PIB NEWS : Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yoiana (PMKSY)

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA)
02-July-2015 12:04 IST

Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yoiana (PMKSY)

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval to a new scheme the “Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana” (PMKSY).  It will have an outlay of Rs. 50,000 crore over a period of five years (2015-16 to 2019-20). The allocation for the current financial year is Rs. 5300 crore.

The major objective of the PMKSY is to achieve convergence of investments in irrigation at the field level, expand cultivable area under assured irrigation (Har Khet ko pani), improve on-farm water use efficiency to reduce wastage of water, enhance the adoption of precision-irrigation and other water saving technologies (More crop per drop), enhance recharge of aquifers and introduce sustainable water conservation practices by exploring the feasibility of reusing treated municipal based water for peri-urban agriculture and attract greater private investment in precision irrigation system. The scheme also aims at bringing concerned Ministries/Departments/Agencies/Research and Financial Institutions engaged in creation/use/recycling/potential recycling of water, brought under a common platform, so that a comprehensive and holistic view of the entire "water cycle" is taken into account and proper water budgeting is done for all sectors namely, household, agriculture and industries.

The programme architecture of PMKSY aims at a 'decentralized State level planning and execution' structure, in order to allow States to draw up a District Irrigation Plan (DIP) and a State Irrigation Plan (SIP). DIP will have holistic developmental perspective of the district outlining medium to long term developmental plans integrating three components namely, water sources, distribution network and water use application of the district to be prepared at two levels -  the block and the district. All structures created under the schemes will be geotagged.

The programme will be supervised and monitored at the national level by an Inter-Ministerial National Steering Committee (NSC) under the Chairmanship of the Prime Minister with Union Ministers of all concerned Ministries.  A National Executive Committee (NEC) is to be constituted under the Chairmanship of the Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog to oversee programme implementation, allocation of resources, inter ministerial coordination, monitoring and performance assessment, addressing administrative issues etc. At the state level the scheme is to be administered by a State Level Sanctioning Committee (SLSC) to be Chaired by the Chief Secretary of the respective States. The committee will have all authority to sanction the project and also monitor the progress of the scheme.  At the district level their shall be a district level implementation committee for ensuring last mile coordination a the field level.

It is expected that PMKSY will provide convergence to existing schemes of water management, thus bringing efficiency to the use of water.

Background:

In the last one year, the Government of India has taken several farmer friendly initiatives. These, amongst other things, include the following:

•     A new scheme has been introduced to issue a Soil Health Card to every farmer. Soil Health Management in the country is being promoted through setting up of soil and fertilizer testing laboratories. 34 lakh soil samples has been collected and analysis is continuing.

•     A new scheme for promoting organic farming "Pramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana" has been launched to promote organic farming.

•     A dedicated Kisan Channel has been started by  Doordarshan to address various issues concerning farmers.

•     Government is also encouraging formation of Farmer Producer organizations.

•     Assistance to farmers, as input subsidy, has been increased by 50 percent in case of natural calamities.

•    Norms have been relaxed to provide assistance from previous norm of crop loss of more than 50 percent to 33 percent to farmers afflicted by natural calamities.

•     Minimum Support Price (MSP) for various Kharif crops has been increased. Bonus of Rs.200 per quintal has been announced for pulses. Area coverage under pulses has increased over the last year.

Taking it further, today the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister has given its approval to two new schemes in agriculture sector. These are the PMKSY and Promotion of National Agriculture Market.

NW/AKT/SH

SOURCE: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=122935

NEWS: ‘Mulching’ to reduce water and chemical consumption

Mulching basically involves application of a protective layer of material to the field soil surface just after sowing any crop.

Written by Anju Agnihotri Chaba | Jalandhar |  Indian Express | Published on:July 2, 2015 1:36 am

Amarjit Singh employing mulching in his sugarcane-urad intercropped field.         

After sowing turmeric around late-May/early-June, Avtar Singh covers his entire field with a 3-4 inch-thick layer of paddy straw. “I do it so that my crop and the soil get proper shade from direct sunlight,” says this farmer from Mullanpur in Mohali district of Punjab, while referring to a practice known as ‘mulching’.

But wouldn’t having such a thick cover hinder germination? “On the contrary, germination is advanced by 10 days when compared to the non-mulched field, while giving me at least 10 per cent more yield,” claims Avtar.

Amarjit Singh of Gharuan village in the same district also does mulching in his sugarcane-garlic intercropped field, using 4-5 tonnes of paddy straw to cover one acre with the help of 5-6 labourers in a day. “Mulching requires extra labour, but it does wonders by improving soil health and saving water. And it needs to be done only once, at the time of sowing,” he notes.
 Mulching basically involves application of a protective layer of material to the field soil surface just after sowing any crop. The material could be organic and biodegradable (paddy straw, sugarcane bark, dry grass, trees leaves and even newspaper) or inorganic and non biodegradable such as polythene sheets.

According to GS Butter, Head of Agronomy at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) in Ludhiana, mulching is very effective for pest management and disease control.

