Will India’s wheat imports lead to global food crisis?

Author(s): Jitendra @jitendrachoube1 

TRADERS have already placed orders for importing 100,000 tonnes from Australia

Unseasonal heavy rains and hail in India destroyed rabi crops in an area covering nearly 180,000 ha (File photo by Kundan Pandey)

The unseasonal heavy rains and hailstorm of March and April this year, which left millions of farmers in north India in distress, may impact internationalWHEAT PRICES. Indian traders, especially from south India, have started importing wheat from Australia and other parts of world in the wake of poor yields in India and lower international price. These imports may push up the international wheat price as happened in 2010.

In 2010, India imported 200,000 tonnes of wheat because of widespread drought, which led to a global food crisis as international prices increased. This year also,TRADERS have placed orders for nearly 100,000 tonnes of wheat from Australia, according to the Roller Flour Millers Federation Of India. Experts say this figure may touch 1.5 million tonnes.

Besides, Indian traders are also planning to import wheat from Commonwealth Independent Countries (CIS), especially Ukraine.

Officials in the agriculture ministry say the government is closely watching internationalWHEAT PRICES.

The unseasonal rain and hailstorm in India this year damaged rabi crops, wheat especially, in nearly 180,000 hectares. Wheat crop production this season is projected to decrease by nearly 4 million tonnes, according to the Union Ministry of Food and Consumer Affairs.

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has said total production of wheat in India would be around 92 million tonnes, which is nearly 3 million tonnes less than last year.

Abdolreza Abbassian, Rome-based senior economist and grain analyst at FAO, however, says the current trend of import is not going to impact the internationalMARKET significantly.

“I don’t think even large wheat purchases by India from internationalMARKETS could have much impact on world markets given the prevailing supply condition which is ample,” Abbassian told Down To Earth.

“The situation of year 2010 was different when India had drought and supply was notCOMPARATIVELY ample,” he added.

The forecast of deficit monsoon because of a developing El Niño  is another issue of concern for the policy makers. It may lead to a drought-like situation again.

“We are closely monitoring the situation of India,” Abbassian added.

Why imports are increasing

For food importers in India, it is the quality of wheat that matters most.

“The international price is so low that even good quality of wheat is affordable for us. NowTRADERS have placed orders to Australia. They are also eyeing CIS countries where wheat is cheaper in comparison to Australian wheat,” says Ajay Goyal, president of Maharashtra unit of Wheat Flour Mills Association.

“It is proving cheaper than what we import from north India,” says Jitendra Gupta, president of Telangana unit of Wheat Flour Mills Association.

“At present, imported Australian wheat costs around Rs1,500 to Rs 1,600 per quintal (100 kg), whereas north Indian wheat costs us around Rs1800-1900 per quintal,” says Gupta.

These traders are serving food processing industries and do not want to compromise on quality of wheat. Till last year, these traders were largely importing high grade wheat, called lokwan, which is grown in Madhya Pradesh’s Malwa region, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

“But this time quality of the high grade wheat has been affected by rains, so we are importing it,” says Ashish Pandey of Louis Dreyfus India, an international grainTRADING agency.

Besides quality concerns,TRADERS are also deterred by high transportation cost of wheat within India.

“Even If we get good quality of wheat at lower price from north India the transportation cost will not make it viable. The nearest port is Mundra or Kandla and the cumbersome process of loading and unloading issues do not allow traders to go for it,” says Goyal.

“Even supply from goods train is proving costly,” he adds.

PUCL moves Supreme Court over non-implementation of food security Act

Author(s): Jitendra @jitendrachoube1 

The government extended the deadline for implementation of the Act, citing the states’ lack of preparedness as one of the reasons

Photo: Kumar Sambhav Srivastava

Terming the Centre’s move of giving three extensions to states for the implementation of the food security Act as ‘illegal’, human rights organisation People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has approached the Supreme Court.

PUCL has sought the apex court’s immediate intervention in the matter, saying the extension has deprived two-thirds of India’s population of its rights.

