrud, a dusty town at the gateway to the
historic Khyber Pass, says he is upholding a family tradition.
“My
father used to say that we can make profits for ourselves for 11 months but we
must provide some relief to our Muslim brothers during this one month,” he told
Radio Mashaal as he filled a customer’s order for sugar and rice.
Singh’s
family has offered the discounts since establishing their shop in 1991.
“We
are offering discounts on everything that is needed during Ramadan such as
rice, pulses, edible oils, cold drinks, and other things,” he said. “We
strongly feel that while they respect our religion, we must show our regard for
their beliefs.”
The
rapid decline of the Pakistani rupee this year has substantially increased the
prices of essential food items and beverages. The increased demand during
Ramadan typically leads to price hikes at shops.
Many
Pakistani businesses and shopkeepers reap windfall profits during Ramadan, when
all adults in the predominately Muslim country of 207 million people are
expected to refrain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk.
Singh
is offering up to 20 percent off Ramadan essentials. Local resident Asghar
Afridi says that most Jamrud residents are impressed by the gesture.
“They
are showing their true sympathy for Muslims by offering discounts when even
most Muslim shopkeepers have hiked prices,” he told Radio Mashaal. “I think it
will also help in increasing his clientele after the end of Ramadan.”
More
than 20,000 Sikhs live in the tribal district of Khyber amid the Muslim Pashtun
communities of the Afridi, Mallagori, and Shiwari tribes. Like their Muslim
neighbors, many Sikhs were displaced when Islamist militants overran parts of
the region since 2005. Home to the Khyber Pass, the region is a key commercial
hub connecting Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, to the
border with Afghanistan.
The
Singhs were among the hundreds of Sikh families forced to abandon their Khyber
home by hard-line Islamic militants. But longing for their homeland ultimately
prompted some Sikhs to return to Jamrud and other towns and villages in Khyber.
Singh
hopes his gesture will encourage tolerance and inter-faith harmony in Khyber.
“The
people of this region have never harmed us,” he said. “We would like to share
in their sorrows and happiness just as they have always done for us.”
Abubakar
Siddique wrote this story based on Radio Mashaal correspondent Farhad
Shinwari’s reporting from Jamrud, Pakistan.
Economic woes:
Private sector urged to help government achieve stability
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday urged the private sector to
lead the government''s efforts for bringing about economic stability in the
country. The premier also said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was against
creation of another province in Sindh. During his day-long visit to Karachi,
the prime minister chaired a different meetings at Sindh Governor''s House.
Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday said poverty alleviation was his mission for which the trade community must extend its support. In a meeting with a delegation of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry and business community in Karachi, the prime minister said he wanted his government to be acknowledged as the most trade and investment-friendly government. The meeting was attended by the representatives of FPCCI, Karachi Chambers of Commerce, Employers'' Federation of Pakistan, Pakistan Ready-made Garments, Pakistan Leather Garments, Rice Export, Pakistan Automotive Parts, Pakistan Bedwear Exporters, Pakistan Denim Manufacturers, Towel Manufacturers, Pakistan Hosiery and other business sectors. Governor of Sindh Imran Ismail, Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi and Commerce Advisor Abdul Razak Dawood were also present, a PM Office statement said. The prime minister said corruption during the previous government had marred the economy.
"We have inherited a fragile economy. I cannot let the plunderers off," he remarked. He told the delegation that the government had appointed experts at the Federal Board of Revenue and State Bank of Pakistan.
He urged the trade community to take advantage of the amnesty scheme announced by the government. The prime minister said the government desired the private sector to play a key role towards bringing about economic stability. The government would extend all out facilities for promotion of investment and business activities, he added.
He said improving ease of doing business, reforms in the FBR and creation of a conducive and friendly atmosphere for the business were among the government''s foremost priorities. The delegation expressed confidence in the government''s fiscal policies and also put forward its suggestions to help government achieve economic stability and targets.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said PTI was against creation of another province in Sindh and added that after introduction of PTI''s new local bodies system there would be no need of any kind of division of Sindh. The Prime Minister was talking to a delegation of allied parties, who called on him here at Governor''s House.
The delegation included Firdous Shamim Naqvi, Khurram Sher Zaman, Haleem Aadil Sheikh, Faisal Vawda , Ashraf Qureshi, Arbab Ghulam Rahim, Anand Kumar, Nusrat Sehar Abbasi, Sadruddin Shah Rashadi and others. The meeting discussed overall political situation of Sindh, ongoing federal government development projects in the province and allied parties'' affairs.
Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday said poverty alleviation was his mission for which the trade community must extend its support. In a meeting with a delegation of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry and business community in Karachi, the prime minister said he wanted his government to be acknowledged as the most trade and investment-friendly government. The meeting was attended by the representatives of FPCCI, Karachi Chambers of Commerce, Employers'' Federation of Pakistan, Pakistan Ready-made Garments, Pakistan Leather Garments, Rice Export, Pakistan Automotive Parts, Pakistan Bedwear Exporters, Pakistan Denim Manufacturers, Towel Manufacturers, Pakistan Hosiery and other business sectors. Governor of Sindh Imran Ismail, Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi and Commerce Advisor Abdul Razak Dawood were also present, a PM Office statement said. The prime minister said corruption during the previous government had marred the economy.
"We have inherited a fragile economy. I cannot let the plunderers off," he remarked. He told the delegation that the government had appointed experts at the Federal Board of Revenue and State Bank of Pakistan.
He urged the trade community to take advantage of the amnesty scheme announced by the government. The prime minister said the government desired the private sector to play a key role towards bringing about economic stability. The government would extend all out facilities for promotion of investment and business activities, he added.
He said improving ease of doing business, reforms in the FBR and creation of a conducive and friendly atmosphere for the business were among the government''s foremost priorities. The delegation expressed confidence in the government''s fiscal policies and also put forward its suggestions to help government achieve economic stability and targets.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said PTI was against creation of another province in Sindh and added that after introduction of PTI''s new local bodies system there would be no need of any kind of division of Sindh. The Prime Minister was talking to a delegation of allied parties, who called on him here at Governor''s House.
The delegation included Firdous Shamim Naqvi, Khurram Sher Zaman, Haleem Aadil Sheikh, Faisal Vawda , Ashraf Qureshi, Arbab Ghulam Rahim, Anand Kumar, Nusrat Sehar Abbasi, Sadruddin Shah Rashadi and others. The meeting discussed overall political situation of Sindh, ongoing federal government development projects in the province and allied parties'' affairs.
‘Be Pakistani, Buy Pakistani’
By
-
May
24, 2019
2256
🔊 Listen to Article
· ‘Made
in Pakistan’ campaign urges people to elevate the value of Pakistani Rupee by
promoting the local industry
LAHORE: Following the recent increase in
the value of US Dollar, the social media influencers, users and aspirants have
started a massive campaign for ‘Made in Pakistan’ products, aiming to promote
the local industry and elevate the value of Pakistani Rupee.