“Weed seedlings cannot survive under the mulch, which also means not having to use chemical weedicides. Besides, mulching reduces evaporation from the soil bed. This not only brings down the frequency of irrigation, but also protects the soil from erosion,” he explains. Surjit Singh, a retired PAU scientist, points out that biodegradable mulches like dry paddy straw contain 50-70 per cent nutrients that slowly decompose in the soil, enhancing its fertility even without using fertilisers.
“Mulching creates an ideal environment for earthworms and other beneficial organisms to grow on the soil. We have been recommended mulching for turmeric, potatoes, sugarcane, melons and all types of vegetables,” he adds.

Sadly though, only a few hundred out of Punjab’s 12 lakh-odd farmers practice mulching. A state with the country’s highest average fertilizer and pesticide usage, apart from 75 per cent of its area under the ‘dark zone’ signifying severe groundwater scarcity, ought to be paying more attention to such environment-friendly practices.

Punjab, moreover, produces an estimated 38 million tonnes of straw annually, over half of which is from paddy. While wheat straw is used as cattle feed, there is no such use for paddy straw. About 80 per cent of the latter — some 16 million tonnes — is simply burnt in the fields after harvesting to clear the land for the next sowing. This abundant straw can potentially be used by every farmer for mulching, thereby addressing a major source of air pollution in the state.

“Unfortunately, farmers here want everything the easy way. Rather than putting some extra labour in utilising paddy straw for mulching, they prefer burning it,” observes Surjit Singh. Amarjit Singh from Char Ke village in Jalandhar says that crops normally require irrigation every second day during the summer months. But with mulching, the watering requirement is only after 7-10 days, depending on the crop. “There are hardly any weeds and pests in my fields and nor is there need really for using chemical fertilisers,” says this farmer, who uses sugarcane bark for mulching in his four-acre field where he grows sugarcane inter-cropped with ‘ma-ki-dal’ (i.e. urad or black gram).

At the Punjab government’s Centre of Excellence for Vegetables in Kartarpur near Jalandhar, set up under an Indo-Israel project, scientists are showcasing vegetable cultivation using polythene sheets for mulching.

“We use 30 micron sheets to cover the entire fields. Even the open space between the bed rows is covered in order to control weeds. The vegetable seedlings are transplanted in the soil through holes in the sheet that are a few inches apart to maintain plant-to-plant distance,” says Daljeet Singh, who heads the Centre. The sheets, he informs, would cost Rs 12,000-13,000 per acre and can be used in two or more seasons. The polythene mulch enhances crop yields by keeping the soil warm in winters and providing much-needed moisture to the plant in the summer. “We are growing the best-quality tomatoes, brinjal, capsicum, chilly, cucumber, bitter gourd and round gourd under plastic mulch at this centre,” he adds.

SOURCE: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/mulching-to-reduce-water-and-chemical-consumption/2/#sthash.y3Bd7l82.dpuf

NEWS : Falling Crop Prices: Double whammy for cottonseed companies

Poor demand and price controls squeeze the once fast-growing industry.

Written by Harish Damodaran | New Delhi | Indian Express | Updated: July 2, 2015 5:16 am

Labour, fertiliser and pesticide costs have all gone up, whereas the seed price has remained the same. If our margins are going to shrink, making it difficult to pay our seed growers and invest in R&D.    

Falling crop prices isn’t good news for seed firms, given implications on demand for their product.
This is being seen in cotton, where average kapas realisations of Rs 3,900-4,000 per quintal in 2014-15, against Rs 5,000-plus for the previous year’s crop, has dampened farmers’ enthusiasm to plant. Ground-level reports suggest significant acreage diversion this time, especially to pulses, groundnut and maize whose price prospects appear more promising.

But companies selling cotton seeds are facing a double whammy, not just from lower demand, but also inability to raise prices due to controls imposed by state governments in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. These four states account for over 70 per cent of the estimated domestic market of 50-51 million packets, each containing 450 grams of Bt and 120 grams non-Bt cotton seeds.
(Bt refers to Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterium that produces proteins toxic to bollworm insect pests and whose genes are inserted into crops using recombinant DNA/genetic engineering tools).


When Bt cotton was introduced in India in 2002, the seeds were sold at Rs 1,600 per packet. But in 2006, the AP government fixed the maximum retail price (MRP) for Bt cotton seeds, incorporating the US life sciences major Monsanto’s Bollgard single-gene (BG-I) technology, at Rs 750 per packet.
Other states soon followed suit, even enacting their own price control legislations. In 2008, they extended the Rs 750 rate to even seeds based on Monsanto’s more advanced Bollgard double-gene (BG-II) construct, while further slashing the MRP for BG-I packets to Rs 650.

These prices remained unchanged until 2013, when they were increased to Rs 830 for BG-I and Rs 930 for BG-II packets. The rates haven’t been revised upwards since then; Maharashtra’s BJP-led government under Devendra Fadnavis, on June 8, actually reduced the MRPs of BG-I and BG-II cotton seeds to Rs 730 and Rs 830 per packet respectively for the current year.

The above price reductions were largely enabled by a lowering of the ‘trait fee’ being paid by seed companies to Mahyco-Monsanto Biotech — a joint venture between the St Louis-headquartered firm and its Indian partner, Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company — for introducing the Bollgard gene construct into their own cotton hybrids. The trait fee, originally Rs 900 per packet, was brought down to Rs 122.96 for BG-I and Rs 183.46 for BG-II technologies.

