Land Development Bank (LDB)seizes 51 tractors from farmers and MSEDCL cut 1.5 lac Agri-power connection-TIMES OF INDIA

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LDB seizes 51 tractors from farmers

TNN, Nov 20, 2010, 02.53am IST

NAGPUR: The state's Land Development Bank (LDB) has finally begun cracking the whip to recover its decade-old dues from the region's farmers. The action has left farmers' union activists crying foul. However, bankers say this is part of the regular recovery process, and the bank had waited long enough before acting.

The bank had ceased operations in 1997 after the rural banking behemoth Nabard stopped financing it since the state government withdrew its guarantee to this bank. The LDB was left with huge dues, which have not been entirely recovered till date.

LDB is a two-tier agency, with a bank in each district and one apex bank. The operations in almost all the districts level banks have stopped, with some branches without enough funds to even pay employees salaries.

According to the Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti, a farmers' organisation, at least 51 tractors have been seized from farmers throughout the region by the LDB. A senior official in the Nagpur bank confirmed such an action being undertaken and said 4-5 tractors have been seized in Nagpur district too. "There are chances that around 50 or so tractors may have been seized in the entire region," said the official.

Before this, the bank had adopted a passive approach of 'Gandhigiri' to try and shame the borrowers into paying up the loan amounts. However, this did not work and finally stern action has been taken by the bank now.

On the other hand, Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti has termed this as an abrupt shift to coercive methods of recovery. Kishore Tiwari said that the bank could have waited till after the harvest, which is due by the month end. He also said that the recent untimely rains in some places have hit farmers badly.

Tiwari also said that a similar recovery drive by the electricity supply company MSEDCL had led to the snapping of around 1.5 lakh power connections, making the situation very bad for farmers. Only 13,000 connections have been restored so far. A farmer has already filed a petition against the drive before the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court, he said.

Meanwhile, sources in the LDB said, there is a one-time settlement scheme open till March 2011, and those who have applied under it are being spared in the drive, otherwise the recovery drive will continue simultaneously.

Vidarbha Farmers protest cartelisation by cotton traders-TIMES OF INDIA

Farmers protest Cartelisation by Cotton Traders

TNN, Nov 17, 2010, 07.05am IST

NAGPUR: It is two weeks now that the state cotton federation has launched procurement but not a single farmer has turned up to sell cotton at its collection centres because of the huge gap between minimum support price and the open market rates. But private traders are now being accused of cartelising in order to pull down prices as it has become a buyers` market.

Nearly half a dozen incidents of clashes between protesting farmers and traders trying to manipulate cotton and soyabean prices in Vidarbha were reported from all over Vidarbha, the latest being in Yavatmal APMC and at Chandrapur where the local Shiv Sena led the agitation. Traders who have a strong network and faster means of communication have allegedly ganged up. Same people are operating all over the cotton belt extending from Nanded in Marathwada to Adilabad in Andhra Pradesh. They are offering less price to farmers though international rates are ruling quite high. While the federation, which is buying on behalf of NAFED, is offering 3000 a quintal for the best variety, the open market rates are ruling over 4,000.

On Diwali eve, when farmers were wanting to offload cotton to get cash for festival, traders allegedly lowered the price to around 2800 a quintal at some centres as the federation was yet to begin procurement . However, a week later traders were paying 4500. A farmer Suresh Shedmate of Pandharkawda had to transport his crop last week from one market to another to get the right price, Only after he travelled some 100 km -- first to Yavatmal and then to Parva-- he could get a price of 4100.

"When arrivals are more, traders lower the prices," he told TOI. As a result, farmers have to run from one place to another carrying the cotton loads to get the best price, he added. A clash was also reported at Ghatanji between traders and farmers seeking higher prices.

Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti president Kishor Tiwari said the government was overlooking interests of the farmers. "The monopoly cotton purchase scheme was started in 1972 with the objective of checking exploitation of farmers by private traders. Some leaders like Sharad Joshi of Shetkari Sanghatana advocate the cause of free market. But at least in Vidarbha, where most farmers live in economic distress, such a policy does not work in his favour and only helps the traders," he said. "The only solution is that a government agency like Cotton Corporation of India, which buys at open market rates, should intervene and stop fleecing of farmers by traders," he added.