The social media bloggers and
influencers have been discouraging people from buying imported products from
1st June till 31st October. Local traders have also supported this campaign.
According to the Pakistan Bureau
of Statistics, Pakistan’s total exports stood at $2.1 billion in April 2019,
while total imports were recorded at $4.8 billion. The country’s trade balance
recorded a deficit of $2.7 billion in the period under review.
Majid Shah, a local trader,
appreciated the ‘Made in Pakistan’ campaign and said, “I deal in leather
garments, handbags and shoes. We export a few items and that too with a foreign
label. I think that Pakistani leather industry is capable of producing
world-class products.”
He opined that people purchase
foreign leather items only because of the strong marketing campaigns behind
international brands.
“We in Pakistan lack such
marketing techniques. I think that the youth has taken a smart decision by
starting this aggressive campaign, as it will boost our economy as well as the
local industry.”
Qasim Raza, another trader of
readymade clothes, said, “Made in Pakistan campaign is a guaranteed economic
survival but our people need to understand its importance and sensitivity. Our
businesses have been suffering badly at the hands of imported clothes whether
stitched or unstitched. An aggressive campaign in favour of local products is
the need of the hour.”
“I have tested and tried
Pakistani products and I don’t find any issue with them. It’s just that the
imported products are marketed in such a way that people get attracted to them.
There is no point in buying imported hair oils, soaps, cosmetics and cooking
oils and tea etc. when we have a good standard range of all these items here,”
said Anum Fatima, a resident of Defence Housing Society.
Kashif Qureshi, a social media
influencer, said, “The top three major trade items that Pakistan exports are
house linens, rice, and non-retail pure cotton yarn whereas there is a long
list of imported items starting from cold drinks to vehicles and electronics.
We need to purchase Pakistani products instead of looking down upon them.”
“I think it is high time that we
start ignoring imported items which we use in daily routine, as the purchase of
imported products also plays a role in inflation,” said Riaz Ahmed, a professor
of economics. “I support this campaign and I think all of us should be a part
of it.”
PM seeks
trader community’s cooperation in poverty alleviation campaign
NNI
Prime Minister Imran Khan has sought
cooperation of trader community for accomplishment of his mission to
eliminate poverty.
He was talking to the delegation of Federation
of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and industry and trade community that
called on him in Karachi Friday.
The Prime Minister has stressed upon trade
community to take benefit of amnesty scheme announce by the government. He
said that government will provide all possible cooperation and facilities
to promote investment and trade.
The prime minister said the corruption during
the previous government had marred the economy. “We have inherited a
fragile economy. I cannot let the plunderers off,” he remarked.
He told the delegation that the government had
appointed experts at the Federal Board of Revenue and State Bank of
Pakistan.
The prime minister said the government desired
the private sector to play a key role for bringing about the economic
stability. The government would extend all out facilities for promotion of
investment and business activities, he added.
He said bringing ease of doing business,
reforms in the FBR and creation of a conducive and friendly atmosphere for
the business were among the
government’s foremost priorities.
The delegation expressed confidence in the
government’s fiscal policies and also put forward their suggestions to
help achieve economic
stability and targets.
The meeting was attended by the representatives
from FPCCI, Karachi Chambers of Commerce, Employers’ Federation of
Pakistan, Pakistan
Ready-made Garments, Pakistan Leather Garments,
Rice Export, Pakistan Automotive Parts, Pakistan Bedwear Exporters,
Pakistan Denim Manufacturers, Towel Manufacturers, Pakistan Hosiery and
other business sectors.
Governor of Sindh Imran Ismail, Maritime
Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi and Commerce Advisor Abdul Razak Dawood were
also present.
Development
through defence
Samson Simon Sharaf
Continued...
Has anyone ever pondered why we talk so often
of Sher Shah Suri and his development works? He was a military administrator.
Military organisations and technologies have always been dual purpose and
precursors of development. Whether it was the moving logistics of Napoleon, the
steam powered engines of the Great War, telephony, airpower or the internet;
they changed the world forever.
Assisting the Federal and Provincial
governments ‘in aid of civil power’ is a constitutional function of the armed
and civil armed forces of Pakistan. Contrary to disinformation this is a
legitimate national function under the constitution of Pakistan.
During the 50s and 60s, the role of armed
forces of Pakistan in national development earned appreciation and admiration
from military sociologist world over. Pakistan was the case study. These were
teething times for a newborn state whence armed forces filled many gaps towards
fast track development. By early 60s, Pakistan was the fastest growing economy
of Asia.
In the present circumstances; where rupee is in
free fall; federal secretaries and officials fall like nine pins;
speculation creates windfalls and meltdowns; and imported experts are hell bent
on a front loaded IMF intervention, the military can play a very constructive
role at the grass roots. Remaining away from the gaze of economic racketeers
can spring a start towards grass roots sustainable development.
According to Section 245 (1) of the
Constitution of Pakistan, “The Armed Forces shall, under the directions of the
Federal Government defend Pakistan against external aggression or threat of
war, and subject to law, act in aid of civil power when called upon to do so”.
In Pakistan’s history, this constitutional role for armed forces is defined in
every constitution since 1947.
The term, ‘Threat of War’ encompasses the role
against hybrid threats both kinetic and non-kinetic. The phrase, ‘act in aid of
civil power when called upon to do so” expands the military role under federal
authority to existing civil functions of the state. This includes ‘law and
order’, ‘natural calamities’ and other services of national importance
including development.
A historical perspective:
East Pakistan, rich in jute, rice, tea, paper
and fruits lacked a commercial port and depended on Calcutta. Following the
anti-Hindu riots in 50s, Pakistan’s armed forces sealed the East Pakistan
border, brought smuggling to a halt and played their role in development of a
new alternate port at Chittagong. The armed forces also helped develop
infrastructure projects that sustain Bangladesh even today.
After India blocked the flow of River Ravi, Beas
and Sutlej the two countries nearly went to war. The military Corps of
Engineers in partnership with WAPDA and Plans Division got involved in building
of small and large dams including Mangla, Rawal and Khanpur. Many new link
canals pending the IBWT were constructed and water diverted to starved areas.
This is how Marala Headwork and BRB link Canal kept Ravi and Sutlej
flowing.
Quetta was a small town and the major training
centre of army and PAF. It had acute water shortfalls. The Military Corps of Engineers
completed the task of building water reservoirs around the provincial capital
that even today cater for the needs of the residents. Kuchlak, Hanna, Spin
Lake, Urak and Pishin Lake are the creation of Pakistan Army which supply water
to the entire area and recharge underground karezez.
When the high tides of the Arabian Sea began
eroding agricultural land at Thatta, the military formations at Karachi and
Hyderabad on the beck and call of Prime Minister Liaqat Ali, with minimum earth
moving equipment created an outfall drain with picks and shovels in a record
time of six months. This drain still holds its own.
