The Hindu Business Line : Tuesday, August 08, 2006

Wheat imports gather steam
Imports of wheat have begun to gather steam with over 1.5 lakh tonnes being discharged at various ports currently. While 62,000 tonnes of wheat, part of the second tender contracted from AWB by STC, is being offloaded at Mundra port in Gujarat, ... More

CLIMATE & WEATHER
Maharashtra, AP under threat of more rains
Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra had better watch out as the Bay of Bengal prepares itself to host another strong monsoon system. This comes at a time when floodwaters from a prevailing well marked `low' are yet to drain out completely ... More

SEEDS
`Plant Varieties Act is farmer-friendly'
To safeguard IPRs of breeders and scientists More

PULSES
Ethanol output from sorghum to start soon
The country's first facility that acquired technology from Icrisat to make ethanol from non-molasses route (through sweet sorghum) will start production next month. The Rs 23-crore manufacturing unit is being set up by Rusni Distilleries ... More

Stable prices
ON LEASH: Pulses displayed for sale at a shop in Kochi. The country's pulses production has remained stagnant at 13-14 million tonnes, while demand has increased on population and economic growth. As a result, prices of pulses increased this ... More

INSIGHT
The noose of debt
The single most important cause of farmer suicides is their inability to pay back the loans they have taken, often from private moneylenders. This age-old problem is yet to be resolved in a durable fashion. More

HORTICULTURE/FRUITS & VEGETABLES
Limited availability
TOO MANY FOR TOO LITTLE?: Retail traders bidding for apples, which have come from Himachal Pradesh, at the Mechua wholesale fruit market in Kolkata on Monday. According to the traders, the season has begun and only limited quantity of the fruit ... More

RUBBER
Spot rubber prices decline
Spot rubber prices declined on Monday. The domestic market inherited the weakness from the falling overseas indices especially TOCOM which lost on heavy long liquidation and speculative selling in all contracts. Sheet rubber settled down at Rs ... More

AGRICULTURAL INSTITUTIONS
Y.K. Alagh is IRMA chief
The economist and former Union Minister Mr Y.K. Alagh was declared as the successor to Dr Verghese Kurien as Chairman of the Institute of Rural Development Anand (IRMA) by its board of governors at a meeting today. National Dairy Development ... More

OILSEEDS & EDIBLE OIL
Oilseeds acreage dips
Rice, pulses sowing up More

New Dalda range to add to Bunge's growth
Agri-business and food company Bunge India Pvt Ltd expects its revenue to increase by 38 per cent in 2006 because of the growth in its existing brands and the launch of a new range of the Dalda brand of edible oils. Bunge India, a 100 per cent ... More

Oilmeal exports slip in July
Oilmeal exports slipped in July by 21 per cent to 1.80 lakh tonnes (lt) compared with the same period a year ago. However, shipments from the country remained positive for the first four months of the fiscal. According to the ... More

SPICES & CONDIMENTS
Pepper futures pare gains
On Monday, the pepper futures market opened firm and traded higher and declined at close on reports that the Kerala Government procurement agency, Marketfed, which is holding an estimated 2,400 tonnes of black pepper, would be liquidating its ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS
Centre likely to restrict Lanka pepper imports
India wants it capped at 2,000 tonnes; Lanka wants to ship more More