Read more: Farmers protest cartelisation by cotton traders - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Farmers-protest-cartelisation-by-cotton-traders/articleshow/6939260.cms#ixzz15VjLUUGS

Vidarbha rice innovator gets recognition after 20 long years

Vidarbha rice innovator gets recognition after 20 long years
http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_vidarbha-rice-innovator-gets-recognition-after-20-long-years_1467277

If he were a corporate tycoon, Dadaji Ramaji Khobragade would today rule half the world with his small white grain, alongside the Monsantos and Syngentas.

Instead, this septuagenarian marginal peasant believes in sharing his knowledge and innovation for free, for the benefit of people.

That’s the reason why despite finding his name in the Forbes list of top seven Indian rural entrepreneurs picked up by IIM-Ahmedabad professor and founder of the Honey Bee Network Anil Gupta, Khobragade remains an abysmally poor peasant, living in a cramped and dingy hut, farming a small patch of land.

On that farm in Chandrapur district’s nondescript Nanded village, the rural paddy cultivator has this year launched a new variety of paddy. This one’s his ninth, he says.

He has named it after himself: DRK-II. “This will rock,” he says, happy that someone takes note of his work. “I do not know what this means,” he says, of his name figuring as one of the top rural entrepreneurs named in the Forbes list.

Dadaji, a twice recipient of National Innovation Foundation’s coveted award, finds his name in the coveted list for the discovery of a popular paddy variety, HMT-Sona, which covers a vast area under rice cultivation in India. For that, the plant breeder is an inspiration to the peasantry around his village.

Ironically though, it’s over this variety that he has fought an unsuccessful battle for intellectual property rights with the state-run Punjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth (PKV), Akola, which credits itself with the HMT discovery, claiming that it had “purified and refined” the parent breed.

PKV maintains it took field trials, multiplied the seeds and “refined” its quality (insiders say it didn’t). And, without acknowledging the original breeder, Dadaji, it credited itself for inventing HMT variety that he bred in his farm through the 1980s with painstaking efforts and meticulous farm practice. It took him more than a decade to breed the variety from three different strains of rice, recounts Dadaji.

It became an instant hit with local farmers for its aroma and high yields. The state-run seed corporation Mahabeej, with which PKV has a tie-up, has been doing a brisk business of HMT-Sona for over a decade.

Experts say the least the government could do now is help him protect his intellectual property. The old man’s unflinching research has continued despite the fact that he had to sell three acres of farm to treat his son, Mitrajeet, suffering from sickle cell anemia.

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Four more Farmers Suicides in Vidarbha on the eve oath taking o Maharashtra new chief minister

Four more Farmers Suicides in Vidarbha on the eve oath taking o Maharashtra new chief minister

Nagpur-11^th November , 2010

As per reports published in Nagpur base daily Sakal that four more farmers sucides reported in Vidarbha on the eve of oth taking ceremony of Maharashtra new chief minister Prathiraj Chavan,

Recent victims of vidarbha agrarian crisis are -

1.Pundanlik purke of Talni in Amaravati

2.Manoj Dakhore of Bhatkuli in Amaravati

3.Madhav Sidam of Chaparala in Chandrapur

4.Chandrakant Dhanorkar Pipri in Chandrapur

HERE IS THE LINK SAKAL REPORT =
http://www.esakal.com/esakal/20101111/5401823275658612570.htm

विदर्भात कर्जापोटी 4 शेतकऱ्यांच्या आत्महत्या

सकाळ वृत्तसेवा

Thursday, November 11, 2010 AT 12:15 AM (IST)

Tags: farmer suicide, nagpur, vidarbha

This may time of celebration for the people of western mahashatra but for vidarbha gloom and despair rafter heavy rain almost spoiled the complete cotton crop in more than 3 million hector resulting huge economic losses to tune of more than Rs.4000 crore adding more pain already existing Despondency and accumulated actuate deep distress is triggering the farm suicides ,Kishor Tiwari of Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti(VJAS )informed in press release today.

the vidarbha agrarian crisis is min tsk for the new chief minister and has to give relook to this serious issue as MOS in PMO ,he is aware of massive corruptin in prime minister relief package and failure of state Govt to address crisis,vidarbha farmers want urgent relief in order to stop these farmer suicides ,VJAS relese added.

cotton and and it's price is main cause of agrarian crisis in the region because of the fact that for kharif season 2010-11 area under cultivation of Bt.cotton is above 110 lakhs and record rain and massive floods in cotton cultivating areas has damaged most of standing Bt.cotton crop and excessive rain has jumped the cultivation cost to double, but expected yield is likely to reduce to 50% resulting more than Rs.27,000 crore huge financial losses to Indian cotton growers, hence our demand to raise cotton MSP of Rs.4500/- per quintal to compensate farmers accumulated losses ,it need of the hour , Kishor Tiwari of VJAS added.