Islamabad, the new modern capital with Rawal
and Simly Dams was planned on military drawing boards.
PAF is also the pioneer of PIA. Once upon a
time, PIA was the leading airline of the world and helped establish civil
aviation in many countries including Gulf, Singapore and Malaysia.
It goes to the credit of our Military Corps of
Engineers to carve a wondrous road through the granite of the Himalayan and
Karakorum and establish a land link with China. They also linked the land
locked Chitral with Dir and weaved a network of all-weather roads in Northern
Areas and Kashmir. Gawadar is linked to Karachi through a road constructed by
military corps of engineers.
Most health and communication facilities in
Kashmir, Gilgit and Baltistan are run by armed forces.
Development works in the restive now peaceful
FATA were executed by the armed forces. Floods, earthquakes, droughts,
cloudburst or national emergencies; armed forces remain the most responsive and
efficient organisation.
Pakistan Navy defends Pakistan’s maritime
boundaries even in peace. It has contributed to expansion of Exclusive Economic
Zone and development of coastal areas from Hub to Suntsar in Balochistan.
New cantonments have acted as hubs for
development. Quetta, Sibi, Dera Bughti, Kashmore, Panu Aqil, Ormara, Okara,
Chunian, Malakand and Tal are some examples. Garrisons bring with them
circulation of money to boost local economies, schools, colleges, hospitals and
employments. The cities build around them.
Military welfare organisations and defence
industry are amongst the largest employers of civilian manpower with a welfare
system. Military has made enviable contributions towards modern urban planning
continuously agitating development industry. They are amongst the biggest
taxpayers and make substantial contribution to the GDP.
The new role:
Military’s new role revolves around making
agriculture more profitable, conserving water and human resource
development.
In the internal security plans, every square
kilometer of Pakistan comes in the area of responsibility of some military,
naval or air formation. Hence every formation through its commands will assist
respective civil administrations, civil society and local councils in
education, health, agriculture, logistics and marketing.
Modernising agriculture, sale of agro
chemicals, regulated purchase and sale of agro products will cut out adulteration,
usher efficient agricultural practices and edge out middlemen. Productivity,
quality and profit margins would increase manifold. Combined with modern
natural agriculture, markedly reduced agro-chemical inputs and manifold outputs
with qualitative edge, Pakistan’s GDP could jump by 3-4% of GDP in the first
two years. This will also direct a very big segment of informal economy into
official book keeping. Into the second year of operations, Pakistan could
largely shift to organic crops, becoming the biggest organic exporter of the
world. This implies a GDP increase of 5-7 in the third to fourth year. Effects
on downstream industry would be manifold. Ultimately every village will become
a self-sustainable production unit.
The chain of military medical system can
efficiently superimpose itself on the basic and rural health units to provide
efficient medical coverage. This will result in medical documentation of every
individual in the respective areas. Health and sanitation campaigns, now the
domain of profit making NGOs will become efficient.
Every school in the rural areas could be
adopted by a military sub unit. Educational staff could be provided from
amongst servicemen in the last two years of service.
Around important hubs, military workshops and
manufacturing facilities could become skill development centres. Vocational
training institutes and child welfare centres could open up to civilians.
Military farms and land could become model
farms. Land could be reclaimed and converted into 10 hectare modern farms.
Small delay action check dams would convert barani areas to irrigated
farms. In Pakistan thousands of identified sites will become arable.
Detailed papers on such a development are
already available. They have to be dusted, improved and put into practical
utility.
The intervention would set a trend of
fast track development. From production to quality, and from unemployment to
self-sufficiency, the dynamics of Pakistan’s economy would change forever. Then
we could boast that Pakistan’s economy stands on the solid foundations of its
geography and sociology.
Continued…..
Seed melas to be organised in all districts from next year
HYDERABAD, MAY 24,
2019 22:31 IST
Vice Chancellor of PJTSAU V. Praveen Rao interacting with students
at the seed mela organised on the university campus in Hyderabad on Friday.
| Photo Credit: KVS Giri
MORE-IN
Implementation of farm loan
waiver to commence next week
The State government is planning to organise seed melas in all
district headquarters from the next year to make available quality seed to
farmers.
This was stated by Minister for Agriculture S. Nirajan Reddy
after inaugurating the seed mela organised on the campus of Professor
Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University here on Friday.
He announced that the farm loan waiver up to ₹1 lakh would be implemented once the election model conduct of
conduct was over.
He said that several long-term initiatives taken by Chief
Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao were bringing revolutionary changes in the
agricultural sector in the State and several other States were emulating
Telangana by introducing similar schemes.
Reiterating that the State government was firm to strengthen the
agricultural sector, the Minister said several other initiatives were in the
pipeline to make agriculture profitable.
Farm equipment
A large number of farmers from the surrounding areas of the city
turned up at the mela to procure quality seed ahead of the commencement of
agricultural season.
The farmers also went round stalls enquiring about the utility
of various farm equipment on display.
The seed mela-cum-exhibition was jointly organised by Department
of Agriculture, Department of Horticulture and local ICAR research institutes
such as Indian Institute of Millets Research, Indian Institute of Rice
Research, Indian Institute of Oil Seeds Research, Central Research Institute
for Dry Land Agriculture, Water and Land Management Training and Research
Institute, National Academy of Agricultural Research and Management,
Directorate of Poultry, National Seeds Corporation, Telangana State Seed
Development Corporation, Telangana State Seed and Organic Certification
Authority and veterinary and horticultural universities.
New varieties
Explaining about the seed mela, Vice Chancellor of PJTSAU V.
Praveen Rao said efforts were made to supply quality seed to farmers through
the mela.
He stated that they were planning to release eight new seed
varieties in rice, pulses and maize crops next month. Similar seed melas were
being planned at Regional Agricultural Research Stations at Jagtial, Warangal
and Palem for the benefit of farmers.
Commissioner of Agriculture Rahul Bojja, Director of TSSOCA K.
Keshavulu, directors of several wings of PJTSAU ICAR research institutes
participated in the event.
https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/seed-melas-to-be-organised-in-all-districts-from-next-year/article27239920.ece
Highlights of China's science news
Source:
Xinhua| 2019-05-25 16:57:27|Editor: Li Xia
BEIJING, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The following are the highlights of
China's science news from the past week:
SEAWATER POWER GENERATON
Chinese researchers have developed a low-cost underwater system
to generate electricity from seawater, offering a new approach to handle short
spikes in power demand and maintain longer-term steady power.
PRECISE NONINVASIVE SURGERY
Researchers from China and Canada have developed a new highly
targeted laser device to close blood vessels within human tissue.
Reporting on the U.S. journal Science Advances, they said the
device has the potential to diagnose diseases including skin cancer and perform
precise surgery without cutting the skin.
