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Horticulture Expert The Growth Driver Of Indian Agriculture Sector

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The horticulture sector, with a wide array of crops ranging from fruits and vegetables to orchids and nuts, mushrooms and honey – has been a driving force in the stimulating a healthy growth trend in Indian agriculture. India is currently producing 257.2 million tonnes of horticulture produce from an area of 23 million ha. What is significant is that over the last decade, the area under horticulture grew by about 3.8%per annum but production rose by 7.4% per annum. Given the increasing pressure on land, the focus of growth strategy is on raising productivity by supporting high density plantations, protected cultivation, micro irrigation, quality planting material, rejuvenation of senile orchards and focus on post harvest management to ensure that farmers do not lose their produce in transit from farm gate to the consumers plate.

Fruits:

With a production of 76.4 million tonnes, fruits accounts for about 30 per cent of the total production of horticulture crops. The area under fruit crops during 2011-12 was 6.6 million ha, which is almost 29 per cent of area under horticulture in India. The area under fruit crops has increased from 4.0 million ha in 201-02 to 6.7 million ha in 2011-12 with corresponding increase in production from 43.0 to 76.4 million tonnes. A large variety of fruits are grown in India. Of these, banana, mango, citrus, papaya, guava, grape, sapota, pomegranate, pineapple, aonla, litchi, pear, plum, walnut, etc are important. India accounts for 13 percent of the total world production of fruits and leads the world in the production of mango, banana, papaya, sapota, pomegranate, acid lime and aonla.

The leading fruit growing states are Maharashtra which accounts for 16.0 per cent of production followed by Andhra Pradesh (13.0%), Gujarat (10.0%), Karnataka (9.0%), Uttar Pradesh (8.0%), Tamil Nadu (7.0%) and Bihar (5.0%) altogether contributes for about 68.0 percent of the total fruit production in the country. Banana is the major fruit accounting for 35 per cent of total production followed by mango (4.0%), citrus (11.0%), papaya (6.0%), others (17.7%) in the country. It may also be mentioned that in the Himalayan states of Himachal and J&K the GDP from apples, plums, pears and stone fruits exceeds that of GDP from cereal crops.

Vegetables:

Vegetables are also an important constituent in horticulture sector which are mostly low gestation and high income generating crops. Many vegetables are now grown under protected cultivation like green houses and shade nut houses with a scope for off season production, which fetches remunerative prices.
Vegetables occupied an area of 8.9 million ha during 2011-12 with a total production of 155.9 million tonnes having average productivity of 17.4 tonnes/ha.

Vegetable production registered a quantum jump of 77 per cent between 2001-02 and 2011-12.

More than 40 kinds of vegetables belonging to different groups are grown in India in tropical, sub tropical and temperate regions. Important vegetable crops grown in the country are potato, tomato, onion, brinjal, cabbage, cauliflower, peas, okra, chilies, beans, melons, etc. The leading vegetables growing states are West Bengal which accounts for 15% of production followed by Uttar Pradesh (12%), Bihar (10.0%), Andhra Pradesh (8.0%), Madhya Pradesh (6.5%), Gujarat (6.4%), Tamil Nadu (5.8%), Maharashtra (5.7%), Karnataka (5.0%) and Haryana (3.0%) altogether contributes about 83.4% of the total vegetable production in the country. Among vegetables, potato is the major vegetable accounting for 27.0% followed by tomato (12%), onion (11.0%), brinjal (8.0%), cabbage (5.4%), cauliflower (4.7%), okra (4.0%), peas (2.5%) and others (25.4%) in the country. India is the second largest producer of vegetables after China and is a leader in production of vegetables like peas and okra. Besides, India occupies the second position in production of brinjal, cabbage, cauliflower and onion and third in potato and tomato in the world. Vegetables such as potato, tomato, okra and cucurbits are produced abundantly in the country.

