6th July (Monday) 2015 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

1
July 6 ,2015
www.riceplusmagazine.blogspot.com | www.ricepluss.com
Contact for Advertisment : mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell # 92 321 369 2874
Government Job: Indian Institute of Rice Research,

Hyderabad Recruitment 2015
Editorial Team | July 03, 2015 4:32 PM
Related Links
Applications are invited by the Project Director, Indian Institute of Rice Research (IIRR),
Hyderabad from eligible candidates for recruitment to 2 administrative posts of Lower Division
Clerk at IIRR, Hyderabad, under the administrative control of Indian Council of Agricultural
Research (ICAR). The recruitment would be done through written test and interviews to be
conducted by the IIRR. Last date to apply for recruitment is within 30 days/ 45 days (as
applicable) from the date of advertisement.
2
Vacancy details:
Name of the posts: Lower Division Clerk

Total posts: 02 posts
Pay scale: Pay Band 1 of Rs. 5200- 20200 with Grade Pay of Rs.1900
Eligibility:
Educational qualification: Candidates applying should have pass Class 12th or equivalent
qualification from recognized a Board or University and have typing speed of 35 wpm in English or
30 wpm in Hindi on computer.
Age limit: Candidates applying should not be less than 18 years and not more than 27 years of age as
on January 01, 2015.
Selection process: Candidates would be recruited through an examination which shall be

conducted in 2 stages:
Written test
Interview
How to apply: All eligible and interested candidates should send their application, in the
prescribed format, along with crossed DD of Rs. 300 in favour of ICAR Unit A/c IIRR
payable at Hyderabad, as non-refundable application fee, and attested copies of supporting
documents to The Administrative Officer, ICAR Indian Institute of Rice Research,
Rajendranagar, Hyderabad -500030 by post within 30 days/ 45 days ( as applicable) from the
date of advertisement. [No application fee for SC/ ST/ PH/ and female candidates]
Important dates: Last date for receipt of applications:
within 30 days from the date of advertisement.

within 45 days from the date of advertisement for candidates from Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur,
Mizoram, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep,
Minicoy and Admindivi Island. Ladakh division of J&K state, Pangi sub-division of Chamba and
Lahul & Spiti district of HP.
Date of Advertisement: June 29, 2015
Click here for recruitment advertisement.

http://www.prepsure.com/news/government-job-indian-institute-of-rice-research-hyderabad-recruitment2015/
Rice Business and Matters Arising

04 Jul 2015
Font Size: a / A
Buhari
Julius Ogunrombi
One primary campaign promise

of the Buhari-led government
has been to stamp out corruption
in Nigeria. At the moment, the
countrys rice sub-sector is
assailed
with
corruption,
protectionism and smuggling, all
pulling each other in the same
direction of destroying the plan
of self-sufficiency in the rice
sector.
Analysts are however hopeful that the rice sub-sector will benefit from this proposed
cleansing.It is a pity however, that the rice business is becoming synonymous with high level
corruption that runs from ordinary citizens smuggling one or two bags of rice into the country, to
the big ones who work with Custom officers, and government officials who circumvent the
nation by influencing governments policy and regulation to their selfish advantage. In the end,
the efforts of the nation toward self-sufficiency remains largely unattainable.Of particular
interest is the furore which arose from the lack of transparency in the 2014 Rice Quota
allocation.
This has brought renewed anxieties over the 2015 provision which reliable sources claimed,
were quickly passed by the Jonathan-government to favour some friends-of-government.As it
is, the Buhari-led government appears to be in the process of weighing the magnitude of
corruption in the different economic sectors; it would be good if he makes a priority of reviewing
policies and regulations in the rice sub-sector, the rice value chain relevance of foreign and local
investors, and as well place checks in the activities of government officials involved in the rice
market.As it appears, we are fast becoming a country that does not learn from its past. So far, the
2014 Rice Quota replays the rice uproar of 1981, which happened during the Shehu Shagari
government.
At that time, considering the fluctuating irregularities in the market, and subsequent rice
shortages, the government decided to protect local rice farmers from imported food through the
quota system. And just as promised in the 2014 Quota, it was an attempt to protect local players
from foreign investors. The result however was a high-level corruption among high government
officials.The cusp of rice policy-making in Nigeria typically shifts between high tariffs and quota
allocations. These processes encourage smugglers to find ways to corrupt systems like the
Customs Service which already lacks integrity. It also encourages local traders to partner with
timeserving importers who are grouped with genuine investors, building mills and raising
paddies across Nigeria.
It is important to note that governments instability of policy and regulations in the rice sector is
a major reason it has lacked sustainable growth. Foreign investors are not the problem; as they
are governed by the rules of the land.Also, granting rice quota to those who are all out to make
quick money, without investing in the rice value chain, undermines the effort of those who are
working towards the self-sufficiency goal of the government.Interestingly, some victimised
foreign investors are in this category. They are the ones who run functional mills, grow paddies,
and work with local farmers.Should the government decide to offer equity to investors, it should
consider bring it with open hands; especially in this case as food security is involved.
It should also place in perspective that investors are running a business, and this implies they
need to plan ahead, manage budgets and have turnarounds. The inconsistency of deploying
unstable regulations and policies, makes rice business a huge risk, and in the long run, largely
unattractive for investment.It can be said that the 2014 quota allocation is an obvious way of how
a government must not implement policies, and it is largely hoped that the Buhari-led
government would not repeat the same mistake.The crisis surrounding the quota began when the
Federal Government accused foreign investors in the country of owing the government N36.56
billion naira, which they explained accrued from exceeded quota allocations. As published in
newspapers, the Nigerian Rice Millers Association (NRMA) said it received a circular from the
former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on the 2015 2017 Fiscal Policy Measure on
Rice. It stated that the President had assessed the fiscal policy on rice, as a measure to promote
investments in the rice value chain through backward integration as from 26 May 2014.
One of the newspapers reporting quoted from the circular: Importation of Husked Brown rice
(H.S. Code 10006.2000.00) and semi-milled or wholly milled rice, whether or not polished or
glazed (H.S. Code 10006.3010.00), by investors with rice milling capacity and verifiable
backward integration programme, shall attract 10 per cent duty rate with a levy of 20 percent and
will be limited to the national supply gap to be determined by the Committee (for a period of
fours) and; Importation of Husked Brown rice (H.S. Code 10006.2000.00) and semi-milled or
wholly milled rice, whether or not polished or glazed (H.S. Code 10006.3010.00), by pure
traders, shall attract an import duty rate of 10 percent plus 60 percent levy.
By the time the circular got to NRMA, the Nigerian Customs had granted some companies
merchants, investorsshipment, using the preferential tariff reserved for the investors. Mindless
of this, the NRMA went along with the circular, and imported rice into the country, but received
another letter in December, which was backdated to November 27 from the Minister of
Agriculture and Rural Development, informing the association that a tentative import quota had
been given to each rice importer. It asked them to pay 10 per cent duty and 60 per cent levy for a
surplus into the national treasury. This would be the quota list of twenty-six companies, paraded
around.Hence it was an ex post fact o penalty which to an observer could be a form of foreign
investor exploitation.
The truth as time have revealed, over and over, is that the problem in our rice sub-sector is
beyond the outsiders-are-milking-us issue, rather we have a national problem. The corruption in
our rice market is influenced locally; so that advancement of the-foreigners-are-out-to-kill-ourrice-market theory, works as a huge distraction on solving the problem ground.The rice subsector is in need of an urgent change, and the Nigerian government may need to call for a
stakeholders meeting to understand the immediate problems, while establishing long-term
solutions that will help the country reach its self-sufficiency goal.Ogunrombi, a public affairs
analyst, writes from Ibadan, Oyo State
Tags: Business, Featured, Nigeria, RICE
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/rice-business-and-matters-arising/213788/
CBN: Our Economic Fundamentals Remain Strong, Replies