In 2001, PUCL had filed a writ petition and paved the way for the landmark National Food Security Act, 2013, which entitled 67 per cent of the population to receiving cheap grains. Section 10(1) of the Act strictly states that the Act must be fully implemented in a year.

The Act came into force on July 5, 2013, and was to be fully implemented by July 2014. But the government issued three notifications for the extension of the deadline, delaying implementation until September 2015.

The government cited the states’ lack of preparedness and inability to identify beneficiaries in the given time limit as reasons for extension.

The first notification was issued on June 30, 2014, with an extension of three months. The second extension was issued in October 2014 for another six months and the third extension was issued in March 2015 for six months.

PUCL filed the petition separately on May 8, 2015, raising the issue of delay in the realisation of the Act and in publication of the final list of socio-economic caste census 2011 for identification of priority and Antyodaya Anna Yojana households. 

The petition questions the non-implementation of maternity benefit as mentioned in the Act. Under section 4(b) of the Act, a pregnant and lactating woman is entitled to a benefit of Rs 6,000.

The petition highlights issues related to the lack of infrastructure in schools and anganwadi buildings in terms of kitchen, drinking water and sanitation facilities.

The petition also points out shortcomings in the implementation of the mid-day meal programme and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) according to the Act. Under section 4(a), section 5(1) (a) and section 6 of the Act, free meals are to be provided to children up to the age of six and nutritional support to lactating mothers through anganwadis.

The petition has not yet been listed due to the court’s SUMMER VACATION

‘Glaciers will continue to decrease in the future even with increased precipitation’

Author(s): Deepanwita Niyogi @ 

Glaciers in the Mount Everest region provide an important source of water during the pre-monsoon period

The increase in temperatures is leading to faster melt rates of glaciers (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s photostream/Flickr)

According to a recent report, most glaciers in the Mount Everest region will either disappear or retreat as a result of climate change over the next century.

An international team of researchers has warned that the Himalayan glacial melt will affect farming and hydropower generation. In an interview with Down To Earth, the paper’s lead author, Joseph Shea, explains the vital role glaciers play in maintaining the mountain ecosystem.

How important are glaciers to the mountain ecosystem?

Glaciers can provide an important source of water during the pre-monsoon period, even though the overall flow is still dependent on the monsoon rains. However, the impact of glaciers on rivers, and the ecosystem in particular, diminishes as one travels downstream.

You have been quoted as saying that increased precipitation rate will not be enough to offset glacial melt in the Everest region? Why is this so?

Some of the climate scenario models used during the study showed 12 to 15 per cent increase in precipitation level in the Everest region. But our model suggests that glaciers will continue to decrease in the future even with increased precipitation. The increase in temperatures leads to faster melt rates, exposes more ice to melt and thus reduces snowfall.

How are the Everest glaciers different from those of Polar regions?

All glaciers across the world behave in the same way, with snow accumulation happening at the upper regions and melting occurring at the bottom. But the climate and topography of these two regions are very different. The glaciers in the Everest region are mountain glaciers and tend to be steeper and smaller than polar glaciers which can form extensive ice caps.

What do you actually mean by “retreating” glaciers?

Glaciers are always pushing downhill because of gravity of the Earth. Glacier “retreat” occurs when the melt rates at the terminus are greater than the rate of advance.

Will the disappearance of glaciers in the Himalayas affect India and Nepal equally? To what extent will these nations suffer?

Glacier retreat can cause changes in stream flows. But the rivers that flow out of Nepal and enter India contain a very small percentage of glacier melt, as the monsoon is the main driver of these river flows.

Your study says that in some areas, glaciers have gained in mass? How is this possible when the reverse is happening?

Glaciers in the Karakoram region are behaving differently from the glaciers in the Himalayas. Karakoram glaciers receive high amounts of snowfall during the winter. Also, Karakoram glaciers are not affected by the monsoon.

The study concludes that lower level glaciers will melt faster. Why is this so? A recent study has shown that higher altitudes are warming faster than lower regions. Please explain.