Spices:

India is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of spices and spice products in the world. Over 100 plant species are known to yield spices and spice products among which around 50 are grown in India. India is known as the home of spices producing a wide variety of spices like black pepper, chilies, ginger, turmeric, garlic, cardamom and variety of tree and seed spices. Major spice producing states are Andhra Pradesh (19.0%), Gujarat (15.0%), Rajasthan (14.7%), Karnataka (8.0%), Madhya Pradesh (7.7%) and Tamil Nadu (7.0%). The spice production in India is currently estimated at 5.95 million tonnes from an area of about 3.21milion ha.

The production of spices in the country has registered a substantial increase over the last ten years with average annual growth of 5.8%. Chili is the major spice crop occupying about 25% of area under cultivation and contributing 22% of total spice production in the country. Garlic accounts for 8.0% of area with 21.0% share in production, while turmeric accounts for 6.8% of area with 19.6% share in production.

Flowers:

India has made noticeable advance in the production of flowers, particularly cut flowers, which have a good potential for exports. During 2011-12, floriculture covered an area of 0.32 million ha with a production of 2.6 million tonnes of loose flowers and 75066 million numbers of cut flowers. This sector is generating higher income and employment opportunities especially for women.

While India has been known for growing traditional flowers such as jasmine, marigold, chrysanthemum, tuberose and aster, the commercial cultivation of cut flowers like roses, orchids, gladiolus, carnation, gerbera, anthurium and lilium has become popular in recent times. The important flower growing states are West Bengal, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, North East, etc. Major area is devoted to production of marigold, jasmine, roses, chrysanthemum, tuberose, etc. The area under cut flowers having stems has increased manifold. Orchids, anthurium, lilium, gerbera and seasonal bulbous flowers are increasingly being grown both for domestic and export markets.
Growth in Exports:

Not only have these impressive production figures ensured a steady supply for the domestic market, they have also made Indian horticulture exports globally competitive. Over the last decade, there has been a significant improvement in export earnings in horticulture.
The horticulture division is working closely with APEDA and state governments to ensure that infrastructure and institutional support for export is available to ensure that farmers can leverage export markets for higher incomes.

Why Sustainable agriculture Is Important For Rising Global Population

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Sustainable agricultural practices are essential to feeding a growing and voracious global population.

Farmers throughout Australia clearly recognise the need for sustainable agriculture. In short, sustainable farms lead to a sustainable business that can be handed down through generations.

There is a strong argument for an industry-based environmental stewardship system that recognises sustainable agriculture practices.

While environmental groups, producer bodies and regional groups in Australia have filled the gap, an umbrella environmental stewardship program would be beneficial.

The industry is in the process of developing a stewardship management system for producers, to allow more effective management and reporting on sustainable agricultural practices.

This system will address five crucial areas: greenhouse gas and energy management; land use and management; soil and water; biodiversity; and feral animals and weeds.

Australian red meat producers actively undertake measures at each stage of production to increase their efficiency, cut greenhouse gas emissions and manage other environmental impacts to help preserve our natural resources.

The domestic red meat industry invests more than $7.5 million each year in research and development (R&D) to find ways to make constant improvements to its environmental performance.

This includes collaborating with other livestock industries and governments in R&D to find practical ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while increasing productivity. Since 1990, emissions from red meat production have decreased by 6.5% per kilogram of product.

Through holistic management of their properties, Australian farmers nurture not only their livestock but the soil, trees, micro-organisms, native animals and vegetation that make up their production system. Not only is this important for sustainable farms but it is important for Australia’s quest to cut overall emissions.

A worldwide analysis of the effects of land management on soil carbon showed there is on average about 8% more soil carbon under well-managed pasture than under native forests.

While sustainable farming practices make good business sense, consumers are also increasingly seeking more information about the sustainability profile of their red meat.

The Australian red meat industry is actively engaged with the Sustainable Agricultural Initiative (SAI) Platform – a unique initiative set up in Europe five years ago by leading food companies with a conviction that a common food and agricultural industry platform can promote sustainable agriculture at a global level.

The SAI Platform is an independent association operating across the agriculture, food and fibre chain and aims to change practices to improve agriculture sustainability outcomes.

The Platform’s business approach is known as the -PPPs’ where three dimensions are considered – people, profit and the planet.

Australian agriculture is in a strong position to meet the growing global demand for food. As an agricultural nation with a strong focus on exports, Australia’s farmers are committed to sustainable agricultural systems.

