Posts filed under ‘Agriculture and Irrigation’
Narasingha demands agriculture university in Balangir
Following is a report from the https://www.telegraphindia.com:
Balangir: Local MLA and leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra has slammed the state government for not responding to the long-standing demand of the local people for the establishment of an agriculture university here.
Talking to newspersons here on Sunday evening, Mishra said that the state government had taken a decision in 2014 to set up an agriculture university in the Koraput-Balangir-Kalahandi (KBK) region. Ever since, the people of Balangir have been demanding that the agriculture university be set up in Balangir.
“The people of Balangir have been demanding the agriculture university for the last four years. I have also personally supported the demand and have contributed my bit,” he said. Mishra said that several local outfits have hit the street demanding the agriculture university. “At various times, the local people have launched protest drives demanding the university here. But the government is not responding to the demands of the people,” he said.
Mishra said he had written to chief minister Naveen Patnaik on June 28 requesting him to take up the project at the earliest. “I have written to the chief minister recently to honour the demand of the people of Balangir and take steps to set up the university here,” he said.
Mishra said that he had also requested the chief minister to set up a government engineering college in the region. “Balangir doesn’t have any government engineering college. I have requested the government to set up an engineering college here,” he said.
He has also urged upon the government to take over the Balangir Law College. “There is no government law college anywhere in Odisha. The law college here has adequate infrastructure. It is high time the government takes it over so that it becomes the state’s first government law college,” he said.
Market worry for cotton growers in Sonepur and Boudh districts
Following is a report from the Sambad:
Following is a report from the TNIE:
SONEPUR/BOUDH:Cotton crop grown in Sonepur and Boudh districts would be ready for harvest in next two months. But the farmers are a worried lot. In absence of an organised market for sale of their produce, they are left at the mercy of a spinning mill owner in Sonepur and middlemen.
Since Kolkata-based mill owner procures cotton at less than market price, the farmers have to travel to a cotton market in the neighbouring Balangir.This year, cotton has been grown over 3,000 hectares (ha) of land in Birmaharajpur, Ulunda and Tarbha blocks and some pockets of Sonepur. But, the district administration has made no effort to rope in agencies for procurement or open mandis.
While a decision was taken to open mandis two years back, there has been no headway in this direction. This has exposed the growers to middlemen who are on the prowl to purchase cotton at low price.
Although in a meeting of the District Level Monitoring Committee for Cotton presided by Sonepur Collector Dasarathi Satpathy held in October last year, it was decided that a cotton mandi would function under Regulated Market Committee (RMC) at Birmaharajpur, work on the structure and its godown is far from complete. Only after its completion, RMC can invite the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to open procurement centre at the mandi.
Earlier, due to the intervention of former Sonepur Collector Bhawani Shankar Panda, the spinning mill was procuring cotton at market rate and the purchase amount was directly deposited in the account of farmers. The arrangement was in place for three years till Panda retired in March this year. The farmers alleged that now the spinning mill owner is dictating terms as far as procurement is concerned and they are forced to travel all the way to Balangir to sell cotton at a mandi there. They said if the old system is put back in place, the procurement problem would be resolved.
The situation is no way different in Boudh where the farmers also sell their produce either at the Sonepur spinning mill or mandis in Balangir and Phulbani.The officials, however, said steps are being taken to streamline the procurement system. While Deputy Director of Agriculture, Sonepur, PK Samantray said RMC was working on developing a mandi at Birmaharajpur, secretary of the RMC Banamali Nayak said a godown is being constructed at Badkhamar village. Nayak said once the construction is complete, RMC would move the CCI for procurement of cotton.
Kalahandi livestock on depletion path
Following report is from TNIE:
BHAWANIPATNA: THE cattle population in Kalahandi district has witnessed substantial decline since 2001. With no support from the local administration, the animal husbandry sector is a victim of manpower shortage and poor infrastructure.
Kalahandi district has three veterinary hospitals, 18 veterinary dispensaries, 119 livestock aid centres, 126 artificial insemination centres. But, the district does not have a regular Chief District Veterinary Officer (CDVO) with the Sub-Divisional Veterinary Officer of Dharamgarh holding the additional charge of the CDVO.