RICE BLAST CONTROL
An international study has found how rice blast fungus spreads,
providing insights on the control of rice blast, the most devastating rice
disease in the world.
The study is expected to help develop new approaches for the
control of rice blast fungus infection and also shed light on the study on the
virulence mechanism of plant fungi.
SATELLITE NAVIGATION JOURNAL
China will launch an international English journal called
"Satellite Navigation," according to the China Science Daily
Thursday.
The journal is coordinated by the Aerospace Information Research
Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Springer Nature. The
journal is open to submission and is expected to be published officially in
October.
AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM
Researchers have disclosed that phytoplankton diversity can
promote nutrient resource use efficiency in aquatic ecosystems.
The research is helpful for developing nature-based solutions for
aquatic ecosystem restoration. And its findings can improve peoples'
understanding on trophic transfer and nutrient cycling in aquatic ecosystems.
China donates rice to assist
victims of Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe
Xinhua, May 25, 2019
HARARE, May 24 (Xinhua) -- China on
Friday donated more than 10,000 tonnes of rice to assist people who were
affected by Cyclone Idai as well as vulnerable households facing hunger due to
drought.
China has previously donated
800,000 U.S. dollars cash to assist victims of the cyclone.
Visiting Chinese Vice Minister of
Commerce Qian Keming handed over the consignment of 10,165 tonnes of rice to
the Zimbabwean government that was represented by Public Service, Labor and
Social Welfare Minister Sekesai Nzenza.
Nzenza thanked China for the
donation, which came in response to the country's aid appeal following the
cyclone which hit the country in March, killing hundreds of people and
destroying infrastructure.
Nzenza said the Zimbabwean
government was still appealing for more aid to deal with the devastating
effects of the cyclone.
"This rice donation will go a
long way in complementing our efforts to alleviate hunger. However, we are
requesting for additional support to feed vulnerable households until the next
harvest," she said.
Qian said China was committed to
helping Zimbabwe fight hunger through boosting its production and providing
emergency food assistance when required.
He noted that agricultural
cooperation between the two countries continued to strengthen as evidenced by
donations of farm machinery, agriculture inputs, secondment of senior Chinese
agriculture experts to Zimbabwe and the setting up of a demonstration center to
transfer technology and know-how to young Zimbabwean farmers, among others.
"This donation is another
testimony of our continuous devotion to the development of Zimbabwe's
agriculture and attainment of food security.
"We believe that giving food
to Zimbabwe is not enough. Helping the country to produce more food and more
jobs is key to Zimbabwe's agriculture development," Qian said.
He said China will continue to work
closely with Zimbabwe to unlock its agriculture potential to ensure food
security and boost economic growth.
China will also continue to
encourage its investors to invest in Zimbabwe's agriculture and assist the
country to increase its exports to China, he said. Enditem
http://www.china.org.cn/world/Off_the_Wire/2019-05/25/content_74820357.htm
Rice black
bugs spread to five more towns
Saturday, May 25, 2019
ILOILO – From the rice fields of the northern towns of Sara, San
Dionisio, Concepcion, and Ajuy rice black bugs have spread to Banate, Passi
City, Calinog, Lemery, and San Rafael.
According to the Provincial Agriculture Office (PAO) assistant
head Elias Sandig Jr., farmers in these areas should fight the bugs through
light trapping.
The bugs are strongly attracted to high intensity light.
Sandig said the rice black bugs could further spread.
“They breed fast,” he stressed.
These pests feed on rice plants from their seedling up to the
maturity stage. They are highly destructive and thrive in well-irrigated but
poorly-drained areas.
But so far, farmers have not complained of damage to their
standing rice crops.
The International Rice Research Institute has the following
suggestions to determine if rice plants are being attacked by black bugs:
* Check leaves for discoloration. Black bug damage can cause
reddish brown or yellowing of plants. Leaves also have chlorotic lesions.
* Check for decreased tillering. Bugburn symptoms show wilting of
tillers with no visible honeydew deposits or sooty molds.
* Plants are also stunted; and can develop stunted panicles, no
panicles, incompletely exerted panicles, and unfilled spikelets or whiteheads
at booting stage.
https://www.panaynews.net/rice-black-bugs-spread-to-five-more-towns/. I
NEDA
pushes for speedy release of P10-B rice fund
Saturday, May 25, 2019
NEDA
undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon said the P10-billion Rice Competitiveness
Enhancement Fund (RCEF) needs to be released “fast” to make support readily
available to farmers since it is part of the mitigating measures of Republic
Act (RA) 11203, or the rice tariffication law. AP
MANILA – The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) is
urging the administration’s leadership to immediately release the P10-billion
Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) that aims to help modernize and
boost the productivity of rice farmers.
“It should be released hopefully early third quarter or earlier so
needed certified seeds and machinery can be provided in time for the wet season
or if not this season, the dry season,” NEDA assistant secretary Mercedita
Sombilla said in a mobile phone message to the Philippine News Agency.
NEDA undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon said the RCEF needs to be
released “fast” to make support readily available to farmers since it is part
of the mitigating measures of Republic Act (RA) 11203.
“Also, to catch the next planning season,” Edillon said in a
separate message.
RA 11203, or the rice tariffication law, mandates the
establishment of an RCEF that guarantees the rice sector a P10-billion
financial support annually for the next six years beginning 2019.
Edillon said P1 billion for credit is already available.
The NEDA official further said the specific implementing
guidelines and work program of all concerned agencies are being finalized.
“There is a tech budget hearing of DA (Department of Agriculture)
at DBM (Department of Budget and Management) today and probably it will be
tackled,” she added.
Based on the law’s implementing rules and regulations signed by
NEDA, the DBM, and the DA, half of the rice fund amounting to P5 billion
annually will be used to procure rice farm equipment by the government through
the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech).
Equipment such as tillers, tractors, seeders, threshers, rice
planters, harvesters, and irrigation pumps will be given as a grant-in-kind
primarily for eligible farmers, rice farm associations, and registered rice
cooperatives.
Under the rice tariffication law, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel
Piñol, in his Facebook post Monday, said P3 billion of the RCEF is allocated
for inbred seeds to be handled by the Philippine Rice Research Institute
(PhilRice), and P1 billion for credit.
The remaining P1 billion is earmarked for technical skills
development and training to be handled by the Technical Education and Skills
Development Authority (P700 million); PhilRice (P100 million); PhilMech (P100
million); and Agricultural Training Institute (P100 million), he said. (PNA)
https://www.panaynews.net/neda-pushes-for-speedy-release-of-p10-b-rice-fund/.
Food Ministry asked to formulate procurement policy that benefits
farmers
·
Published
at 12:06 am May 27th, 2019
It receives Cabinet Division letter amidst
farmers’ woes over low paddy prices
There seems to be no end in sight to the woes
of farmers over low paddy prices. Neither the government nor traders and
millers have gone for any big purchase drives.