The reduction in MRPs helped in the widespread diffusion of Bt cotton technology, similar to what low call charges did for mobile telephony though the latter was more a result of market competition than state fiat. Annual sales of Bt seed packets soared from 1.05 lakh in 2002 to 500 lakh-plus last year. But state-directed MRP reductions are proving increasingly counter-productive, with seed companies struggling to get farmers to produce for them.

 “India has some 70 lakh farmers who produce kapas (raw un-ginned cotton) for commercial sale. But there are also 2 lakh-odd growers who produce the hybrid cotton seeds that the former plant. We cannot ignore them,” observed Raju Barwale, managing director, Mahyco.

Hybrid seeds production is a highly labour-intensive affair, where the male part of a flower is removed one day and the resultant female parent manually pollinated with the pollen from another flower the next day. It takes 7-8 labourers working over two months to produce cottonseeds from one acre.

“A normal cotton grower would harvest 10 quintals of kapas and incur expenses of Rs 20,000-22,000 per acre. The corresponding kapas yield for the hybrid seed farmer will be 4.65 quintals, taking an average seed recovery of 300 kg (kapas contains 65 per cent seed and 35 per cent lint). Also, his expenses would work out to Rs 55,000-65,000 per acre, of which Rs 45,000-50,000 is labour costs alone,” noted Sameer Mulay, managing director of the Aurangabad-based Ajeet Seeds.

The high labour requirement also means that hybrid cottonseed cultivation is concentrated in select pockets: Gadwal (Telangana), Madanapalle (AP), Attur (Tamil Nadu), Gajendragarh (Karnataka), Idar, Khedbrahma and Sabarkantha (Gujarat), and Jalna, Buldhana and Nanded (Maharashtra).

 “In the last five years, we have had to increase our procurement price from Rs 275-300 to Rs 480 per kg of first-stage ginned seeds,” added Mulay, whose company sources cottonseeds from over 50,000 growers.

According to the industry, the cost of 450 grams of fully-processed clean Bt cottonseeds is anywhere between Rs 275 to 300. To these, if expenses towards trait fees (Rs 183), 120 grams of non-Bt seeds (Rs 45) and administrative/factory overheads (Rs 100) are added, the total per-packet cost comes to around Rs 620.

“An MRP of Rs 830 hardly leaves much for distribution, marketing and branding, leave alone undertaking R&D and extension work,” an industry representative claimed, while pointing out that seeds (assuming 1.6 packets per acre) makes up just 6-7 per cent of cultivation costs for the farmer. “Labour, fertiliser and pesticide costs have all gone up, whereas the seed price has remained the same. If our margins are going to shrink, making it difficult to pay our seed growers and invest in R&D, the ultimate sufferer will be the regular kapas farmer,” he said.

SOURCE: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/falling-crop-prices-double-whammy-for-cottonseed-companies/

NEWS: Rooftop revolution

Author(s): M Suchitra

Jun 30, 2015 | From the print edition

More and more people in food-deficit Kerala are taking up terrace farming to grow organic vegetables and fruits

A R S Vadhyar, a civil engineer, and his wife, Jayashree, a retired professor from Kerala Agricultural University, have been doing rooftop farming for 15 years in Ernakulam (Photo: M Suchitra)

The sight is unbelievable. Three big coconut trees, 35 banana trees, papayas, guavas and chickoos, grapes with bunches of green fruits hanging, yellow-green pumpkins, light-green ash gourds, whitish-green snake gourds winding their way down from a pandal, lush foliage of dark-green bitter gourds, tender okra, drumsticks, tomatoes, many varieties of beans and tubers such as yam and tapioca, turmeric, garlic and ginger. All on a terrace! And that too on a four-storey building amid high-rises at the busy Convent Road in Kerala’s Ernakulam city, the business capital of the state. The garden even has a small lotus tank, and a vermicomposting facility.

This green paradise belongs to 70-year-old A R S Vadhyar, a civil engineer. “City-dwellers with their busy jobs often complain that they don’t have time and space to grow anything. But we have been successfully doing rooftop farming for the past 15 years,” says Vadhyar. When Vadhyar started terrace farming, many thought he was crazy. But now a large number of people in cities and towns of Kerala are growing fruits and vegetables without using chemical fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides. Those who take up terrace farming are not regular farmers, but professionals such as engineers, doctors, employees from the public and private sectors, senior citizens, women homemakers and students. “There could be a minimum of 20,000 rooftop cultivators in each of the 14 districts in the state,” says K Prathapan, director, State Horticulture Mission, which has been promoting organic vegetable farming. “The main reason for this trend is growing health consciousness and fear of consuming contaminated food,” adds Prathapan.

Deficit and contamination
Kerala faces two serious issues: shortage in production of vegetables and fruits, and chemical contamination. Kerala’s annual requirement of vegetables is three million tonnes. “Despite having good rains and sunlight, the state produces only 30-40 per cent of its requirement,” says Prathapan. The rest is imported from the neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. With high levels of literacy, Keralites have been increasingly moving away from farming and purchasing almost everything from the markets.