“Since last one months cotton bales rate is above Rs.45000/- and cotton seed is being sold above Rs.1500/- per quintal and future trading till December in national and international commodity exchanges are showing bullish trend and massive cotton crop losses in India ,China, Pakistan and USA and west vidarbha. cotton growers has urged Indian Govt. to ask CACP to raise cotton MSP of Rs.4500/- per quintal to compensate farmers accumulated losses but day before yesterday Dr.N.P.Hirani, Chairman Maharashtra State Co-operative Cotton Growers Marketing Federation Limited (MAHACOT) has officially asked Govt. of India to raise MSP from Rs.3000/- to Rs 4200/- per quintal ,this is clear indication of urgency to raise the cotton MSP now new chief minister should take up the issue and raise cotton MSP immeditly , Kishore Tiwari said in press release.

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Four more Farmers Suicides in Vidarbha on the eve oath taking o Maharashtra new chief minister

Four more Farmers Suicides in Vidarbha on the eve oath taking o Maharashtra new chief minister

Nagpur-11^th November , 2010

As per reports published in Nagpur base daily Sakal that four more farmers sucides reported in Vidarbha on the eve of oth taking ceremony of Maharashtra new chief minister Prathiraj Chavan,

Recent victims of vidarbha agrarian crisis are -

1.Pundanlik purke of Talni in Amaravati

2.Manoj Dakhore of Bhatkuli in Amaravati

3.Madhav Sidam of Chaparala in Chandrapur

4.Chandrakant Dhanorkar Pipri in Chandrapur

HERE IS THE LINK SAKAL REPORT =
http://www.esakal.com/esakal/20101111/5401823275658612570.htm

विदर्भात कर्जापोटी 4 शेतकऱ्यांच्या आत्महत्या

सकाळ वृत्तसेवा

Thursday, November 11, 2010 AT 12:15 AM (IST)

Tags: farmer suicide, nagpur, vidarbha

This may time of celebration for the people of western mahashatra but for vidarbha gloom and despair rafter heavy rain almost spoiled the complete cotton crop in more than 3 million hector resulting huge economic losses to tune of more than Rs.4000 crore adding more pain already existing Despondency and accumulated actuate deep distress is triggering the farm suicides ,Kishor Tiwari of Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti(VJAS )informed in press release today.

the vidarbha agrarian crisis is min tsk for the new chief minister and has to give relook to this serious issue as MOS in PMO ,he is aware of massive corruptin in prime minister relief package and failure of state Govt to address crisis,vidarbha farmers want urgent relief in order to stop these farmer suicides ,VJAS relese added.

cotton and and it's price is main cause of agrarian crisis in the region because of the fact that for kharif season 2010-11 area under cultivation of Bt.cotton is above 110 lakhs and record rain and massive floods in cotton cultivating areas has damaged most of standing Bt.cotton crop and excessive rain has jumped the cultivation cost to double, but expected yield is likely to reduce to 50% resulting more than Rs.27,000 crore huge financial losses to Indian cotton growers, hence our demand to raise cotton MSP of Rs.4500/- per quintal to compensate farmers accumulated losses ,it need of the hour , Kishor Tiwari of VJAS added.

“Since last one months cotton bales rate is above Rs.45000/- and cotton seed is being sold above Rs.1500/- per quintal and future trading till December in national and international commodity exchanges are showing bullish trend and massive cotton crop losses in India ,China, Pakistan and USA and west vidarbha. cotton growers has urged Indian Govt. to ask CACP to raise cotton MSP of Rs.4500/- per quintal to compensate farmers accumulated losses but day before yesterday Dr.N.P.Hirani, Chairman Maharashtra State Co-operative Cotton Growers Marketing Federation Limited (MAHACOT) has officially asked Govt. of India to raise MSP from Rs.3000/- to Rs 4200/- per quintal ,this is clear indication of urgency to raise the cotton MSP now new chief minister should take up the issue and raise cotton MSP immeditly , Kishore Tiwari said in press release.