Though the government has fixed a Tk1,040
support price for each maund (40 kgs) of paddy, farmers across the rice-growing
zones in the country are still reporting market prices as low as Tk600.
According to Food Ministry statistics in the
first one month of public food grain procurement drives, the government bought
less than 2,000 tons of paddy and a little over 100,000 tons of rice up until
May 21 this Boro season, where farmers are anticipated to have grown nearly 20
million tons of rice.
Food ministry officials confirmed to the Dhaka
Tribune yesterday, that upon receipt of a Cabinet Division letter, the ministry
is revisiting the current food procurement system that mostly benefits rice
traders and millers, hardly benefiting rice farmers, the primary producers.
Amidst a nationwide outcry over farmers
getting poor prices for their produce in the current Boro season, the Cabinet
Division has sent a letter to the Food Ministry asking them to include a
farmer-friendly paddy procurement scheme in the ministry’s Annual Performance
Agreement (APA) for 2019-20.
The 2019-20 APA is scheduled for signing in
the presence of the prime minister on July 4, officials confirmed.
In the current procurement system, the
grassroots level food directorate apparatus is largely buying rice from millers
under seasonal agreements, thereby benefiting millers, middlemen, and seasonal
rice traders only.
Farmers just get a tiny slice of that big
support price cake in the form of sales of a few thousand tons of paddy to a few
food procurement centres.
Officials said they do not buy paddy from
farmers directly mostly because of the high moisture content of paddy, freshly
cut from the fields, and they prefer buying the grain from millers after the
paddy is dried, husked, and converted to rice.
Food Ministry officials told this
correspondent that the ministry is now mulling to develop drier facilities and
paddy silos across the country so that the food directorate can procure more
staple in the form of paddy, directly from farmers, rather than rice from the
millers.
“It’s understandable that it will take a year
or two to roll out the new plan for direct paddy purchases from farmers, but
decisions are being taken in that direction, taking lessons from this year’s
Boro paddy price fiasco ,” said a food official on anonymity.
Brake on
imports
With 55% of the country’s annual rice output
of more than 35 million tons coming from the irrigated Boro rice, farmers are
now at the mercy of traders and millers who are not procuring much from them
due to a supply glut and carryover stocks, thanks to a liberal import policy
long pursued by the government.
Only last week, the government finally put a
brake on private traders flooding the market with cheaper rice from across the
border by imposing a whopping 55% tax on rice imports. Many consider it a late
response from the government.
Against the officially declared one million
ton of crop loss in the 2017 haor floods, the government allowed the import of
over four million tons of rice in FY2017-18 and the imported rice was still in
the pipeline, until the government finally increased import duties on rice last
week.
Until there is a paradigm shift in the
government’s long pursued food procurement policy, there appears to be no
respite in sight for farmers in terms of getting a fair price for their
produce.
This is evident from food statistics procured
by the government so far in the current Boro season. Long before farmers
started harvesting Boro in late April this year, the government had decided
last March that it would buy 1.1 million tons of rice and 150,000 tons of paddy
between April 25 and August 31.
Interestingly, a month after the official
launch date of the food procurement drive, the food directorate purchased less
than 2,000 tons of paddy from farmers and a little over 100,000 tons of rice
from millers.
Farmers across the country, who are projected
to have grown 20 million tons of Boro this season, are now going through hard
times and suffering a cash crunch amidst very meager government purchases at
poor, rock bottom prices from reluctant traders and millers, who already have
huge import-fed rice stocks in hand.
In the last financial year (2017-18), the
government had announced the purchase of 0.15 million tons of paddy directly
from farmers, but ended up buying only 24,000 tons.
https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/government-affairs/2019/05/27/food-ministry-asked-to-formulate-procurement-policy-that-benefits-farmers
: Agriculture
Minister Niranjan Reddy Hans News Service | 24 May 2019 8:11 PM
HIGHLIGHTS Agriculture Minister S. Niranjan Reddy on Friday announced that the
Telangana Government would waiver off the crop loans, as promised in the
election manifesto, after the end of Model Code of Conduct in the State.
Hyderabad: Agriculture Minister S. Niranjan Reddy on Friday announced that the
Telangana Government would waiver off the crop loans, as promised in the
election manifesto, after the end of Model Code of Conduct in the State. He
also promised the State Government would organise Seed Melas in all the
District Headquarters from next year onwards to supply quality seeds to the
farmers. The minister was speaking after inaugurating the Seed Mela – 2019 at
the Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU)
Auditorium premises in Rajendranagar. The Seed Mela is being organised by the
PJTSAU in collaboration with Department of Agriculture, Department of
Horticulture and local ICAR Research Institutes such as Indian Institute of
Millet Research (IIMR), Indian Institute of Rice Research (IIRR), Indian
Institute of Oil seed Research (IIOR), Central Research Institute for Dry land
Agriculture(CRIDA), ATARI, NAARM, directorate of Poultry, National Seeds
Corporation (NSC), Telangana State Seed Development Corporation(TSSDC),
Telangana State Seed and Organic Certification Agency (TSSOCA) and Veterinary
and Horticultural Universities. Advertise With Us Niranjan Reddy said that the
long term initiatives taken by Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao have brought
tremendous and revolutionary changes in the agricultural sector in the State.
Many states are emulating the schemes being implemented by Telangana Government
for the welfare of farmers. He also announced that the loan wavier would be
implemented once the election code is over. He said that the government was
firm on strengthening the agricultural sector which is providing large scale
employment to the population. Initiatives will be continued in the agriculture
sector to make it more profitable to the farmers in the state, he said.
Advertise With Us PJTSAU Vice Chancellor Dr. V Praveen Rao gave an overview of
the Seed Mela -2019 and explained the efforts made to supply of quality seed to
the farmers. He said that the university was planning to release 8 new
varieties in Rice, Pulses, Maize crops in next month. This year, a dedicated
stall has been arranged to explain about the new technologies to the farmers.
He tendered his thanks to the farmers 
who are
continuously encouraging the university scientists and adopted the newer
technologies and new varieties. He added that for the benefit of the farmers
Seed Melas were organized at Regional Agricultural Research Stations (RARS) at
Jagitial, Warangal and Palem in Nagarkurnool District simultaneously.
Commissioner of Agriculture Rahul Bojja, Director of Research PJTSAU and the
directors of the local ICAR research institutes Dr. Vishnuvardhan Reddy, Dr. SR
Oleti, Dr. Vilas A. Tonapi, Dr. Ravindrachary, Dr. Prasad, Director Seeds Dr.