But there is no guarantee about the safety of vegetables and fruits available in the markets. “Farmers in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka often apply huge quantities of chemicals such as pesticides, insecticides and fungicides to vegetables and fruits. The same is true for commercial cultivation within the state,” says Lal Varghese Kalpakavadi, chairperson of the state-owned vegetable procurement agency, Kerala Horticultural Products Development Corporation. He says regular tests of vegetable and fruit samples from the markets reveal high levels of chemical residue. “The state has a high cancer incidence rate and one of the reasons for this could be chemical contamination of vegetables and fruits,” he adds.

While people like Vadhyar and Abhilash P T, an engineer with Tata Consultancy Services in Ernakulam, grow vegetables in specially-built space on the terrace, a majority of terrace farmers grow vegetables in plastic “grow bags” which are available at Krishi Bhavans under the state agriculture department and also at private outlets. “These bags are standardised for ultraviolet rays. So they last for at least 4-5 years,” says Joji Mathew, an engineer from Thiruvanantha-puram, who practices rooftop farming.

Thiruvananthapuram resident, R Raveendran, who won the Innovative Farmer Award in 2014 from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute for his rooftop farm (Photo: Sindhu Raveendran)
The bags come in different sizes, and they are filled with a mixture of top soil, cow dung, river sand or Laterite powder, coir pith and Pseudomonas, a biopesticide, in equal proportion. All these components are available in the government’s agro-bazaars. These bags became popular in 2010 when the Horticulture Mission distributed thousands of such bags with a variety of plants and a guide free of cost. In Thiruvananthapuram city alone, more than 33,310 households were each given 25 such bags and plants. “We are sure at least 60 per cent of households are continuing with rooftop farming,” says Prathapan. Now, 25 bags with the soil mixture are sold at a subsidised rate of Rs 500.
Many like R Raveendran, a resident of Ulloor in Thiruvananthapuram, and A K Mathew, resident of Kakkanad in Ernakulam and former general manager of Hindustan Insecticide Limited, make the mixture on their own. “The solution can be prepared by spending just one-tenth of what you would spend for buying organic manure,” says Raveendran, who got the Innovative Farmer Award in 2014 from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute.

Networks for farming
Social media too has played a crucial role in sustaining the organic terrace farming movement. Groups such as Kitchen Garden and Krishibhoomi share knowledge among members. In August last year, a few social media groups came together to form a Kitchen Garden Forum on the World Kitchen Garden Day. The forum, along with Thiruvananthapuram-based non-profit, Thanal, organised a three-day exhibition-cum-training workshop on organic farming. The social media groups have planned to grow paddy on the terrace in pots so that they won’t need to buy rice for Onam, the popular harvest festival.

Joji Mathew points out such workshops help generate awareness among people about ongoing government programmes, subsidies and simple technologies. For instance, the state’s Department of Environment and Climate Change (DOECC) is promoting a project combining terrace farming and biodegradable waste treatment, under which a customer is provided 25 “grow bags” with vegetable seedlings and a micro irrigation system. The system is equipped with an automated timer and can run even when the terrace farmer is out of town. The actual cost of the system is Rs 10,000, but it is available at a subsidised rate of Rs 3,000. A person who avails this facility is given 70 per cent subsidy for a biogas plant. The cost of the plant is Rs 15,000. “The slurry from the biogas plant is good manure for organic farming,” says C S Yalakki, director, DOECC, Kerala.

“To advise and help the urban rooftop cultivators, there should be skilled and trained farm service providers as is in the case of the IT sector,” says S Usha of Thanal. There are a few service providers like the Thiruvananthapuram-based Karshika Karma Sena, which is a joint venture of Kudappanakunnu Gram Panchayat and Krishi Bhavan. The technicians of this group assist clients—from selecting a plot for farming to marketing the produce. But the service is available only in Thiruvananthapuram. Women’s self-help groups under the Kudumbasree Mission, a state agency for empowering rural women, is also providing the service, but in a limited way.

Rooftop cultivators point out that there is immense scope for such service providers and their services should be made available throughout the state through the offices of the state agriculture department, Horticulture Mission and Vegetable and Fruit Procuring Council. If this happens, urban rooftop farming will revolutionise the food deficit state.

SOURCE : http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/rooftop-revolution

NEWS : FCI stuck with 24m tonnes of poor wheat

Dipak K Dash,TNN | Times of India | Jun 29, 2015, 01.18 AM IST

Since 90% of grain procured this year were under relaxed norms, these stocks have a shorter shelf life and must be used in 8 to 10 months.

NEW DELHI: The Food Corporation of India (FCI) is saddled with 27 million tonnes of wheat. Since 90% of grain procured this year were under relaxed norms, these stocks have a shorter shelf life and must be used in 8 to 10 months.

FCI, sources said, is releasing these stocks to the public distribution system (PDS). This grain is shrivelled, broken and lacks lustre and the challenge is to release the grain into the market in less than a year.

Officials said PDS needs roughly 20 million tonnes and FCI has to sell the rest in the open market.

But officials say they're worried over imports of wheat, which sells cheaper than the government-fixed rates of FCI wheat.

"If we allow more wheat to be imported by private players over and above what they've already lined up, there'll be fewer takers for FCI grain. This will result in huge waste and losses to the public exchequer," an official said.