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Obama and Indian Agriculture-Dr Prabhakarn

Obama and Indian Agriculture

Dr Prabhakarn

Indian farming has its own solution. The obstacles are not technical but political. What the US wants is its replacement with an ‘agribusiness’ model to suit its own markets.

The buzz has been growing as to what will be the topic of discussion between Manmohan Singh and Barack Obama. In my opinion Obama’s visit will have the most profound impact on our agriculture, if one were to go by the behind the scene activities the US has been busy with for almost four years with the connivance of our agricultural messiah. When George W Bush came calling, the nuclear deal hogged the limelight, and the agriculture related aspects didn’t make headlines. Is there something unsaid and unwritten that has been going on backstage for at least a few years since Singh went to the US and talked with Bush? I am referring to the Knowledge Initiatives in Agriculture (KIA), which might not have caught headlines, but which will be most vital to our survival as a food producing nation and for sure Obama will raise a strong pitch on this because India is a huge market for American farm products. Hillary Clinton has laid the foundation when she came calling a year ago. And this will be the best time to do that, with the falling dollar and rising rupee.

Several laws and policies related to seed, food and farming in India have in the past been made to either facilitate American entry in these sectors or forge so called US - India ‘partnership’ in agri R&D and trade. Agri exports are a big part of Obama’s economic recovery plan. His visit will be marked by decisions which will have far reaching implications for Indian agriculture.

It is here that the seeds of chemical agriculture, euphemistically called the ‘Green Revolution’, were sown, the ill effects of which are only now being fully unfolded. Out soils have turned barren, our vibrant and vast biodiversity almost vanished owing to the monoculture of rice-wheat, and our groundwater is polluted. And ever since, right up to the introduction of American company Monsanto’s infamous Bt brinjal, public sector agriculture research institutes are being used as base stations from which the American integrates spring board into the Indian landscape. In the process – fom seed, to tractors, to processing to retailing American companies such as Cargill, Walmart and Monsanto have got more than a foothold in India. Now that the green revolution has fallen on its face, our agriculture messiahs want an ‘evergreen revolution’ (read genetically modified crops). Where are all those more than 25,000 rare native rice germplasms, some very high-yielding, some highly fragrant and some with therapeutic values, nurtured and preserved by late Riccharia, then director of Central Rice Research Institute in Cuttack, Orissa, who refused to be tricked by the World Bank with a huge bribe to pat with this invaluable collection and was later hounded out of office? History will never forgive those involved in this treachery. While Riccharia paid with his life for his patriotism, the messiahs who connived with the Americans got away with American inspired ‘awards’ and accolades.

There is now clear evidence of the American imprint on India’s agriculture legislations. Some come in via the route of the US-led multilateral system, the World Trade Organisation. On Intellectual Property Right (IPR), the US took India to the dispute settlement body of the WTO for non-compliance of IPR obligations. Despite amendments to the Indian patent law. It is still not good enough for the UN-India Business Council and American Life Science Corporations. Bilateral trade relations also come with prescriptions for legal and policy changes.

American clone under consideration is India’s version of the Bayh-Dole Act – the Protection and Utilisation of Public Funded Intellectual Property Bill, 2008. This advocates IPR for agricultural scientists and research institutions. The most controversial draconian Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India Bill, 2010, is waiting to resurface in Parliament. All concerned Indians have raised strong objections to the provisions of this Bill. Minister of state for science and technology Prithviraj Chavan is openly supporting this Bill. The Bill seeks “single window clearance” for GM materials and unlike the earlier 1986 Environment Protection Act, where all the stakeholders can have a definite say, the new Bill will only have ‘advisory’ roles for the ministries. And if you voice your opposition openly to GM material, you could end up in jail, or pay the hefty fine, or both. This will easily facilitate the clearance of genetic engineering for application on our seed, feed, food and livestock.

During Bush’s visit in 2006, the US-India Knowledge Initiative in agriculture education, teaching research, service and commercial linkages was inked. It is run by a board including Monsanto and Walmart. In July 2009. Hillary Clinton visited the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in New Delhi, where she sounded her commitment to see through policy changes in our agriculture sector which are favourable to American firms. Her primary focus was the GM crops and food items.