Pradeep, Director TSSOCA Dr. Keshavulu several others also participated. Large number
of farmers attended the Seed Mela and also purchased the seeds.
https://www.thehansindia.com/telangana/farm-loans-will-be-waived-after-the-end-of-election-code-agriculture-minister-532093
image:
https://media.philstar.com/photos/2019/05/24/bus3-local-rice-farmers-walter-bollozos_2019-05-24_19-20-00.jpg
The
Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI) said the Rice
Tariffication Law has so far stripped farmers of P95 billion in income as the
influx of cheap rice from other countries has pulled down rice prices.
Walter Bollozos
Rice
import liberalization strips P95 B from farmers
272SHARES1134
Louise Maureen Simeon (The Philippine
Star) - May 25, 2019 - 12:00am
MANILA,
Philippines — Local farmers are losing as much as P95 billion with the
implementation of the rice import liberalization law.
The
Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI) said the Rice
Tariffication Law has so far stripped farmers of P95 billion in income as
the influx of cheap rice from other countries has pulled down rice prices.
“At
the prevailing farmgate price of palay (unhusked rice) which declined by around
P5 per kilogram, Filipino farmers are deprived by as much as P95 billion in
income. It is based on the country’s local palay production of 19 million
metric tons annually,” said Frisco Malabanan, a member of PCAFI and
technical advisor at SL Agritech.
Farmgate
price of palay in some parts of Central Luzon already dropped to P11 to P13 per
kilo from the previous P17 to P20 per kilo.
The
private sector also expressed concern over the quality of rice entering the
market.
“Imported
rice looks new, shiny, fragrant and nice as some of them appear to be whole
grains and not broken rice at times due to mixture with local rice. But these
are the poorest of all rice as Philippines imports the cheaper, broken rice,”
he said.
PCAFI
said importation used to be for buffer stocking, but has now become a permanent
solution to the rice shortage.
“Rice
from Thailand and Vietnam is not as good as local rice. We produce local rice,
we do not mix with imports. It’s entirely good, even much better quality than
imported,” PCAFI said.
“Other
countries’ rice has long been stocked in the warehouse, shipped for some time,
and stocked again in local warehouses. Their rice is sprayed with pesticides
because of pests and with artificial fragrance because it smells old,” PCAFI
said.
https://www.philstar.com/business/2019/05/25/1920605/rice-import-liberalization-strips-p95-b-farmers
Farm loans will be waived after the end of election code
Rice prices drop in Dhaka as
government wrestles for control of grain markets
Published: 24 May 2019 10:21 PM BdST Updated: 25 May 2019 02:51 AM BdST
·
Prices of rice
have eased in Dhaka as the government is trying to exert control on grain
markets amidst frustration of farmers over low paddy prices.
bdnews24.com on Friday found rice prices fell
by up to Tk 4 per kg in different markets in the capital in a week.
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh or BCB data showed similar
figures.
Fine varieties of rice are being sold between Tk 48 and Tk 56 a
kg, which were between Tk 52 and Tk 64 a week ago.
Coarse varieties are priced between Tk 35 and Tk 56, which were
between Tk 33 and Tk 52 last week.
Speaking to bdnews24.com,
Mohiuddin Harun, a wholesaler at Mirpur, cited bumper harvest followed by a
drop in paddy prices this season as the reason behind the fall in rice prices.
“Especially, prices of new arrivals are very low,” he said.
He is selling a sack of 50 kg Miniket rice from Kushtia at Tk
2,100 and BR Atash at Tk 1,650. The prices of these varieties were Tk 2,350 and
Tk 1,800 respectively a month ago.
Frustrated farmers are racing to make up losses by selling paddy
to government at Tk 1,040 per maund (1 maund = 37.42kg) as traders and millers
are offering half the price.
A government official on Thursday charged a leader of the ruling
party’s youth front with attempt to bar the purchase as the politician wanted
farmers of his choice on the list of sellers.
The government is procuring 1 million tonnes grains, starting
from Apr 25 and ending on Aug 31.
The harvest this season is much higher than the government’s
purchase target and farmers alleged that the government was not buying paddy
directly from them, but from millers and traders, who are forcing the farmers
to sell at lower prices.
The government is planning to export around 1 million tonnes of
surplus Boro rice after meeting the domestic demand, Agriculture Minister Abdur
Razzaque had earlier said.
“Unusually” high production has finally spoilt the joy of the
farmers, according to the minister.
To dam up the fall in prices by limiting imports, the government
raised total duty on rice import to 55 percent from 28 percent.
Bangladesh’s private traders imported 303,000 tonnes of rice in
the first 10 months of this fiscal year, forcing local farmers to incur “huge
losses”.
The new decision will help protect local farmers from future
losses, the government said.
This
Precious Rice Broth
Does
wonders for summer skin! Memorial Day weekend starts now for many people. For
all those last minute planners — it can be stressful trying to pack all your
skincare essentials into your travel bag. For my go-to skincare for age spot,
sun spots and dull skin — I must have my “rice broth” essence […]
By
·
Person working on a rice field.
Image by Unsplash.
Does wonders for summer skin!
Memorial Day weekend starts now for many people. For all those
last minute planners — it can be stressful trying to pack all your skincare
essentials into your travel bag.
For my go-to skincare for age spot, sun spots and dull skin — I
must have my “rice broth” essence with me where ever I go! This precious
skincare secret is Pitera™, a special ingredient for my skin’s needs. Japanese
scientists discovered it incidentally in the 1970’s, when they noticed soft
tender hands of sake brewers that sharply contrasted with their wrinkled
faces. This gift of nature has been transforming skin for generations and
this spring, SK-II launched a new Facial Treatment Essence.
It’s all I need for clear, bright, dewy, naturally beautiful and younger
looking skin. The miracle facial treatment essence prevents dark spots, reduces
wrinkles and it’s even gentle enough for babies’ skin.
Image by SK-II.
It was just used by Mai Quynh on Chloe
Moretz who attended the Met Gala red carpet. The pretty
limited edition spring 2019 iconic Facial Treatment Essence features a powerful
overspill of vibrant and colorful graffiti patterns and splashes of confetti
petals. The design displays the explosive power of Pitera™, a power so strong,
it can barely be contained in the bottle.
Image by SK-II.
Below is a list of spring and summer must-haves that will make
you look flawless, without taking too much room in your travel bag or luggage.
iT
Cosmetics Confidence collection is Jamie Kern Lima’s
latest skincare collection for aging skin. It works wonders to give you
beautiful and healthy results, thanks to its skin-friendly ingredients. My
favorite summer beauty must-have is the Confidence in a Foundation, because
it;s very light, delivers long wear and full coverage for 24 hours, so you can
be confidant all day and all night long.
Image by iT Cosmetics.
Nutrafol is
the secret to beautiful and healthy hair, from the inside-out. What I love
about it is that it offers a 100% drug-free product that is clinically shown to
improve hair growth performance for both men and women. It’s a natural,
holistic approach developed by researchers and scientists, approved by over
1300+ physicians and loved by the world’s top stylists. Its goal is to optimize
the balance between safety and performance that focuses on each specific
individual.