The government, he said, should come out with a norm stipulating that the price of imported wheat can't be less than the price at which FCI is offering the grain in the open market.



"The government took a bold step relaxing norms to help farmers whose crops were hit in the unseasonal rain and hailstorm. There's need to protect domestic interest," said another official.

TOI has learnt that private players have concluded contracts to import about 5 lakh tonnes of wheat and so far about 67,000 tonnes have been imported. Another 50,000 tonnes are likely to reach India soon.

"Going by this trend we feel imports would be around 5 lakh tonne in this fiscal. Some import is needed to make maida and suji. The imports can be mixed with the domestic wheat which has suffered luster loss for this purpose," said a government official.

Read this article in Hindi: FCI की बड़ी चुनौती, कैसे निपटाएगा इतना गेहूं

SOURCE: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/FCI-stuck-with-24m-tonnes-of-poor-wheat/articleshow/47857533.cms

ARTICLE : ‘Sarso mein IP ka tadka’ leaves local farmers in the dock

GM MUSTARD
As debates around genetically modified (GM) mustard pick up in India, Shalini Bhutani takes a look at the neglected diversity of the oilseed mustard crop on native farmers’ fields and points to the bias of the existing law.

29 June 2015 - Shalini Bhutani

 

Can the provisions on farmers’ rights in India’s intellectual property (IP) law on plant varieties help promote farmers’ varieties? While millions of people in India temper their daily diets with mustard oil and seeds, IP politics continues to temper the broader issue.

As of 3 June 2015, 54 applications for farmers’ varieties (FV) of Sarso were received (through 2010-2015) by the National Plant Authority in Delhi. The large number of varieties is evidence of the grassroots’ innovation in this crop. It also reflects the crop diversity that exists in the Indian fields. But if the government and the public sector do not promote these FVs, this diversity will continue to remain only on paper. Farmers would then have no incentive to continue to conserve and grow local varieties.

The Indian Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights (PPVFR) Act, 2001 Act defines a ‘farmer’s variety’ (FV) as that which has been traditionally cultivated and evolved by the farmers in their fields, or is a wild relative or land race or a variety about which the farmers possess common knowledge. According to the Act, an FV can be applied for by any farmer(s) or group of farmers or community of farmers claiming to be the breeder of the variety. The word extant meaning still in existence, by definition under the law [Section 2(j)] refers to those varieties that in India are either:
(i) notified under section 5 of the Seeds Act, 1966; or
(ii) farmers’ variety; or
(iii) a variety about which there is common knowledge; or
(iv) any other variety which is in public domain.

Indian Mustard was notified by the Ministry of Agriculture as a crop eligible for IP protection on 30 April 2010.The notification was issued by the Department of Agriculture & Cooperation (DAC) under the Indian law - Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights (PPVFR) Act, 2001. This implies that the National PPVFR Authority functioning under the Ministry was ready to receive applications for IP registration of varieties of Indian Mustard, both Sarso (Brassica juncea) and Karan Rai (Brassica kurinata).

Politics of Time
Once a crop is so notified, there are time limits prescribed for the registration of farmers’ varieties (FV) and extant varieties (EV). FVs may be registered within five years after the date of crop notification. In other words, FVs of Sarso were eligible for plant variety protection (PVP) till 29 April 2015. Likewise, EVs can be registered up to three years after notification, which in this case means that they were eligible till 29 April 2013.

The PPVFR Rules, 2003, were specifically amended by the PPVFR (Second Amendment) Rules dated 27 October 2009 to notify these time-bound schedules. However, the amendment gives the Registrar the power to register FVs or EVs even after the expiry of the prescribed five and three years respectively, provided he records his reasons in writing.

New varieties (NV) of a notified crop may be registered at any time after a crop is so notified. There is no time limit prescribed for that. The NV however must conform to the criteria of ‘NDUS’ - novelty, distinctiveness, uniformity and stability.

Effect of PVP registration
When an application for such IP registration is accepted, the registrar issues a certificate of registration in the prescribed form. It is valid for six years in the case of crops. It may be reviewed and renewed upon payment of fees as fixed by the rules made in this regard. This is subject to the condition that the total period of validity shall not exceed fifteen years.

During the term of registration, the Act grants the breeder of the variety or his successor, his agent or licensee the exclusive right to produce, sell, market, distribute, import or export the registered variety. These are clearly a set of rights vis-à-vis the ‘formal’ seed market.

In the case of an extant variety, unless a breeder or his successor has established his right, the Central Government shall be deemed to be the owner of such right. In cases where such extant variety is notified for a state or any area thereof, the rights will accrue to the state government.

What this means is that if farmers choose not to seek IP on the varieties they have developed, or do not have the wherewithal to make an application to the PPVFR Authority, they are at risk of losing both credit for their innovation and any chance of receiving a share in benefits, if the variety is used for commercialization by someone else.

Popular protests against the genetically modified (GM) Mustard. Pic: Sarson Satyagraha

A farmer-friendly law?
If one looks at recent data in the above context, two issues of significance emerge. First, within the window of time for registration of FVs of Indian Mustard, only one FV – Sitara Sringar, was granted the plant variety certificate (No.812 of 2014). It is that of Shri Hukum Singh Lodha from Village Sitara, Tehsil Kumher, District Bharatpur in Rajasthan.