Economist
04 Jul 2015
Mr. Godwin Emefiele, CBN Governor
Obinna Chima
Following its decision to exclude funding of 41 items
from the forex market, the Central Bank of Nigeria
(CBN) on Friday told The Economist that Nigeria's
economic fundamentals remain strong despite
grappling
with
oil
price
decline.
The apex bank added that it would not take desperate
measures to satisfy those it described as "few
misguided interests in the market.
"The CBN's reaction was in response to an article by The Economist titled: Toothpick Alert,
published in the print edition of July 4th 2015, of the international magazine.The banking sector
regulator also said it would "not panic", even as it reiterated that Nigeria cannot attain its full
potentials by importing anything and everything.The apex bank last week announced the
restriction of importers of 41 items from accessing forex from the official foreign exchange
market.Some of these items include rice, wheel barrows, head pans, cement, margarine, palm
kernel/vegetable oil, meat and processed meat products, vegetable and processed vegetable
products, poultry, private airplanes/jets, Indian incense, toothpicks and canned fish in sauce
(geisha/sardines), among others.
As a result of this, the value of the naira has depreciated to N230 to a dollar at the parallel
market.But the Central Bank pointed out that The Economist article ignored the fact that the
exchange rate is simply a price that is essentially determined by the forces of supply and
demand.It explained: "The CBN believes that the 48 per cent decline in oil prices may not be
transitory and made bold policy changes including closure of the subsidised official forex
window, which resulted in a 22 per cent depreciation in the naira. Because the Nigerian economy
is heavily dependent on imports and the exchange rate pass-through to inflation is high, we
believe that this adjustment is optimal at this time.
"Contrary to the articles argument, adjustments to a sharp decline in supply of US dollars cannot
all be borne by an indeterminate depreciation, without considering the full impact on the
Nigerian economy. The demand side also has to be considered, not just in response to the
pressure on the naira but as an opportunity to change the economys structure, resuscitate local
manufacturing, and expand job creation for our citizens."Take rice imports, for example: why
should we keep allocating scarce forex to rice importers when vast amounts of paddy rice of
comparable quality produced by poor hardworking local farmers across the rice belts of Nigeria
are wasted, and farmers are falling deeper into poverty while we export their jobs and income to
rice producing countries?
"Few decades ago, Nigeria was one of the worlds largest producers of palm oil but today we
import nearly 600,000 metric tonnes while Indonesia and Malaysia combine to export over 90
per cent of global demand. Under these circumstances, the CBN will do the little it can to protect
the jobs and incomes of local farmers, using some of the same principles Western Economies use
to justify the protection of their farmers through huge subsidies."More also, it pointed out that if
the article believes the CBN should adjust to reflect the current parallel market rate, why was the
suggestion not made in the week following the inauguration of President Buhari when the same
rate fell sharply to under N190 per dollar.
"For far too long, this trend has significantly weakened the operating capacities of our industries,
but now is a good opportunity to begin a reversal. Although the article hastily derides this idea as
lacking in economic foundations, it is the same principles upon which many other countries do
not allow importation of certain products."Furthermore, it appears condescending to suggest that
the list of items seemed to have been drawn up by someone wandering around a house and a
building site. On the contrary, items were only included after thorough and exhaustive
discussions at the highest policymaking body of the Bank, with the strategic national interest of
Nigeria.
"Like other oil-exporting countries, Nigeria is grappling with its share of the aftermath of the oil
price decline. Despite this, our economic fundamentals remain strong. Inflation is still within the
CBNs single-digit band, the exchange rate has stabilised around N197 per dollar for the
last five months, GDP expanded by four per cent in the first quarter of 2015, and 469,070 new
jobs were created in the same quarter."With ingenuity and productiveness, we believe that
Nigerians will seize this opportunity and use it for the greater good of the country. As we
transition into a new administration in Nigeria, we must continue to ensure policy stability at all
times," it added.
Tags: News, Nigeria, Featured, CBN, Economy
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/cbn-our-economic-fundamentals-remain-strong-replieseconomist/213824/
Probe source of fake rice, Aquino orders