Image by Nutrafol.
Olfactory NYC is
renowned for custom fragrances for those who desire a personal experience
without pretentious fancy labels and aggressive sales people that spray
fragrances in the air at department stores so customers can smell the different
scents. It uses the highest quality ingredients and keeps the packaging sweet
and simple, in order to give customers top quality fragrances at reasonable
price points. What’s special about the brand, is that after you customize your
fragrance, you can label it with a loved one’s name to make it more
sentimental.
Image by Olfactory.
TIZO
Sheer Botanicals SPF 45 Sunscreen is an all-mineral
sun protection for both the face and body. It’s sheer, silky, is free of chemical
sunscreen filters and is reef and planet-friendly. It’s healthy and very good
for your skin, as it includes only titanium dioxide and zinc oxide —
ingredients that create an invisible barrier on top of the skin and safely
reflect away harmful UV rays. The photostable skin protector will not degrade
in sunlight and spreads easily to a soft, virtually invisible finish that is
water-resistant for up to 80 minutes, which is a plus now that the summer is
near. TIZO products are also free of dyes, fragrances, preservatives,
phthalates and parabens.
Image by TIZO.
— Published on May 24, 2019
Beverly
Lim
I"m an Amazon
Influencer! https://www.amazon.com/shop/beautyfashionrs
--Read my other stories: www.Lifestyle411.net -- https://thriveglobal.com/authors/beverly-lim/ -- Formerly contributed to www.huffingtonpost.com/author/beverly-lim
--Read my other stories: www.Lifestyle411.net -- https://thriveglobal.com/authors/beverly-lim/ -- Formerly contributed to www.huffingtonpost.com/author/beverly-lim
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Govt urged to resolve basmati issue
KARACHI: The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) has
expressed concern over lethargy in the advocacy of the geographical indications
(GI) and the trademark (TM) ownership of basmati and has urged the Small and
Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) to impress upon the government
to resolve the matter on top priority, a statement said on Friday.
UNISAME President Zulfikar Thaver urged SMEDA to take up the
matter, as many genuine SME basmati farmers, millers, processors and exporters
are awaiting protection of their rights to label their produce of basmati
grains, as basmati as rice is grown from genuine certified basmati seeds having
all features and characteristics.
In view of the Delhi High Court's decision, setting aside the
restrictions imposed and restraining only basmati grown on the Indo-Gangetic
plain as basmati.
The honourable HC has wisely concluded that the rice grown with
genuine basmati seeds, besides the Indo-Gangetic plain is also basmati provided
it is cultivated with bona fide basmati seeds and complies with the
germination, features and characteristics of basmati specifications.
Thaver appreciated the step taken by the Ministry of Industries
and Production for requesting the Intellectual Property Organization (IPO) and
the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) to consider the proposals of UNISAME for basmati
GI and TM ownership and to expedite matters for clarifications of the
intellectual property rights and framing of the long pending acts drafted by IPO
with consensus of stakeholders.
Thaver applauded the judgement in the best interest of justice and
also highlighted that Pakistan grows the world’s best super basmati, which has
inherent features and characteristics of basmati and even the Indian basmati
does not match Pakistan's super basmati in terms of aroma, taste, look and
length.
It is, therefore, very important that this fact is determined to
avoid other varieties, which exported and sold as basmati by Indian shippers
are exposed and declared as encroachers.
The Indian shippers are also mixing basmati in other varieties to
benefit from aroma of basmati and deceiving the consumers, he said.
The SME farmers have appreciated the judgement of the Delhi court,
which has negated the design of the Indian government to create hurdles in GI
and TM issues and, on the other side, allowed its exporters to quietly ship
non-aromatic rice as basmati.
Waste dump near Kochi is now home of new rice brand
A collective of 17 young men worked for 3 years to revive discarded paddy fields
FROM CONSTRUCTION to engineering and IT, they came from different backgrounds, united by a passion for farming, and a dream to do good. Today, these 17 young men are the heroes of an entire panchayat beyond the outer edge of Kochi.
Guided by Kerala’s agriculture department and scientists, they toiled for three years to convert nearly 50 acres of stinking garbage land that had eaten up the fading paddy fields of Choornikkara in Aluva into the lush green home of a new rice brand. They call it Choornikkara rice.
This transformation, which includes a small park with benches overlooking the fields, has also helped improve the life of local residents and even the quality of water in their wells.
Until these men came together to start Adayalam, a self-help group, residents say urbanisation had been engulfing Choornikkara, with municipal towns on three sides, leaving only about 200 of the 350 acres of fields suitable for cultivation. And with farmers shifting to other sources of income in rapidly growing Kochi, the paddy fields of Choornikkara slowly became a ground for dumping waste.
“When the Kochi Metro acquired the paddy fields for its yard, they gave Rs 1.01 lakh for one cent of land. Many land-owners then started leaving their land barren, expecting further acquisition. They were no longer interested in cultivation. We approached the land-owners, seeking their consent to hand over their fields to our group,’’ says Ansar P M, 34, who hails from Choornikkara, like many others in the group, and is the face of the initiative.
“In 2016-17, we got 15 acres of land on lease from 40 owners for cultivation, and the sanction and subsidy from the agriculture department. The major task was waste removal. We had to spend Rs 10 lakh just to get the fields cleared of waste dumped over the years,’’ he says.
“In 2016-17, we got 15 acres of land on lease from 40 owners for cultivation, and the sanction and subsidy from the agriculture department. The major task was waste removal. We had to spend Rs 10 lakh just to get the fields cleared of waste dumped over the years,’’ he says.
Soon, others began to take note — and extend a helping hand.
Says Dr N K Sasidharan, a scientist who retired from the Kerala Agricultural University: “They did not have any idea about cultivation. But they diligently followed our advice on farming. Usually, farmers don’t completely accept what scientists tell them. These youths were open to implement whatever we suggested.’’
Apart from Ansar, others in the collective include Muhasin K M (21), who works as a trainee at Travancore Cochin Chemicals; Fahad K A (29), who works as a journalist with a website; Rinshad T B (28), who works with an IT firm; and, others from the panchayat and nearby areas.
“In the first year itself, the venture fetched a good harvest with eight tonnes of paddy from 15 acres. It was branded as Choornikkara rice and sold in local markets at Rs 35 per kg. All 8,000 households in the panchayat were given two kg of rice at Rs 35. The land owners were given one-fifth of the proceedings, depending on the size of their paddy-field,” says Ansar.
The first step taken, the collective started working on an alternative system to dispose waste. “We set up collection bins for plastic waste in several parts. Since 2016, Adayalam has collected 80 tonnes of plastic waste, which was shifted to recycling units,” says Ansar, who works for a local cooperative that provides interest-free loans.