To continue to harvest the long-term economic benefits of food production, Australia’s farmers need to continue to innovate and invest in sustainable agriculture.

Sustainable agricultural practices should be employed for all Australian farming. Learn more at redmeatgreenfacts.com.au

Federal Bank – The Private Indian Bank From Pre-independence Era

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Travancore Federal Bank was the name of Federal Bank of India when it was established in the year 1931. It was inaugurated at Nedumpuram near Tiruvalla Kerala (Tiruvalla is situated south of Kottayam). It had 14 founders with Sri Oommen Varghese as the Chairman and Sri Oommen Chacko as its Manager. It functioned successfully for 10 years and then stopped all of a sudden due to health problems of the Manager Sri Oommen Chacko.

Then a Lawyer of Perumbavoor took the charge and managed it efficiently. The name of the Lawyer was K.P.Hormis. later in the year 1945 K.P. Hormis also became the Managing Director and shifted its Headquarters to Aluva. In the year 1947 the name of the bank was changed to Federal Bank. In the year 1970, it became a Scheduled Commercial Bank. After a series of mergers and acquisitions including banks at Chalakudy, Thrissur, Alleppey, Puthenpally, Thiruvananthapuram, and Kurundwad, Federal Bank became even bigger with larger financial turnovers.

It is one of the largest private sector banks and the prominent one amongst the old private group of Indian banks.

PRESENT STATUS:
Now the bank has its Headquarters at Aluva, near Kochi in Kerala. It is presently running 743 branches across 24 states in India. It now has 803 ATM’s across India. Of these 803 ATM’s there are 108 in Metro Centres, 224 in Urban Centres, 384 Semi-Urban and 87 in rural areas. There has been several high-profile sponsorships and other modes of advertisement including the title sponsorship of the popular Indian cricket franchisee Kochi Tuskers Kerala of the Indian Premier League or IPL. It is also the fourth largest bank right now in India in terms of capital base and is also listed in the London Stock Exchange in addition to the Indian stock markets Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND AWARDS:

The Federal bank of India has received many awards during its long journey since 1931 till now. Some of them are:
1. The banking technology Excellence Award for the year 2010-2011.
2. The Excellence Award for Second best bank among traditional private sector banks in Kerala.
3. The Great Mind Challenging Award for implementing the most innovative solution in Business.
4. Ranked number one in Economic Times Intelligence Group Survey.

SERVICES OFFERED:
The bank renders the following services:
1. Savings Bank Account.
2. Current Account.
3. Loans.
4. Deposits.
5. Debit Cards.
6. Fund Transfer.
7. Inward Remittance.
8. Online Bill Collection.
9. Bank Guarantee.
10. cash Management.
11. Demat Accounts.
12. Federal Pure Gold.
13. Gift Accounts.
14. Mutual Fund.
15. Safe Deposit Lockers.
16. NRI Banking Services.
17. Merchant Banking.
18. ASBA.
19. Visa Bill payment.
20. Master Card Secure Code.
21. Verified By Visa (VBV).
22. Online Tax Payment.
23. Mobile Banking -FedMobile.
24. Internet banking -FedNet.
25. Corporate FedNet.

LOANS:
It also gives Loans for various purposes like: Business, Agriculture an Rural, Housing, Educational, Travel, Personal, Car, Medical and Home Loans.

WORKING HOURS:
The Bank runs from morning 9 to evening 4 from Monday to Saturday. Sunday is a holiday. The Bank is closed on Public holidays. the timings are different for its Abu Dhabi Branch which works from 9 AM to 5:30 PM and this branch also works on Sunday.

India Agriculture Jobs & Opportunities

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This article hopes to give you the knowledge you need regarding India Agriculture, to feel that you have a firm grasp on the subject.

Agriculture is really a field of live activities and there are numerous opportunities are associated with it. Now the amount of jobs in agricultural field is more. There are numerous classifications are contained in it. It is perfectly in line with the availability of jobs in a variety of ideas.