By: Ronnel W. Domingo
06:53 AM July 4th, 2015
President Benigno Aquino III on Friday ordered law enforcement agencies to start tracking down
sources of synthetic rice that may have entered the country although state scientists would not
say for sure whether or not a suspicious sample from Davao City was indeed made of fake
grains.The President told Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to
get their investigation line agenciesthe Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) of
the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation, respectivelyon the
case.
The Food Development Center (FDC), the laboratory arm of the National Food Authority
(NFA), held a press briefing yesterday to say that preliminary results of their tests showed the
Davao sample was contaminated with dibutyl phthalate or DBP, a raw material for making
flexible plastic products.But FDC officer in charge Jocelyn M. Sales stressed that further tests
were needed to know whether the sample was actually not rice. The samples, she added, did
contain starchwhich is also found in rice.
Earlier reports on the suspected synthetic rice, supposedly smuggled from China, included
information that the grains were a mixture of potatoes, sweet potatoes and plastic or an industrial
synthetic resin.DBP is a plasticizer used to soften materials like PVC so that it could be
processed easily. It is used in the manufacture of various products, including food-containing
items like plastic wraps and lunch boxes, Sales explained in a press briefing yesterday.
Francis Pangilinan, Presidential Assistant on Food Security and Agricultural Modernization, told
Davao residents not to panic. He said the contaminant DBP was not a poison that could kill a
person immediately upon ingestion.I was informed that, for harmful effects to be felt, one has to
be ingesting DBP everyday for at least three months, Pangilinan said.And even if the sample
from Davao City was found with DBP, there was no cause for alarm or panic, he insisted. The
NFA has been conducting daily inspections to ensure that there is no fake rice in the market, he
claimed.
NFA administrator Renan B. Dalisay said the agency had addressed more than 20 complaints
from various parts of the country, including General Santos City and Metro Manila, regarding
consumers suspicions about the milled rice they bought.In most of these instances, we were
able to easily verify that the questionable product was actually rice, Dalisay said. It was only
on the complaint from Davao that we needed laboratory tests.Roxas, interviewed in Cagayan de
Oro City, confirmed that the President discussed the matter with him early yesterday. He said he
had already told the CIDG to help the NFA and the DA (Department of Agriculture) in their
investigation.In particular, he tasked the CIDG to determine the component of the plastic rice
and locate the warehouses where such shipments are brought. The CIDG should determine
where these came from. In other words, the police will follow and establish the supply chain or
custody chain (of the fake rice), he said.We will also find out where these were sold and where
are the warehouses so that we will able to know how they arrived), Roxas added.
De Lima also said on Friday she was ordered by the President to investigate the presence of
synthetic rice in the Philippine market.Ive been directed by the President to look into that. I
will constitute a task force to investigate that, De Lima said in a statement sent via text message
yesterday.She said she would coordinate with Pangilinan and tap the NBI.The NFA found that
the suspicious rice in Davao City came from a trader in Bansalan town, Davao del Sur.Fake rice
is said to look no different from real rice but has the texture of styrofoam when cooked and
consumed. With Marlon Ramos and Tarra Quismundo
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/702734/probe-source-of-fake-rice-aquino-orders#ixzz3eufpsVHn
C-DAC launches mobile apps marking Digital India Week

9
The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) has launched four mobile apps
as part of the Digital India Week, the first two pertaining to agriculture, and the other two for
fishermen and environment education for children.RiceVocs mobile app is a compendium of
rice-related vocabulary, and comprises about 2,500 terms related to paddy crop, arranged in
10
alphabetical order.It works as a ready reckoner for the extension officers working with the
knowledge about rice, a press release informed on Friday.The Learnrice mobile app will provide
users with a comprehensive list of courses specifically designed for paddy crop. Both the apps
were developed in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Rice Research.
The Potential Fishing Zone Advisory mobile apps in Indian languages can be used to produce
advisories to the fishermen on daily basis with specific references to the 586 fish landing centres
along the Indian coast.The app has been developed in collaboration with the Indian National
Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS).The Joy of Learning mobile apps developed in
association with Centre for Environment Education for classes III to V, VI to VIII, and IX to XI
provide details of useful science experiments for schoolchildren, the note informed.In another
press release, the C-DAC informed that it has signed a MoU with the Kakatiya University to
forge research and academic collaboration.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/cdac-launches-mobile-apps-marking-digital-indiaweek/article7385243.ece
Global Rice Bran Oil Conference 2015 to be held in August

Mumbai | Saturday, Jul 4 2015 IST
The second international conferencetitled 'Global Rice Bran Oil Conference 2015',
hosted by The Solvent Extractors' Association of India (SEA), will be held on 7th and
8thAugust 2015 at Trident Hotel, Nari man Point, Mumbai. The conference,according
to the organi zers SEA, will bring together over 400delegates and special invitees from
not onl y India, but also fromChina, Japan, Vietnam, Thailand and other countries, for
a closerinteraction for promoting rice bran oil and its value addedproducts.
This conference will showcase the latest products anddisseminate information on the
latest technologies on rice bran oiland its value added products.Speaking on the
beneficial qualities of rice bran oil, an officialfrom SEA said, " Rice bran oil, also
know as the 'Wonder Oil ' is aunique edible oil produced from the oily layer of brown
rice, whichis separated as rice bran, while producing white rice."The world production
of rice bran oil is about 15 lakh tonnes, out of which 9.5 lakh tonnes are produced in
India, against thepotential of 16 lakh tonnes, according to SEA. Other maj or rice
branoil producing countries are China, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam.UNI JS FH
SM1432
10
-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169 -212636.X ml 1234

http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/India/20150704/2634431.html
11
Every grain of rice