The district requires eight veterinary surgeons but the posts at Lanjigarh, Karlamunda, Borda and Charbahal are lying vacant. The surgeon of Ladugaon veterinary dispensary has been deputed to work in Odisha Biological Products Limited (BOPL) at Berhampur. Similarly, out of 13 posts of assistant veterinary surgeons, seven are vacant. The Bhawanipatna District Veterinary Hospital is functioning without a Deputy Director while assistant veterinary surgeon post is being managed by the livestock inspector. The Deputy Director has been deployed to work at Nayagarh. While the district has 12 sanctioned block veterinary officer posts, seven of them are lying vacant in Kesinga, M Rampur, Thuamul Rampur, Kalampur, Koksera, Jaipatna and Golamunda.
As far as infrastructure is concerned, out of 305 gram panchayats, 142 have no livestock aid centres. Of the existing 119 aid centres, 95 have no power supply. As a result, vaccines and medicines cannot be preserved in refrigerators.
There are 126 artificial insemination centres in the district but 16 of them do not have permanent building. Although there are 115 mobile veterinary units to cater to needs of livestock farmers in inaccessible pockets, several posts in these units are vacant. Each mobile unit requires one veterinary surgeon, a livestock inspector and one attendant.
According to the cattle census of 2001,2007 and 2012, there has been a consistent reduction in livestock population in the district. It is attributed to lack of manpower and infrastructure apart from cattle smuggling by traders to slaughter houses.
The cattle population (cow) came down from 4,81,056 in 2001 to 3,11,732 in 2007 and 3,10,875 in 2012. Similarly, buffalo population declined during the period. In 2001, it was 95,534, in 2007 it was 55,747 and in 2012, the number came down to 43,764.
Currently, the district administration is preparing for 2017 cattle census. Field staff of the Animal Husbandry Department said the livestock population is likely to come down further this time.
WHERE ARE THE VETS?
- The dist requires 8 veterinary surgeons but 4 posts at Lanjigarh, Karlamunda, Borda and Charbahal are lying vacant
● Out of 13 posts of assistant veterinary surgeons, 7 are vacant
● District Veterinary Hospital is functioning without a deputy director
Odisha approves a parboiled rice mill and co-generation biomass power plant at Kalahandi
Following report is from: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/odisha-approves-two-projects-worth-rs-470-crore_4996221.html#discontent_div
Odisha’s State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) accorded in-principle approval to two investment proposals worth Rs 470 crore. The SLSWCA meeting chaired by Chief Secretary A P Padhi approved a proposal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) to set up a common user facility (CUF) for storage of petroleum products at Meramunduli in Dhenkanal district at an investment of Rs 270 crore, said Kalyan Mohanty, General Manager of Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha (IPICOL).
It also approved a proposal of Starlight Energy Limited to set up an integrated grain based distillery unit along with a parboiled rice mill and co-generation biomass power plant at Goud Sariguda in Kalahandi district with a total investment of Rs 137 crore. The CUF project is a common arrangement of IOC L, BPCL and HPCL and will cater to receipt and storage of petroleum products like petrol, diesel, kerosene, fuel oil, light diesel and high performance petrol, he said.
Mohanty added that the project will require 90 acres of land, 3 KL/day water and 450 KW of power and provide direct and contractual employment to around 344 people. Starlight Energy’s project requires 195 acres and 1 MW power as stand by for start-up of the biomass power plant. It will use broken rice from rice mills, besides maize and other grains produced in Odisha for the distillery unit, while husk from the rice mills will be used as principal raw material for production of biomass power. It will produce neutral alcohol for medicine, ethanol for blending in petrol and anhydrous alcohol for industrial use and provide direct and contractual employment to 108 people, Mohanty added.
What can be done for Odisha’s abject poverty?
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Politics over student’s suicide; Hamam mein sab nange hain
Sorry to hear about the suicide of a student at Central University Hyderabad. What is shameful is that all political parties using it for their political gains. These folks are just like vultures waiting for dead bodies. The media is also playing it well for their respective political masters.
Sometime back a student committed suicide at IIT Madras. All of us demanded for proper psychological counseling. It is strange that no one is even talking about appointing few psychiatrists at schools, colleges and universities. This is utterly shameful.
Another point, many farmers are committed suicide in western Odisha. Why no politicians visiting them? Why no award-wapsi for them? Activists, politicians and media folks-all are hypocrites. Hamam mein sab nange hain!!!
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Dr. Sanjib Kumar Karmee
Kosal Discussion and Development Forum 