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Bill Gates, who backs agricultural biotechnology, visited India recently and made headlines by ‘adopting’ a village in Bihar. Soon, there was a report that the Borlaug Institute for South Asia is being set up in Bihar to unleash a second green revolution. Can’t we see a connection here?

As a run-up to the US-India strategic dialogue in June, top officials held a series of meetings, including one on agriculture. But India doesn’t need that level of interaction with the US. In agriculture, a diversity of local alternatives exist. The current food crises, despite the grains rotting in FCI godowns, shows that there is no shortage of foodgrain per se. There is no justification for new proprietary agricultural technologies to be brought in from the US.

There are several local initiatives that point to the way forward. For instance, dry land millet-based mixed farming practices organic farming with locally available farm waste, tree crop mixed farming agroforestry, livestock integrated farming, safeguarding uncultivated agro-biodiversity conserving our vast seed varieties, non pesticide management agriculture and the time-tested natural farming or rishi kheti Indian farming has its own solutions. The obstacles are not technical but political. What the US wants is its replacement with an ‘agribusiness’ model to suit its own markets. India does not need its food menu to be written by the US. And irrespective of what Obama’s speech writer pens down for his parliamentary address, any word on democracies will be meaningless if his visit leaves India as a less self-defining nation, which no longer chooses how and what it feeds its own. The link between arms and alms is not as distance as it may seem.

Vidarbha farm widows burned Osama’s effigy to protest US Agri-Trade Monopolies and disaster Gm seeds

Vidarbha farm widows burned Osama’s effigy to protest
US Agri-Trade Monopolies and disaster Gm seeds

Nagpur-8th November 2010

When high level committee of US delegates are finalizing the final statements regarding opening up Indian farm sector ,retail sector and small manufacturing sectors are facing lot of problems ,hundreds of vidarbha farm widows in Both-Bodan village which has reported highest number farm suicide 170 kilometer from Nagpur burned US Prez.Barack Obama effigy to protest on going cotton farmers suicides in the vidarbha region of eastern Maharashtra since 2005 after the official permission of commercial cultivation of genetically modified Bt.cotton seeds ,protesting were demanding the complete ban on Bt.cotton seed and withdrawal of huge subsidies to American cotton farmers .Vidarbha Janandolan Samiti (VJAS) secretary Mohan Jadhav who lead the protest said that this wild protest is the result of frustration when Prez.Barack Obama failed echo our sentiments as Indian agrarian crisis which has claimed more than 2,16,000 farmers suicides is very serious and US Govt. can’t ignore the same when American MNCs and so called genetic revolution and research has been instrumental in this crisis .

‘We will continue the protest against US agriculture policies and GM seed promotion till the mass genocide of Indian farmers is not stopped and farmers and farm activist are very upset with the first speech of US Prez.Barack Obama in the meeting of Industrialist and Capitalist of India is very shocking as he is the American president who is in the role of Marketing Manager to US MNCs which under deep recession and economic crisis and focusing 100 crore population out of which 80 % are below poverty line and without food, shelter, employment and health security as ‘Big Consumer Market’ is very unfortunate .USA can’t ignore basic serious issues of poverty and hunger of south east Asia and big problem to the peace and harmony of the region due to US intervention in adjusting nations and existence of mega military forces in and around India’ Kishor Tiwari statement over Obama business speech in Mumbai on Saturday.

It was expected that US Prez.Barack Obama would speak about the truth that from period between 1995 and 2009, the US government paid a quarter of a trillion dollars or a staggering Rs1250000 crore in farm subsidies to its farmers and as per recent report on US federal subsidy published earlier this year by the Washington-based research organization, the Environment Working Group (EWG), the American tax payers shelled out $245.2 billion in farm subsidies during 1995-2009, which works out to an average of $15 billion or Rs75000 crore per year, but he kept his salience over duplicity of US Government.

The VJAS urged political parties to oppose demand of US to open up the FDI in retail and food processing, push for the GM seeds’ adoption, reinvigorate the Indo-US knowledge initiative is matter before agreements are signed and chapter are closed allowing US companies take over in agriculture and rural business. Tiwari also claimed that due to aggressive promotion of Bt Cotton seeds, the Indian cotton manufactures are facing a piquant situation while retiring opposition to proposed policy of Government of India facilitating genetically modified seeds.

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Posted by VIDARBHA FARMER SUICIDE at 10:10 PM