Second, in sharp contrast to the single FV, a total of forty-six extant varieties have been registered under the Act and granted IP by the PPVFR Authority as of 31 March 2015. Most of these registered EVs belong to the ICAR and state agricultural universities (SAUs). One of these forty-six is the plant variety certificate (No. 350 of 2014) granted to Dhara Mustard Hybrid-1 (DMH-1) applied for jointly in 2013 by the National Dairy Development Board along with the University of Delhi, South Campus.

Private competition and the GM controversy
Let us now put this in larger perspective.
The seed industry obviously does not want competition from farmers. If a farmer-breeder develops a ‘new’ variety after five years, s/he too has to file for fresh registration under the category of new variety (NV) as a seed company would. Seed companies have applied for PVP for 25 varieties under the ‘new’ category, which are now being processed by the Authority.

Through 2013-2015 ten Indian Mustard varieties applied for by private seed companies were also granted PVP. In fact, the PVP certificates were granted beyond the cut-off date of 29 April 2013 for registration of extant varieties of Sarso, as shown by the table below based on data as of 3 June 2015:

Table: Registrations of Indian Mustard varieties by private seed companies

 

No.	Variety	Category	Company	Applied	Granted
1	Coral 432 (PAC 432)	Extant	Advanta India Ltd.	2012	20 May 2013
2	Palak	Extant (VCK)*	Nirmal Seeds Pvt. Ltd.	2011	2 Dec 2014
3	Parasmani-1	Extant (VCK)	M/s Shakti Vardhak Hybrid Seeds Pvt. Ltd.	2012	3 Dec 2014
4	Ladli	Extant (VCK)	Shakti Vardhak Seed Pvt. Ltd.	2012	6 Dec 2014
5	Black Gold (NML-100)	Extant (VCK)	Nirmal Seeds Pvt. Ltd.	2011	11 Dec 2014
6	Albeli-1	Extant (VCK)	Shakti Vardhak Seed Pvt. Ltd.	2012	15 Dec 2014
7	Parasmani-8	Extant (VCK)	Shakti Vardhak Seed Pvt. Ltd.	2012	17 Dec 2014
8	Parasmani-2	Extant (VCK)	M/s Shakti Vardhak Hybrid Seeds Pvt. Ltd.	2012	27 Jan 2015
9	44S01	Extant (VCK)	Pioneer Overseas Corporation	2010	25 Mar 2015
10	Nirmal Bold (NML-64)	Extant (VCK)	Nirmal Seeds Pvt. Ltd.	2013	27 Apl 2015

* VCK – Variety of common knowledge

Source:  Compiled by the author from data available on the PPVFR Authority web site

Mustard hybrids and the frenzy around their IP applications as detailed above gain greater significance in the context of the controversy around genetically modified (GM) crops in India.
A GM Brassica juncea mustard hybrid (DMH 11) has been developed by the Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants (CGMCP), University of Delhi, South Campus. The mustard hybrid has reportedly completed Biosafety Research Level (BRL) II trials, which in the Indian biosafety regulatory parlance is the penultimate research stage, before the variety can be considered for commercial cultivation. The developers of this GM variety have applied for and been granted several patents on different aspects of this ‘invention’ both in India and the USA.

However, Section 29(3) of the PPVFR Act expressly excludes crop varieties with GURT or ‘terminator technology’ from IP protection. The Act classifies genetic use restriction technology (GURT) and terminator as a technology that is injurious to the life or health of human beings, animals or plants. It also clearly lays down that no variety of any genus or species that involves GURT will be registered.
Meanwhile, the go-slow by the Authority on the applications of FVs of Sarso can only be inferred as keeping at bay apparent competition for the hybrids and GM varieties waiting to be marketed both by the public and private sector.

Key Questions
In the light of the above, a number of key questions arise:

• Why have the other pending applications for farmers’ varieties of Indian Mustard not been granted PVP certificates? And why isn’t the only FV registered so far being supported and popularised by the public sector?
• What are the valid reasons the Registrar of Plant Varieties can give for the grant of PVP to companies for EVs beyond the date of expiry for registration of extant varieties of Indian Mustard?
• If the implementation of the PPVFR Act through its rules and regulations is visibly inclined towards IP protection of varieties developed by the seed industry – public or private, then why is it (still) called a ‘Farmers’ Rights’ Act?
• Law and politics around IP on plant varieties aside, with farmers varieties consistently denied access to the domestic market, will Indian consumers ever taste what the country’s native farmers grow?

Shalini Bhutani
29 June 2015

The author is a legal researcher and policy analyst based in Delhi

SOURCE : http://indiatogether.org/ip-debate-on-gm-mustard-agriculture

NEWS : 15 years on, Meghal flows again

Himanshu Kaushik,TNN | Times of India | Jun 29, 2015, 02.13 AM IST

KESHOD (Junagadh): A group of villagers has revived a dried up river by building check-dams. River Meghal in Junagadh district dried up 15 years ago but this year, thanks to the effort of villagers, it overflowed after the very first spell of rain.

Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) helped the villagers build as many as 1,100 structures, including 54 check dams, along the 70km length of the river. The cost of the project — it involved labour by 6,500 villagers from early 2000 to 2012 — came to Rs 7 crore. Incidentally, it costs the state government around Rs 8 crore to build an RCC sump and pump house.

The Mehgal has now turned into something of a 'perennial river' and has boosted farm output and prosperity of villages along its length. Check dams at strategic points ensure that water is available in the river throughout the year.

Sonigbhai Dhandhiya, a farmer from Nani Dhanej, now grows three crops a year. Earlier, he had to be content with only one during the monsoon.

"The revived river has changed my life," he said. "My income has increased. Moreover, water levels in wells have also gone up. Further, the river has reduced salinity in the local water considerably."

Dhandhiya has been able to renovate his house. "Usually, if a man's village faces water scarcity, he finds it difficult to find brides for his sons," he said. "But because of Meghal, I have been able to get one son married and the second one engaged."

Bhimjibhai Faryani, a farmer from Bhanduri village, says: "Earlier we used to grow only groundnuts and everything depended on the rains. Now I also grow wheat and vegetables in the Rabi season, as there is now adequate water because of the river."

Apurva Oza of AKRSP said they had used a three-pronged approach for the Meghal River Basin Project. "Massive community participation, construction of check dams and use of traditional rain water-harvesting measures revived the river," he said.

 SOURCE : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/15-years-on-Meghal-flows-again/articleshow/47857817.cms
 Full Article

inShare0

Share on Linkedin

Comments

More

Google Bookmarks	Newsvine
Live Bookmarks	Technorati
Yahoo Bookmarks	Blogmarks
Del.icio.us	ApnaCircle

Email this article

Save this article

My Saved articles

Print this article

AReduce font size

AIncrease font size

Jeevan Vidya Workshop at Dharwad, Karnataka, October 3-10, 2015.

Dharwad Sukhi Jeevan Group

invites you to 

a Workshop on Jeevan Vidya
 

Facilitated by Vinish Gupta 

from October 3-10, 2015

 at Dharwad, Karnataka

About the workshop:

A Jeevan Vidya workshop is an intensive 40-hour learning experience that seeks to bring one's attention to neglected and subtle facets of life; issues related to interpersonal relations, education, society, environment, aspirations, success are discussed and participants are provided critical tools to help them explore the rich web of connections between seemingly disparate aspects of life. It is a process of guided introspection, of 'doing philosophy' rather than studying it. There is no sermonizing; the facilitator presents sets of proposals, and helps participants bring their attention to bear on the inner workings of their thoughts, fears and aspirations. Gradually one begins to interrogate hidden assumptions and get a sharper, clearer view of the whole intricate fabric of life; one begins to see new possibilities for positive human action. The idea is to trigger an empowering, self-critical inner dialogue that begins with the workshop, but doesn't end with it…

This is a residential workshop hosted at Dharwad, Karnataka. There is only room for about 30 participants, so please register as early as possible. It is important that you attend the whole workshop from start to finish as each day builds on the previous one.

The Facilitator:
This workshop will be facilitated by Vinish Gupta, who leads the Centre for Holistic Learning. He has been involved with various social and environmental movements in the past. In his youth he spent over a decade as a Buddhist monk, exploring traditional Indian systems of thought and living. His current interests include value education, and design of environmentally sound systems and technologies.

What to bring:
Bring personal clothing, umbrella, water bottle, towel, toiletries, mosquito-net/repellent, and any interesting materials from your organization to share and anything creative that you like to do to share with others.

This event is run on gift culture. Participants are invited to contribute what they can (towards the cost of organising the workshop which is approximately Rs.3500 per person for food and stay); learning scholarships are available to those who need them. And if you can, your additional contribution will help to support other people's participation. No one will be refused due to money constraints.

यह कार्यशाला हिंदी में होगी . (This workshop will be conducted in Hindi).

To register for the workshop, please fill in the online form.

Participants from Dharwad may contact any of the following to participate:
1. Dr Sanjeev Kulkarni - 9448143100 (7 pm to 9 pm only)
2. Shri Santosh Oswal - 9880139840 (5 pm to 8 pm only)
3. Shri Sanjeevkumar Patil - 9448231960 (Email: info@tarangscientificinstruments.com )

Please note that the workshop is of an integrated nature and has to be attended in its entirety. It may not be attended partially.
Here is how to reach Dharwad. It is ideal for participants to arrive by the evening of the 2nd October itself; they may leave after lunch of 10th October 2015. If you intend to travel by train, please note that train bookings now open 4 months in advance of the travel date, so we advise you not to delay making the necessary bookings!