Higher elevations may warm faster, but they will always be colder than lower elevations. Once low-elevation glaciers start losing mass, it is only a matter of time before they disappear completely at all elevations.

What will be the disastrous effect of lakes formed as a result of glacial melt?

It will only be disastrous if the lakes that form as a result of glacier retreat burst catastrophically. But we do not know where or even if these lakes will form, or what the future risks might be.

Domestic violence affects maternal and child health: study

Author(s): Jyotsna Singh @singh_jyotsna 

Research carried out in rural Uttar Pradesh shows that 34 per cent of women face complications as a result of violence

A study, conducted in 225 villages across 12 districts of Uttar Pradesh, probed the impacts of emotional, physical and sexual violence on pregnancy in women (Credit: Kumar Sambhav Srivastava)

A recent research has established the link between domestic violence and pregnancy complications. The study, conducted in 225 villages across 12 districts of Uttar Pradesh, probed the impacts of emotional, physical and sexual violence on pregnancy in women.

The study was conducted by Delhi-based non-profit Population Council. The findings were published in Journal of Interpersonal Violence, an academic journal which deals with criminology and inter-personal violence.

The results

The study was carried out among 4,223 married women aged between 15 and 49 years and 2,274 husbands. It covered all three major regions of Uttar Pradesh—eastern, western and central.

The study shows that 47 per cent of women experienced violence during their most recent pregnancy. Of this, 34 per cent of women, who had experienced domestic violence, reported complications. On the contrary, 24 per cent women, who did not experience violence during their recent pregnancy, developed complications.

According to the study, women who faced pregnancy complications as a result of violence were less prepared for delivery. Also, they were less likely to go in for an institutional delivery, seek post-natal care within seven days of giving birth or talk about family planning with their husbands.

The study further shows that women subjected to violence did not have the confidence to talk about pregnancy-related issues or discuss delivery plans with their family members.

Consequently, they also failed to talk about health facilities, arrangement of transportation, delivery kit as well as saving MONEY for emergency expenses. All these factors culminated in pregnancy complications. Similarly, the post-natal care of children was affected.

CURRENT AFFAIRS JUNE/03/2015

CURRENT AFFAIRS JUNE/03/2015

1. MAURITIUS DESIGNATED FIRST WOMAN PRESIDENT:

i. Mauritius designated ameenah Gurib- Fakim as its first woman president.

ii. Ameenah is an internationally –renowned scientist and biologist.

iii. Ameenah Gurib-Fakim succeeded Kailash Purryag.

2.   INDIA-SWEDEN SIGNED 6 AGREEMENTS:

i.   India and Sweden singed 6 agreements during visit of Pranab Mukherjee to Sweden.

ii.  Pranab Mukherjee is the first ever Indian head of state to visit Sweden.

3.  KOLKATA DHAKA AGARTALA BUS SERVICE BEGAN:

i.  Trail run of Kolkata-Dhaka-Agartala bus service began.

ii.  With this launch, the time taken to reach Agartala from Kolkata will be reduced to 17 hours

4.  PAWAN MUNJAL BECOMES CMD OF HERO MOTOCORP LTD:

i.  Pawan Munjal is appointed as the CMD of Hero MotoCorp ltd.

ii.  Pawan Munjal succeeded his father Brijmohan Lal Munjal.

iii.  Hero MotoCorp Ltd is world’s largest manufacturer of two wheelers in India

CMD- Chairman and Managing Director.

5.  2 NATIONAL IMPORTANT APPOINTMENTS:

Post- Director	Place	Replace
I. P Kunhikrishnan	SDSC (Satish Dhawan Space Centre)	MYS Prasad
II.  K Sivan	VSSC (Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre)	M Chandradathan

6.  MEENA HEMCHANDRA APPOINTED AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR O RBI:

i.  Meena Hemchandra is appointed as the Executive Director of RBI.

ii.  Meena Hemchandra succeeded Chandan Sinha.