SHAZIA HASAN
Sightly yellowish Saila rice.KARACHI: They say

no feast is complete without the rice dish be it in
the shape of pulao, biryani, the plain white variety
or sweet zarda. There are some people who dont
touch bread or roti and like having everything
with rice. In the subcontinent, lentils and

fish curry are usually eaten with plain white
rice.Rice as mentioned already can be
cooked in many ways. Pulao is cooked in
broth. There is also pea pulao or vegetable
pulao thats popular among children.
Biryani, of course, is enjoyed with plenty of
spices and meat and potatoes. Zarda or
sweet rice is coloured saffron and is a popular dish for distributing when sharing any good news
with friends.
But these are different ways of cooked rice.
There are also different kinds of rice used for
different kinds of dishes. You must have
heard of Basmati, Saila, Tota, etc. But a visit
to the retail market, Jodia Bazaar, introduces
you to several more varieties of rice in
different jars. There are varieties such as
Kernel rice, Super Kernel, Irri-6, etc. There
are other varieties too that are different in
colour when compared with each other.
Some are white, some off-white, some even
grey. And all are priced differently. Buyers come all day examining the different varieties and
taking or placing orders for what they need or like.
11
The varieties are created during sorting

to remove the brown peels that the
thrashing in the fields didnt do away
with, stones within the grains, etc. During
the process, the machines may break the
grains which are separated to sell as Tota
or broken rice, explains Fahad Ahmed, a
rice dealer.Saila rice doesnt break
easily. Since its rather stubborn, we
12
steam it, which changes its colour from white to yellowish. Some varieties of Saila is double
steamed as well, he shares.
Sacks full of rice in a godown. Some people prefer extra long grains that grow even longer
when cooked. They dont mind paying a little extra for it. Others who are price conscious and
dont care about the appearance go for the cheaper Tota, he says.There is another variety of
rice grown from Indian seeds, which is quite expensive. It is very expensive due to its beautiful
long grains but it doesnt taste as great as our local Basmati, he says.Asked then why is
Pakistani rice not as much in demand as Indian rice when ours tastes better, the rice expert
explains that Pakistan doesnt fumigate the rice grains very well and the foreign buyers are pretty
disgusted to find insects crawling in the rice we export. Cleanliness matters, he says.
The different varieties of rice on display in jars at a shop.When asked if it is dangerous to
fumigate something that is going to be eaten, he shakes his head with a smile. Why? Dont we
spray crops? Rice fumigation is not strong. The effect of the fumigation wears out with time. It is
not dangerous.
Published in Dawn, July 5th, 2015
http://www.dawn.com/news/1192336/every-grain-of-rice
Indian scientists' new DNA chip for speeding up rice

breeding
By PTI | 5 Jul, 2015, 11.04AM IST
Rice is considered to be the 'king of cereals', hence rival claims on its centre of origin cause a lot of heart
burn in research community.
ET SPECIAL:Love visual aspect of news? Enjoy this exclusive slideshows treat!
By Pallava Bagla
12
NEW DELHI: One Chinese lie has been finally