According to John Sherry, the state agriculture officer in Choornikkara, changes were felt in the first year of cultivation. “Before we started cultivation, most wells in the project region were not suitable for drawing drinking water. A scientific analysis showed the presence of e-coli bacteria. After the waste was removed, and cultivation started, the water profile changed. Post-harvest, we found zero e-coli bacteria in the water,’’ he says.
For 2017-18, the collective took another 15 acres for cultivation, which was increased to 45 acres last year. In 2018-19, the total paddy cultivated added up to 115 tonnes, of which 74 tonnes were sold to the state civil supplies corporation and rest converted into rice and sold in the markets. The group is now planning to expand cultivation to 100 acres in the next season.
Local residents, meanwhile, are a happy lot.
“I had left 50 cents of land barren for the last 20 years. We cannot take up paddy cultivation in such a small area. The water in my well could not be used for drinking, either. But after this group started cultivating my land and nearby areas, the quality of water improved. Now, we draw water from the well for drinking. More people are ready to hand over land to these youngsters,’’ says K M Ali, a land-owner in Choornikkara.
Says A P Udayakumar, panchayat member: “When waste was being dumped, the fields and nearby areas had become a haven for criminals. Now, people spend their evenings here with families.”
Who is the election result winner in your Lok Sabha constituency? Click here to find out. Get real-time updates, news and analysis on the 2019 Lok Sabha election results only at indianexpress.com/elections | For a deep dive on the elections check out data.indianexpress.comNFA to stop selling rice at a loss to relief agencies
May 27, 2019 | 12:06 am
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·
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PHILSTAR
THE National Food Authority Council (NFA) has
approved the sale of rice to institutional buyers, including local government
units (LGUs), at P37 per kilo, in order to make the NFA’s operations more
self-sustaining, the Department of Agriculture said.
“The NFA also approved a resolution which sets
the price for the rice that we will sell to LGUs and even private NGOs. We will
not sell at P27 (per kilo), we will sell at P37 (per kilo),” Agriculture
Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol told reporters at a news conference.
To be affected are institutional buyers like
the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), LGUs, Non-Government
Organizations, the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC), and the National
Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC).
He said the old selling price of P27 produces
losses for the NFA, though that price will still apply to areas suffering from
shortages.
The NFA has had to pay out significant
incentives to attract sellers of palay, or unmilled rice, ever since its
mandate shifted primarily to procuring rice from domestic farmers in order to
maintain a buffer stock.
The NFA procures palay at P20.70.
Mr. Piñol said that under the new pricing, he
expects the NFA to earn at least P1 per kilo.
“The NFA will now conduct surgical marketing
operations. Ibig sabihin [This means]… we will not operate in
areas where there is a surplus of rice stocks. Ang focus namin[Our
focus] will be Metro Manila and net importing provinces,” he said.
He also said that the council has identified
40 areas with high poverty incidence for targeted sales, which will start in
September, when the distribution of domestically-procured rice to the market
will start, coinciding with the lean months for rice supply.
The NFA is still running down its last
inventories of foreign rice after its importing function was taken away from it
this year. The Rice Tariffication Law liberalizes rice imports by private
entities, leaving the NFA to maintain a buffer stock from domestic rice.
As of May 20, the NFA has procured a total of
4.025 million bags of palay from farmers.
Meanwhile, Mr. Piñol said the price of rice
has stabilized, while the buying price of palay has increased, addressing the
concerns of both consumers and farmers.
Inflation spiked in 2018, while the threat of
competition from cheap foreign grain, which will be imported more freely, also
pressured palay farmgate prices, threatening farmer incomes.
In the first week of May, the average farmgate
price of palay rose 0.3% week-on-week to P18.45 per kg, the Philippine
Statistics Authority said.
The average wholesale price of well-milled
rice decreased 0.4% to P39.55 compared with the previous week. At retail, the
price fell 0.5% to P43.30 per kg.
The average price of regular-milled rice at
wholesale fell 0.5% to P36 during the period. At retail, the price of
regular-milled rice fell 0.5% to P38.97. — Vincent Mariel P. Galang
Governor
Waiguru feeds patients Pakistan, not Mwea rice
· Mugucia
Rugene 27th May 2019 11:50:38 GMT +0300
Kirinyaga
Governor Anne Waiguru (PHOTO: FILE)KIRINYAGA, KENYA: In a major irony,
Kirinyaga County government is feeding patients with rice imported from
Pakistan, defeating the often spoken commitment by Governor Anne Waiguru to
improve the welfare of rice farmers in the county.
Kirinyaga
produces the highest amount of rice in Kenya, which, however, is only enough to
feed 20 per cent of the Kenya population, with the balance being imported from
Pakistan.
The
imports have been blamed for knocking-off price for Mwea farmers.
Pakistan
rice is comparatively cheaper and considered of lower grade compared to Mwea’s.
It also does not have a strong aroma associated with Mwea rice.
SEE ALSO :Kirinyaga day
care centres have no rules
To
the shock of several local leaders led by county members of parliament, stocks
of Pakistan rice were found stored at Kerugoya Hospital, which has been
partially closed to pave way for its reorganisation.
It
means Kirinyaga County government has failed to buy what its residents produce,
putting questions into the commitment of its leaders, especially the governor,
to support the local economy. By buying locally produced rice, it means the
county government would be ploughing money back to the local farmers, helping
drive the local economy.
It
would also reduce the exposure of local farmers to brokers and price changes.
Buying the rice from cooperatives would help increase liquidity among them and
provide additional and quicker money to lend to their members.
The
leaders said the supply of the cheap stuff to the hospitals to feed the
inpatients was tantamount to a man living on the banks of River Niger washing
with spittle.
The
County Secretary Joe Muriuki who was present assured the leaders there will be
no more supplies of the Pakistan rice to the area health care facilities.
“I am
giving an undertaking that the stocks of the commodity we have will be
exhausted within a month after which we will revert to our own stu_ produced in
Mwea,” Muriuki assured the leaders.
It
was, however, a shock why the government opted to buy Pakistan rice in the
first place.
Those
present during the inspection tour included area Senator Charles Kibiru, Woman
Rep Wangui Ngirichi, Gichugu MP Gichimu Githinji, his Kirinyaga Central
counterpart Munene Wambugu and the Mwea MP Kabinga Wachira.
He
adds, it is demoralizing to find that even sick Mwea rice farmers, who produce
a quality crop, were being fed on the cheap commodity at the hospital.
He
said the supplier of the commodity must be established and if he or she was
found to be from the area be made to tender an unconditional apology to the
residents for feeding their sick with poor quality grain when the County had
homegrown stuff in abundance.
“This
supplier should not only be made to apologise but also be blacklisted and never
again be allowed to do any business within the county government,” Wachira
said.
The
rot in the hospital has made the institution be put on the spotlight for more
than a week now earning the wrath of the public.
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