Best wishes,
Dharwad Sukhi Jeevan Group

धारवाड़ सुखी जीवन समूह ,

द्वारा आयोजित   

धारवाड़, कर्णाटक

में

जीवन विद्या शिविर

3-10 अक्टूबर 2015

शिविर के बारे में:

जीवन विद्या शिविर (करीब 40 घंटे की अवधि की) एक गहरे अध्ययन की प्रक्रिया है, जिसमे जीवन के मौलिक परन्तु प्रायः उपेक्षित पहलुओं पर ध्यान केंद्रित किया जाता है। आपसी सम्बन्ध, शिक्षा, समाज, प्रकृति, लक्ष्य, सफलता आदि पर एक गहरा संवाद होता है जिसके द्वारा प्रतिभागियों को ज़िन्दगी के भिन्न प्रतीत होने वाले पहलुओं के बीच की कड़ियाँ पहचानने व समझने का अवसर मिलता है। कोई प्रवचन या उपदेश नही होता। प्रबोधक द्वारा कुछ प्रस्ताव प्रस्तुत किये जाते हैं, और प्रतिभागियों को उनके आतंरिक विचारों, भयों, सम्भ्राँतियों, आकांक्षाओं आदि को जांचने में सहयोग किया जाता है।  क्रमशः ढेर सारी छिपी मान्यताएं उजागर होने लगती हैं और व्यक्ति को ज़िन्दगी के सूक्ष्म ताने बाने का एक नयी स्पष्टता से दर्शन होने लगता है; मानव में सकारात्मक सृजनशक्ति की नयी संभावनाओं का बोध होने लगता है।  एक सशक्त चिंतन-यात्रा का शिविर में प्रारम्भ तो होता है पर अंत नही …

यह 8-दिवसीय पूर्णकालिक आवासीय शिविर है। धारवाड़, कर्णाटक में आयोजित इस शिविर में कुल 30 प्रतिभागियों के लिए स्थान हैं, इस लिए पूर्व पंजीकरण करें।  

शिविर में पूर्णकालिक प्रतिभागिता अनिवार्य है, आंशिक प्रतिभागिता की अनुमति नही है।

शिविर के दौरान स्वैच्छिक श्रमदान करने का व व्यक्तिगत हुनरों के आदान-प्रदान का भी अवसर रहेगा।

प्रबोधक:

इस शिविर में प्रबोधन श्री विनीश गुप्ता करेंगे। वे लम्बे समय से विभिन्न सामाजिक व पर्यावरणीय अभियानों से जुड़े रहे हैं। करीब दस वर्ष तक वे बौद्ध परंपरा में भिक्षु भी रहे, जिस दौरान उन्हें भारतीय विचारधाराओं व तौर तरीकों को समझने का अवसर मिला।

विनीश को उनके कार्यों में सहयोग मिलता है उनकी पत्नी करुणा मुरारजी से। शिक्षा का मानव संभावनाओं व विकास के साथ सम्बन्ध समझने में लम्बे समय से करुणा की रूचि रही है। अन्य विषय जिनके अध्ययन में वे रूचि रखती हैं: आहार, फ़िल्में, प्रक्रिया/इतिहास विश्लेषण, और सीखने-सिखाने व जीने के सामूहिक तौर तरीके।

साथ लाएं:

निजी वस्त्र, पानी की बोतल, तौलिया, साबुन आदि निजी उपयोग का सामान, आपके संस्था / कार्य से सम्बंधित सामग्री, व कुछ भी रचनात्मक जो आप को दूसरों के साथ करना / बांटना अच्छा लगता है।

यह शिविर 'उपहार संस्कृति' पर आधारित है। यानि इस शिविर के लिए कोई निश्चित अनिवार्य शुल्क नही है।  हर प्रतिभागी पर करीब रुपए 3500 का खर्च आता है।  जिन्हे आवश्यकता हो उनके लिए छात्रवृत्तियां/सहयोग उपलब्ध हैं।  आप अधिक योगदान का सामर्थ्य रखते हों तो आपके योगदान से अन्य लोगों की प्रतिभागिता सुनिश्चित होने में सहयोग रहेगा।  

आर्थिक असमर्थता के कारण किसी की प्रतिभागिता बाधित नही होने दी जाएगी।  

इस शिविर में भाग लेने के लिए यह ऑनलाइन फॉर्म भरें। 

धारवाड़ से प्रतिभागी पंजीकरण हेतु इन से भी संपर्क कर सकते हैं:

1 . डॉ. संजीव कुलकर्णी - 9448143100 (सायं 7 से 9 बजे )

2 . श्री संतोष ओसवाल - 9880139840 (सायं 5 से 8 बजे )

3. श्री संजीवकुमार पाटिल - 9448231960 (इ-मेल : info@tarangscientificinstruments.com )

धारवाड़  पहुँचने के बारे में जानकारी यहाँ है। उत्तम होगा यदि प्रतिभागी 2 अक्टूबर की शाम तक ही पहुँच पाएं। वे 10 अक्टूबर को दोपहर के भोजन उपरांत वापस लौट सकते हैं।  यदि आप रेल से यात्रा करने वाले हैं तो ध्यान रहे कि टिकटें यात्रा तिथि के 4 महीने पूर्व मिलनी शुरू हो जाती हैं, इस लिए अपनी यात्रा की टिकटें बुक करवाने में विलम्ब न करें !

शुभ कामनाएं

धारवाड़ सुखी जीवन समूह

--

Centre for Holistic Learning
Jeevanshala Trust, "Nagalaxmi",
Hulekal Village, Sirsi-581336. Karnataka. India.
Tel: 08283-240147.
Cell: +91.8762071817

http://www.jeevanshala.org/