nailed this time by a team of Indian scientists who
provide irrefutable evidence that rice did originate
in India, a fact contested by China. If one thought
the Asian Big Brother was only fighting a proxy
war to usurp Arunachal Pradesh, parts of Kashmir
and encircle India with a 'string of pearls' in the
oceans, there was also a deeper scientific
conspiracy to rid India of the tag that our staple
food rice actually originated in China and not in
Mother India. Ownership of intellectual property
13
is a hugely emotional issue and can lead to bruising skirmishes. Traditional wisdom has to be
guarded at all costs.Lead researcher Nagendra Kumar Singh, a biotechnologist working at
National Research Centre on Plant Biotechnology, Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI),
New Delhi, says "Our work proves that rice was indeed domesticated in India."Rice is native to
India is the verdict of a team of scientists at IARI who, while publishing their findings in the
journal Nature Scientific Reports, have effectively proved that the rice varieties grown in India
have actually originated in India.
This finding which demolishes the Chinese claim is actually a colateral benefit of a neat new
development from Singh's laboratory, the development of a new 'DNA chip for rice' a handy tool
that will speed up development of new varieties of rice as the world tries to adapt to a changing
climate. This chip will also help finger print rice varieties.Rice is considered to be the 'king of
cereals', hence rival claims on its centre of origin cause a lot of heart burn in research
community.
In the 20th century, it was widely accepted that rice was independently domesticated in both
China and India.But, Chinese literature attributed the domestication of rice to legendary Chinese
Emperor Shennong. This legend from Beijing got bold impetus when a landmark 2011 research
paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences refuted the widely held
belief that India was also a centre of origin of rice. It suggested that a single domestication event
some 8,200-13,500 years ago, in the Yangtze Valley of China was the source of all rice in the
world.
This fact peeved many Indian researchers until this week's new finding which succinctly refutes
the Chinese claim.Concurring with the IARI's claim, Gurdev S Khush, Adjunct Professor,
University of California, Davis, and former head, Plant Breeding Genetics and Biotechnology,
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) Philippines says, "This new paper certainly leads to
the conclusion that some of the varieties were domesticated in India."Therefore, in a way it
possibly settles the controversy that China alone should take the credit for giving the world this
wonder crop. It seems ancient farmers more than 10,000 years ago independently in both
countries figured out that rice was a great plant to cultivate. The National Gene Bank in India
houses about 90,000 different varieties of rice and in parts of Odisha and Chhattisgarh wild
relatives of rice can still be found.
13
The 13-member team mainly from IARI actually set out to develop a unique DNA Chip (rather
different from a computer chip) that would help look for the best genes and speed up
development of new varieties. The scientists developed unique genetic probes which are
embedded on the surface of a glass plate and when a suitable genetic mixture extracted from
leaves of rice is poured, the wanted regions glow under special conditions this helps the scientists
identify the presence or absence of the right gene combinations.
14
The new IARI Rice Chip accommodates 50,000 combinations of genes on a single plate and is
today the best of its kind in the world. Its nearest rival can house only 44,000 variants and was
developed by Susan R McCouch at the Cornell University in USA a few years ago.Singh says,
"India was forced to develop its own 'rice chip' after the American team denied India the import
of this technology." The team has now patented this new 'rice chip' and the knowhow will be
available for all breeders to use.
Singh says traditional plant breeding takes anything up to 15 years to develop a new variety of
rice but if one uses the new 'rice chip' the time taken to breed can be halved. This, he says, is
especially useful as there is a need to hurriedly make agriculture 'climate resilient' as vagaries of
weather affect the globe due to global warming. The new chip is already finding use and Singh
says the popular Pusa Basmati-1 variety has recently been made resistant to a damaging disease
called 'rice blast' and to develop this new resistant variant the chip was deployed. The chip is also
being used to develop varieties of rice that can tolerate long durations of flooding.
The team developed the 'rice chip' in about 5 years and at a cost of Rs 30-40 lakh and help was
taken from a private Californian firm Affymetrix that custom makes these chips. "India should
be proud of this breakthrough," says Khush. According to the Indian Council of Agricultural
Research (ICAR), India has the world's largest area under rice with 42.5 million ha and is the
second largest producer with 106 million tonnes - in 2014 next only to China. It contributes 21
per cent of global rice production. Within the country, rice occupies one-quarter of the total
cropped area, contributes about 40 to 43 per cent of total food grain production and continues to
play a key role in the national food and livelihood security system. Rice export contributes nearly
25 per cent of total agricultural exports from the country.
However, productivity of rice is only 2.54 tonnes/ha of milled rice as against the global average
productivity of 3.28 tonnes/ha. In contrast, China produces more rice by cultivating just about 29
million hectares with yields almost double that of India. Singh says, "Modern molecular breeding
can help bridge this yield gap and the chip will be helpful." An ICAR estimate for the production
of rice in 2050 suggests that by then the population would touch 1.63 billion and India would
need to grow about 136 million tonnes of rice, possibly on a smaller cultivable area and with
increased shortage of water. Khush says, "The new rice chip will certainly help speed up rice
breeding and thus will contribute to food security."
14
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/47944320.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campa
ign=cppst
15
Dangote Backs Central Bank's Forex Restrictions on Rice,

Toothpicks, Others
05 Jul 2015
Says without such ban, he would not have been able to build his cement plants across Nigeria
By Festus Akanbi
Following the criticisms by foreign media who are calling for a massive devaluation of the naira
instead of foreign exchange restrictions on certain items such as rice and toothpicks by the
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Africas richest man and foremost businessman, Alhaji Aliko
Dangote, has come out in strong support of the CBNs decision, calling the ban on 41 items
from forex market as "excellent and one of the best decisions taken so far by the CBN Governor,
Mr. Godwin Emefiele."
Apparently miffed by criticisms in some
quarters against the apex banks decision to
restrict forex on the importation of certain
items, Dangote, who is President of Dangote
Group, described the CBNs intervention as
appropriate for the Nigerian economy saying,
We cannot be importing poverty and
exporting jobs. The apex bank recently
announced the restriction of importers of 41
items from accessing forex from the official
foreign exchange market.
Some of these items include rice, wheel barrows, head pans, cement, margarine, palm
kernel/vegetable oil, meat and processed meat products, vegetable and processed vegetable
products, poultry, private airplanes/jets, Indian incense, toothpicks and canned fish in sauce
(geisha/sardines), among others.
Dangote believes that this should be seen as a clarion call for all hands to be on deck in the
development of the nations economy disclosing that the foreign exchange restrictions on the 41
items also affected the Dangote Group, especially the Dangote Rice. He however believes that
the measure would encourage his firm to look inward and massively produce locally to create
jobs for our growing young population.
15
Dangote said without such ban by the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, he
wouldnt have got the opportunity to grow his cement business as it is today such that he is now
exporting cement when only 10 years ago Nigeria was importing cement massively.His cement
firms, Obajana Cement Plc Kogi; Benue Cement Company, Benue and Dangote Cement Works
Ltd, Ibese have a combined capacity of 20 million metric tonnes per annum, providing hundreds
of thousands of direct and indirect jobs across Nigeria.When Obasanjo introduced the policy, he
16
was massively criticized by multinationals and the same foreign media. But today, we are selfsufficient in cement production, he recalled.
Dangote maintained that those criticising Emefiele for the decision on foreign exchange
restrictions do not have the interest of Nigerians at heart.He therefore called on people in the
South-south region of the country to focus on the development of palm plantations instead of
importing palm oil. In the same vein, he enjoined the people of Nigeria to see this as an
opportunity to invest in fish farming across Nigeria from the North to the Atlantic ocean, rather
than importing fish, saying Nigeria can borrow a leaf from Senegal. "Although fish is a major
staple food in Senegal, the country does not import fish..... why should we be importing fish in
Nigeria with all our God given ocean resources, he asked.
He lauded Emefiele for his bold and courageous decision to place certain items that could be
produced locally on forex restrictions.The CBN had also in a statement on Friday dismissed a
report by The Economist titled: Toothpick Alert, published in the print edition of July 4, 2015,
of the international magazine., insisting that Nigeria's economic fundamentals remain strong
despite grappling with oil price decline.The apex bank added that it would not take desperate
measures to satisfy those it described as few misguided interests in the market.The banking
sector regulator also said it would "not panic", even as it reiterated that Nigeria cannot attain its
full potentials by importing anything and everything.The CBN had stated in the statement:"Take
rice imports, for example: why should we keep allocating scarce forex to rice importers when
vast amounts of paddy rice of comparable quality produced by poor hardworking local farmers
across the rice belts of Nigeria are wasted, and farmers are falling deeper into poverty while we
export their jobs and income to rice producing countries?
"Few decades ago, Nigeria was one of the worlds largest producers of palm oil but today we
import nearly 600,000 metric tonnes while Indonesia and Malaysia combine to export over 90
per cent of global demand. Under these circumstances, the CBN will do the little it can to protect
the jobs and incomes of local farmers, using some of the same principles Western Economies use
to justify the protection of their farmers through huge subsidies."
Tags: Aliko Dangote, Featured, News, Nigeria
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/dangote-backs-central-banks-forex-restrictions-on-rice-toothpicksothers/213930/
Area under aromatic rice varieties decreases in K'shetra

