The Hindu Business Line : Thursday, April 03, 2003

Punjab enters contract farming for basmati rice
IN its ongoing agriculture diversification programme, the Punjab Government on Wednesday announced its foray into contract farming of basmati rice in collaboration with Rallis India Ltd, ICICI Bank and LT Overseas Ltd. This programme to grow ... More

STORAGE

Warehousing Corpn plans

HORTICULTURE/FRUITS & VEGETABLES

S. Korea may buy potatoes from Bengal
SOUTH Korea, one of the world's largest importers of potatoes, is interested in buying from West Bengal, which enjoys huge surplus in production. This was announced by Mr Rajive Kaul, Honorary Consulate-General of South Korea, at a press ... More

Cool options
Customers picking up musk melon, a sweet fruit grown in north Tamil Nadu. As the arrival season has peaked, over five truck loads of the fruit is arriving in Chennai daily. With the mercury rising, the fruit is in great demand. In the retail ... More

RUBBER

Rubber prices touch 7-year high
RUBBER prices flared up to a seven-year high on Wednesday as buyers, especially from tyre sector, tried to cover their requirements. The last time the price ruled at this level was in October 1996. Thereafter, it declined to touch the nadir of Rs ... More

Rubber stocks dip on higher offtake — 30,000-tonne imports likely by tyre makers before August
AN unexpected 16 per cent rise in rubber consumption by tyre manufacturers leading to a sharp fall in stocks is seen as the prime force behind the commodity's price touching a seven-year high. According to a note circulated by the Automotive ... More

TEA

Tea prices may rise on VAT, TMCO
THE Federation of All-India Tea Traders Association (FAITTA) feels that tea prices will increase by Rs 10-15 per kg due to Value-Added Tax (VAT) and Tea Marketing Control Order (TMCO) 2003. In a press release, the association Chairman, Mr P.O. ... More

SILK

Aid sought for developing non-mulberry silks
``The gains made during the UNDP-assisted project has been significant and have set a platform for the development of these non-mulberry silks, which are unique as these are grown in the wild." More

OILSEEDS & EDIBLE OIL

Edible oil imports surge 20 pc
Imports mainly comprised 1.84 lakh tonnes of crude palm oil; 1.26 lakh tonnes of crude olein and 1.25 lakh tonnes of degummed soyabean oil. More

COCONUT & COPRA

Coconut Summit next month
THE World Coconut Summit 2003 will be held here during May 7 - 11 to discuss the issues facing the coconut farming community. The summit, organised jointly by the Bharathiya Marketing Development Centre and the Bharathiya Science and ... More

SPICES & CONDIMENTS

Pepper prices steady on buying support
PEPPER prices remained steady on Wednesday on buying support from upcountry buyers. The spot prices, as a result, maintained at last Saturday's level of Rs 8,000 for MG1 and Rs 7,600 for ungarbled per quintal. The North Indian buyers, ... More

`No duty-free import of spices'
THE Spices Board has clarified that imports of cardamom and turmeric are not duty-free consequent to the Exim Policy announcement. As per the previous policy, seeds of selected spices viz, cardamom, celery, fenugreek, dill, ajwain , cassia ... More

AGRICULTURAL POLICY

Food and Fertiliser subsidies — Major drag on farm sector growth
With a chunk of budgetary resources being diverted to foot the growing subsidy bill, there have been significant cut-backs in public sector outlays on agriculture. The Budget should mention that the entire amount saved on subsidies would be used to s tep up public investment in irrigation projects, agriculture research and rural infrastructure. That will blunt the prevailing opposition to reduce food and fertiliser subsidies, says S. D. Naik. More

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