A number of them are completely predicated on new views and there are numerous ideas are arriving an agricultural job. Gardening is a good example of the and for the reason that complete garden management is going on here. Increasingly more views and cultivation processes are contained in it. International businesses of agricultural some ideas are completely pointing various some ideas about such ideas. Jobs in agricultural ideas are actually increasing the touch with environment and related some ideas.

Cultivation may be the main purpose of all jobs in agricultural. They’re mainly pointing on top end cultivation with new schemes. Excellent application and related inventions are associated with such ideas. Perfect views of some ideas and new medicines will also be using to improve the growth of plants in an entire way. Various ideas are actually using to improve the productivity of plants in an excellent manner.

More international companies find new generation drugs to improve all kinds of growth. By utilizing these medicines production of plants are increasing in an ideal manner. Increasing numbers of people are coming with such ideas and different experts and scientists will also be related with one of these ideas. Experts are actually thinking to locate various some ideas and medicines to improve the whole production of plants. Plant cultivation atmosphere creation is essential.

Jobs agriculture schemes are completely coping with this atmosphere creation also. Here various views of plant growing conditions are arranging. Quantity of water, gases and cultivation agents are utilizing here to improve the growth. New generation concepts of plant some ideas are increasing the amount of all some ideas in an ideal manner.

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International businesses are providing various assistances to any or all these kinds of agricultural inventions and studies. Various researches and studies are increasing the worthiness of this in an excellent manner. Jobs in agricultural some ideas are completely coming now in a variety of job web sites.

Various Government organizations will also be connected with this particular in an excellent manner and many of them are giving good salary and to all peoples. Various private organizations will also be applying such ideas in an ideal manner.

Jobs agriculture schemes are completely coping with this atmosphere creation also. Here various views of plant growing conditions are arranging. Quantity of water, gases and cultivation agents are utilizing here to improve the growth. New generation concepts of plant some ideas are increasing the amount of all some ideas in an ideal manner.

No matter which way you look at it, having a firm understanding of this topic area regarding India Agriculture will benefit you, even if it is just slightly.

Developing Innovation In Uk Agriculture

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Consumers would welcome anything that helps keep the weekly grocery prices under control as food prices continue to rise while incomes stagnate.

Farmers, also, have come under increasing pressure from volatile prices for their crops, the efforts of suppliers to keep prices low in the shops and the increasingly uncertain global weather.

At the same time they are asked to farm sustainably to protect the environment, produce more natural, chemical free food and equally to improve the yield from their land to meet the food needs of a larger global population.

In the UK, some East Anglian organic grain farmers have recently joined together in a contract with a company that needed a regular supply of food for its organically-reared pigs.

As one farmer said, it is very difficult to assess the market supply and demand particularly in the organic market and the arrangement they reached had several benefits.

It meant both buyer and sellers were no longer susceptible to the vagaries of the market and to stablise the prices right through to the retailer and share the costs. It also made it possible to make the whole supply chain from land to pig meat traceable and to reduce the carbon footprint by supplying to a local buyer.

It worked because all those involved knew each other and were in the same area, but there is no reason why the model could not be used by other farmers both in the UK and overseas.

Research in East Agnlia is also being carried out to identify the different genetic characteristics in various grain seeds. The aim is to find those that are better for growing in an area of increasing drought and are better protected against the new plant diseases that might arise. Cross breeding, for example, could then be used to produce a resilient variety suited to the local climate.

Other research that has been going on, mainly in the USA has been in providing better crop and land protection in a more natural way, as a substitute for the many now-discredited older generation of chemical fertilisers.

The range of innovations includes biopesticides, biofungicides and yield enhancers that are developed from natural sources and leave minimal residues in the land and in the crop. They will also help farmers to meet the growing demand for natural foods with less waste and less loss of the nutrition in their land

These new low-chem agricultural products are subject to careful testing and licensing before they are allowed onto the market and this can be an expensive and lengthy process, taking up to eight years in some cases because regulation is not yet standardised across individual countries, so they may need to be licensed separately in several places.

There are signs, however, that more effort is being put into innovation in the various aspects of food production to respond to the concerns of consumers on both price and food quality.

Copyright (c) 2011 Alison Withers