Kurukshetra, July 4
After having failed to fetch fair prices for their aromatic varieties last year, farmers this year have given
preference to non-basmati varieties.While last year the aromatic varieties were sown in 55 to 60 per cent
area in Kurukshetra, it has come down to 35 to 40 per cent this year.Gurnam Singh Charuni, BKU
16
(Charuni) chief, said, Last year, farmers didnt get fair returns for their produce, which is the only reason
behind the fall in the cultivation area of the aromatic varieties. This year, the farmers have preferred to
increase the area under PR varieties.
17
He said, Farmers had recently fetched good prices for aromatic varieties, following which a spurt was
witnessed in its cultivation. However, a drastic fall was witnessed last year. The pure basmati and pusa1121 varieties have fetched Rs 5,800-6,000 and Rs 4,400-4,500 per quintal to farmers in the past, but last
year, they failed to get even the half of it.Charuni maintained, The situation is the same across the state.
Though the area under cultivation has come down this year, it is hard to anticipate what level the aromatic
varieties will witness this season.Wazir Singh, Deputy Director, Agriculture, said, A fall in the
cultivation area of aromatic varieties has been observed. It has dropped by over 20 per cent and the major
fall has come in the sowing of pusa-1509 variety.
Last year, it was sown in over 20 per cent area, but it is likely to be around five per cent this
year.Replying to a question, he said, Owing to the high incidence of breakage, the demand for pusa1509 has dropped drastically, which is the prime reason behind the fall in its area.Wazir Singh said,
Nearly 85 per cent cultivation has been completed and the rest is likely to end in a week.This year, rice
millers had advised the farmers against growing pusa-1509, as they would not purchase it, said Rakesh
Kumar, a farmer.Amit Chandna, a trade expert, said, Though a marginal uptrend has been witnessed in
the prices of aromatic and non-basmati rice varieties this week, it is hard to anticipate the future trends of
market.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/area-under-aromatic-rice-varieties-decreases-in-kshetra/102351.html
Needed: Green Thumb

Jul 05, 2015 - Dr Shashank Shekhar
Tonnes of waste prevented from being dumped in 2010 due to compositing and recycling efforts
Here is a look at the current development pattern vis-a-vis green concerns
17
The just released socio economic census reminds

us that still it is miles to go on the development
front. A majority of population in country still
lives in villages where a vast majority is deprived
of developmental benefits. At present,
metropolitan agglomerations and industrial cities
in India have attracted village folks in quest of
employment and a better life. However, perhaps
they have not been able to provide the desired
better life. As many of them have crossed the
carrying capacity, have huge population resource
imbalance, and the cities are facing environmental problems.
It is a good idea to have several smart cities, but mostly the idea is not realised in its totality.The
drinking water woes of Dwarka sub-city in Delhi is the best example. I am not sure if in the
18
present form it qualifies to be a smart city. But the fact remains that the city has scarce
groundwater resource. The over-exploited and polluted Yamuna does not have much water for
drinking purpose, which can be supplied to the city. It also generates huge sewerage, which
ultimately joins Yamuna. Similar is the story of several other cities.
An answer to this was sewerage treatment initiatives which again is a good vision, but many
social and governmental audits have revealed that most of the sewerage treatment plants function
below their capacity or are non-functional.It is nice that we have realised that development and
environmental protection goes together. But the real problem is how to link them. Big bang
approach to ecological restoration is often fascinating. But we should not forget that ecology is a
system where there are many variables.
In this context it is heartening to learn about initiatives like clean Ganga. It is good that the holy
and national river of India is being cleaned. We must also realise that the state of a major river in
its basin is manifestation of ecology of the basin.The clean Ganga initiative should also integrate
land and water resource management. The tributaries to the river also needs to be cleaned. Also,
we must define river space and permit ecologically sensible land use in the river space. The
numerous small and big industrial towns and urban agglomerations in the Ganga river basin
require to be upgraded as big or small 'smart cities'.
In most cases the environmental flow in a river is affected by diversion of river water for
irrigation purpose. But still in the agriculturally developed regions, it is seen that in canal
command areas groundwater abstraction have increased drastically and at the same time other
areas have problem of soil salinity. This certainly reflects lack of optimal and prudent utilisation
of the canal network and may be mismanagement in canal allowance.Besides land and water
management at watershed scale (incorporating water conservation) should be able to sustain
local agriculture. The non-remunerative agricultural activity is also forcing many farmers to
move toward exotic remunerative high yielding water intensive crops. Basmati rice cultivation in
Punjab and Haryana is the best example.
In my opinion value addition to indigenous crops in various part of country would help.The
genetic engineers should develop less water intensive high yielding crops: more crop per drop.
An efficient irrigation practice based on micro-climatic condition would help in a long way.
Many schemes aimed at rural poor have been aimed at providing fish rather than the fishing
rod.We must also not forget that everybody can not leave their village. I think urbanisation and
industrialisation of rural India is required. Not by putting big industries, but by promoting agrobased industries and giving then incentives for adhering to strict environmental norms. I am
reminded of North Bihar where sugarcane industries in water rich areas did wonders by: 1.
Giving option to farmers for a cash crop 2.
18
Providing jobs to family members of farmers 3. Small entrepreneurs like tractor and truck
owners got assured business 4. Hardware shops for maintenance of vehicles used in
transportation of goods had ample business and 5. Farm laborers used to earn sufficient.But there
is a serious ecological issues with such sugarcane industries, the molasses and other wastes are
often discharged directly in rivers. I think this can be solved by stricter enforcement and
incentives for environment protection.
19
But given the fact that industries often tend to maximise their profit; a social of audit of such
waste discharge should also be done.The forests of the country are huge resource and there are
non tangible ecological benefits associated with them. They are often good groundwater recharge
areas, their ability to purify air and influence ambient climate is well established. The
development at the cost of deforestation may not be sustainable. In the end it is nice to see that
ecological issues have become glamorous. An integrated bottoms up approach would further
sustain this.
The writer is assistant professor, department of geology, University of Delhi
Entire tobacco crop to be procured by Sept 30