7.  RBI CUTS REPO RATE BY 25 BPS:

i.   RBI cuts Repo Rate by 25 basic points in monetary policy review.

ii.  Repo rate is decreased from 7.5% to 7.25% while CRR is kept unchanged at 4%.

iii. Repo Rate is the rate of interest charged by RBI from other commercial banks on the loans provided to commercial bank in the event of any shortfall of FUNDS.

CURRENT AFFAIRS JUNE/02/2015

CURRENT AFFAIRS JUNE/02/2015

1. WORLD’S FIRST FACIAL RECOGNITION ATM MACHINE:

i. China has unveiled World’s First facial recognition ATM Machine.

ii. ATM Machine is created by Isinghua University and Hanzhou based technology company Tzekwan.

2.   JYOTI PRASAD TAKHOWA SWORN IN AS GOVERNOR OF AUNCHAL PRADESH:

i.    Jyoti Prasad Rajkumar sworn in as the new Governor of Arunachal Pradesh.

ii.  The oath of the office was administered by the Chief Justice of guwahati, Jusitice K sreedhar Rao.

iii.  Rajkhowa is a retired IAS officer from 1968 batch.

3.  WORLD NO TOBACCO DAY: 31^ST MAY 2015:

i.  World No Tobacco Day was observed on 31^st May 2015 around the globe.

ii.  WHO launched Campaign against illicit TRADE of tobacco products on World No Tobacco Day 2015.

WHO – World Health Organisation

4.  BCCI MAKES CRICKET ADVISORY COMMITTEE:

i.  Board of Cricket in India has decided to make  a cricket advisory committee for the upliftment of Indian Cricket.

ii.  BCCI has included 3 former players to the committee:

a.  Tendulkar

b. Sourav Ganguly

c. VVS Laxman

CURRENT AFFAIRS MAY/31 & 1 JUNE /2015

CURRENT AFFAIRS MAY/31 & 1 JUNE /2015

1. NEW BANK NOTE PAPER LINE UNIT INAUGURATED:

i. Finance Minister has inaugurated New Bank note paper line unit in Hoshangabad, MP

ii. With opening of this, India will become self reliant in producingBank note paper for big denominations

iii. The project worth a total of 495 crore rupees

iv. Finance Minister of India – Arun Jaitley

2.   S VEENA JAIN APPOINTED AS DG OF DD NEWS:

i.    Veena Jain is appointed as the Director General of Doordarshan News.

ii.  Veena Jain succeeded akshay Rout, a senior IIS officer

iii.  Currently Veena Jain is posted as Additional Director General in the News Services Division of All India Radio (AIR)

IIS – Indian Information Service

3. ANAND KUMAR HONOURED IN CANADA:

i. Anand Kumar , founder of Super 30, honoured in Canada

ii.  Super 30 founder and Mathematician Anand Kumar is honoured by legislature of British Columbia in Canada at Toronto University

iii.  Super 30 established in 2002 by Anand Kumar in Patna, Bihar provides free residential mentoring to 30 selected students from under privileged families to appear in the entrance examof IIT-JEE

4.  SBI LAUNCHED ONLINE CUSTOMER ACQUISITION SOLUTION:

i.   SBI has launched online customer acquisition solution (OCAS)

ii.  It is an online platform to apply for Home Loans, car loans, Education Loans and personal loans

iii.  Application was launched by SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya.

5.  SEPP BLATTER RE-ELECTED AS FIFA PRESIDENT:

i.  Joseph Sepp Blatter is re-elected as FIFA president for the fifth term

ii.  Sepp Blatter secured 133 votes out of 206 valid votes

Note: There are total 209 members in FIFA

6.  UNITED NATIONS PEACE KEEPERS DAY OBSERVED ACROSS THE GLOBE:

i.  International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers was observed across the globe on 29^th May, 2015.

ii. International Day of United Nations peacekeepers was observed with the theme ‘ together for peace’

iii 29^th May is recognized and celebrated as International Day ofUnited Nations Peacekeepers since the year 2003.