V. RAGHAVENDRA
MP Rayapati Sambasiva Rao felicitating Union Minister of State for Industry and Commerce Nirmala Sitharaman at a meeting
organised by the Tobacco Board in Vijayawada on Saturday.- Photo: Ch.Vijaya Bhaskar
19
Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman assured tobacco
farmers here on Saturday that the entire production of 172 million kg in Andhra Pradesh in the
2014-15 crop season would be procured by September 30 but within a price band based on five
years average prices. It would be around nearly Rs 125 a kg for bright varieties and farmers
could expect that price only if the crop has negligible or no pesticide residue, she
20
said.Addressing tobacco farmers from West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam and Nellore
districts after holding deliberations with manufacturers and traders for close to three and a half
hours, Ms. Sitharaman said tobacco was a restricted crop, so a minimum support price was not
being fixed for it for the last four years.
But she said she had persuaded the industry to agree to a minimum price band. However, she
pointed out that farmers were under obligation not to produce excess. If they do so, they cannot
expect unrealistic prices.She said only about 46 million kg of tobacco has been purchased so far
because of the global economic turmoil, which has rendered even basmati rice nonremunerative.However, the Ministry of Commerce was doing its best to enable tobacco farmers
earn remunerative prices while discouraging excess production. Tobacco cannot be compared
with food crops, she pointed out.
Ms. Sitharaman clarified that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) was permitted for purchasing and
exporting tobacco from India.It was a misinterpretation that FDI was not allowed in the tobacco
sector, due to which foreign investors have stayed away. FDI was in fact not allowed only in
tobacco manufacturing; there was no objection to letting FDI flow into trading of the
commodity.This anomaly has been set right and communicated to the Reserve Bank of India,
which has disseminated the information to all countries through Indian embassies.
This would be of great help to farmers as their produce would be purchased by foreign investors,
subject to quality norms.Earlier, Ms. Sitharaman held parleys with manufacturers and exporters
in the presence of ministers Pratthipati Pulla Rao and P. Sujatha and MP Rayapati Sambasiva
Rao, M. Murali Mohan and Maganti Venkateswara Rao (Babu) and Tobacco Board chairman K.
Gopal spoke about the bleak export scenario for tobacco.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/entire-tobacco-crop-to-be-procured-by-sept30/article7388736.ece
Vietnam vies with Thailand, Filipino rice importers

VietNamNet Bridge - The Philippines appears to have successfully exploited the stiff competition between two large rice
exporters, Vietnam and Thailand, to force the prices down.
Part 1: Philippine strategy
20
The Philippines said it will no longer import rice as domestic production is high enough to
satisfy domestic demand.Some exporters think that if Vietnam cannot sell rice to the country, the
Vietnamese rice market would collapse. However, analysts commented that it would be better
for Vietnam not to sell rice to the Philippines under the current mode.In order to get the right to
sell rice to the Philippines, exporters have to travel there to attend bids opened by the Filipino
National Food Authority (NFA).The exporters who win the bids must offer the lowest prices, and
the prices must not be higher than ceiling prices set by the authority.Both Vietnam and Thailand
offered prices higher than the ceiling price of $340 per ton for 25 percent broken rice set by NFA
21
in the June 5 bid, which NFA opened to seek suppliers of 250,000 tons of rice. Vietnam got the
right to supply 150,000 tons of rice later, after it agreed to lower the selling price.
More recently, Vietnam offered to supply 100,000 tons of rice at $416 per ton, but it still lost the
June 15 bid because the NFAs ceiling price was much lower, at $408.14 per ton.In late
February, Vietnam also won the right to provide 300,000 tons of white long grain rice to the
Philippines under the G2G (government to government) contract, after it agreed to slash the
selling price to the same level offered by Thailand.Analysts said that once NFA sets the ceiling
price, this means that the Philippines, or the buyer, always has the right to set the
prices. Therefore, Vietnam and Thailand have to compete with each other to win the contract
under Philippines control.For many years, the prices of 25 percent broken rice have been set at
levels hovering around $340 per ton, which is very close to the production cost.
However, in most cases, Vietnamese exporters decided to lower the selling prices in order to win
the contracts. They did not want to return to Vietnam empty-handed. Since the exporters could
not sell rice at high prices, they tried to force the prices down in the Vietnamese market. As a
result, Vietnamese farmers could not make reasonable profits.According to the Vietnam Food
Association (VFA), Vietnam had exported 2.1 million tons of rice by the end of May, earning
$870 million, a decrease of 10 percent in export volume and 13 percent price decrease in
comparison with the same period in 2014.To date, Vietnam has signed contracts on exporting 3.5
million tons of rice, or 8 percent lower than the same period of last year.
21
TBKTSG
22
Tags:Vietnam,rice export,G2G market,export contracts,
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/business/134572/vietnam-vies-with-thailand--filipino-riceimporters.html
How Forex Restriction On Rice Can Boost Local

Production, Employment
Bukola Idowu
Jul 6, 2015 3:52 am
Nigeria is the largest producer of rice, a staple food for almost all if not all households in the
country. Yet it is the second largest importer of rice in the World. Rice is mainly imported from
Thailand, Brazil, India, USA, UAE over the period as at 2010.Rice is grown in approximately on
3.7 million hectares of land in Nigeria, covering 10.6 per cent of the 35 million hectares of land
under cultivation, out of a total arable land area of 70 million hectares. 77 per cent of the farmed
area of rice is rain-fed, of which 47 percent is lowland and 30 per cent upland. The range of
grown varieties is diverse and includes both local (such as Dias, Santana, Ashawa, Yarsawaba,
and Yarkuwa) and enhanced varieties of traditional African rice (such as NERICA) (Bayou
2009).
22
23
Despite the countrys huge potential in rice production, statistics show a decreasing trend in
production, associated with a decline in area harvested between 2006 and 2010.Over the years,
yields on rice production has been on the rise, but area of land harvested and the number of
tonnes produced has been on the decrease, showing a possibility of a declining number of rice
farmers.This decline began in 2008. Before then, government policies affecting rice production
had been directed at protecting the local industry through tariffs and providing extension support
to rice farmers.
The import tariff on value-added rice was 100 per cent in 1995, 50 in 1996 through 2000 and 85
in 2001.However, with effect from May 2008, rice imports into Nigeria were declared free from
all duties and charges, including customs duty, seven per cent surcharge, value-added tax and
levies.This caused a surge in rice importation and discouraged local farmers as it became cheaper
to import the calorie-giving food.Currently, Nigeria spends about N1 billion daily importing rice,
a development, which the former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi
Adesina, said is helping to put farmers to work in countries like the United States, India and
Thailand, while putting farmers out of work in Nigeria.This had prompted the decision to make
Nigeria self-sufficient in rice production by the end of this year. Although rice exporters like the
United States has criticised this move, the National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANT) and
Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Mines and Agriculture
(NACCIMA) have argued that it is achievable.
The president of NANT, Ken Ukaoha, had recently charged the federal government to ensure
that all of the nations efforts are channelled towards achieving food security in the country
because a country that cannot depend on itself for the food with which its citizens are sustained
is not truly an independent nation.Consequently, one can say the recent move by the Central
Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to stop its foreign exchange support for the importation of rice is a right
step towards increasing production of rice in the country.Before now, the CBN sells foreign
exchange directly to rice importers, making available to them cheap foreign exchange to the
detriment of local producers. Asides this, the oil price decline had put a lot of pressure on not
only the nations income but also its foreign reserves which has declined to $29 billion.
The CBNs decision to end foreign exchange support for rice importation however goes beyond
the value of the naira and the foreign exchange reserves. It is meant to create an import
substitution for rice.Nigeria has the capacity and potential to not only be self sustaining in rice
production, but also be among the exporters of rice. The recent move is directed at one of the key
goals of the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele when he assumed office last year June. It goes
beyond reducing foreign exchange pressures but is targeted at industrialisation of the economy,
generating employment and reducing poverty in the country.According to the director of
communications at the CBN, Ibrahim Muazu why should we keep allocating scarce FX to rice
importers when vast amounts of paddy rice of comparable quality produced by poor hardworking
local farmers across the rice belts of Nigeria are wasted, and farmers are falling deeper into
poverty while we export their jobs and income to rice producing countries?
23
The CBN will do the little it can to protect the jobs and incomes of local farmers, using some of
the same principles Western Economies use to justify the protection of their farmers through
huge subsidies.

6th July (Monday) 2015 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

Diunggah oleh

Informasi Dokumen

Hak Cipta

Format Tersedia

Bagikan dokumen Ini

Bagikan atau Tanam Dokumen

Opsi Berbagi

Apakah menurut Anda dokumen ini bermanfaat?

Apakah konten ini tidak pantas?

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

6th July (Monday) 2015 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

Diunggah oleh

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

1

Government Job: Indian Institute of Rice Research,

Name of the posts: Lower Division Clerk

Selection process: Candidates would be recruited through an examination which shall be

within 30 days from the date of advertisement.

Click here for recruitment advertisement.

Rice Business and Matters Arising

One primary campaign promise

CBN: Our Economic Fundamentals Remain Strong, Replies

misguided interests in the market.

Probe source of fake rice, Aquino orders

C-DAC launches mobile apps marking Digital India Week

Global Rice Bran Oil Conference 2015 to be held in August

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169 -212636.X ml 1234

Every grain of rice

Sightly yellowish Saila rice.KARACHI: They say

with rice. In the subcontinent, lentils and

The varieties are created during sorting

Indian scientists' new DNA chip for speeding up rice

NEW DELHI: One Chinese lie has been finally

Dangote Backs Central Bank's Forex Restrictions on Rice,

Area under aromatic rice varieties decreases in K'shetra

Needed: Green Thumb

The just released socio economic census reminds

Entire tobacco crop to be procured by Sept 30

Vietnam vies with Thailand, Filipino rice importers

Part 1: Philippine strategy

Tags:Vietnam,rice export,G2G market,export contracts,

How Forex Restriction On Rice Can Boost Local

Anda mungkin juga menyukai