Current Affairs 2022-23

Current Affairs 2022-23

Highlights of Union Budget 2022-23

• Per capita income has more than doubled to ₹1.97 lakh in around nine years.
• Indian economy has increased in size from being 10^th to 5^th largest in the world.
• India’s economic growth estimated at 9.2% to be the highest among all large economies.

Agriculture

• Atmanirbhar Clean Plant Program with an outlay of ₹2200 crore to be launched to boost availability of disease-free, quality planting material for high value horticultural crops.
• Centre to facilitate one crore farmers to adopt natural farming over the next three years. For this, 10,000 Bio-Input Resource Centres to be set-up, creating a national-level distributed micro-fertilizer and pesticide manufacturing network.
• Agriculture Accelerator Fund to be set-up to encourage agri-startups by young entrepreneurs in rural areas.
• To make India a global hub for ‘Shree Anna’, the Indian Institute of Millet Research, Hyderabad will be supported as the Centre of Excellence for sharing best practices, research and technologies at the international level.
• ₹20 lakh crore agricultural credit targeted at animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries.
• A new sub-scheme of PM Matsya Sampada Yojana with targeted investment of ₹6,000 crore to be launched to further enable activities of fishermen, fish vendors, and micro & small enterprises, improve value chain efficiencies, and expand the market.
• Digital public infrastructure for agriculture to be built as an open source, open standard and inter operable public good to enable inclusive farmer centric solutions and support for growth of agri-tech industry and start-ups.
• Computerization of 63,000 Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) with an investment of ₹2,516 crore initiated.
• Massive decentralized storage capacity to be set up to help farmers store their produce and realize remunerative prices through sale at appropriate times.
• “PM Programme for Restoration, Awareness, Nourishment and Amelioration of Mother Earth” (PM-PRANAM)to be launched to incentivize States and Union Territories to promote alternative fertilizers and balanced use of chemical fertilizers.
• 2.37 lakh crore direct payment to 1.63 crore farmers for procurement of wheat and paddy.
• Chemical free natural farming to be promoted throughout the country.
• Initial focus is on farmers’ land in 5km wide corridors along river Ganga.
• NABARD to facilitate fund with blended capital to finance startups for agriculture & Rural enterprise.
• “Kisan Drones” for crop assessment, digitization of land records, spraying of insecticides and nutrients.

Millets (Coarse cereals)

• Promoting post-harvest value addition, consumption and branding of millet products.
• Year 2023 has been declared as “International year of Millets”, the government announced full support for post-harvest value addition, enhancing domestic consumption and also for branding millet products nationally and internationally.

Ken Betwa Link Project

• Rs.1400 crore outlay for implementation of this link project.
• 9.08 lakh hectare of farmers’ land to receive irrigation benefit by this link project.
• Duty being reduced on certain inputs required for shrimp aquaculture in order to promote exports.

Key Highlights of the Economic Survey 2021-22

• 9.2% growth expected in real terms in 2021-22.
• GDP projected to grow 8-8.5% in 2022-23.
• Food inflation average at a low of 2.9% in 2021-22 (Apr-Dec)
• In Agriculture, GVA register buoyant growth of 3.9%, industry by 11.8% and service sectors by 8.2% in 2021-22.

Natural Resource Management

Degraded land Area: 120.4 Mha (37%), which includes:

• Water & Wind erosion: 94.9 Mha.
• Water logging: 0.9 Mha.
• Soil Alkalinity/ sodicity: 3.7 Mha.
• Soil Acidity: 17.9 Mha.
• Soil Salinity: 2.7 Mha.
• Mining & Industrial waste: 0.3 Mha.

All India Area, Production and Productivity

• Horticultural Products

1. Area: Vegetables> Fruits> Spices> Plantations> Aromatic & Medicinal>Flowers.
2. Production: Vegetables> Fruits> Plantations> Spices> Flowers> Aromatic & Medicinal> Honey.
3. Productivity: Vegetables> Fruits> Flowers> Plantations> Spices> Aromatic & Medicinal.

• Fruit crops

1. Area: Mango> Total citrus> Banana.
2. Production: Banana> Mango> Citrus.

• Vegetable crops

1. Area: Potato> Onion> Tomato
2. Production: Potato> Onion> Tomato.

All India Area & Production (RBI 2020-21)

Final Estimate of Food Grain (2021-22)

1. Food Grains: 315.72 MT (4.98 MT higher than 2020-21).
2. Rice: 130.29 MT
3. Wheat: 106.84 MT
4. Coarse cereals: 50.90 MT
5. Maize: 33.62 MT
6. Pulses: 27.69 MT
7. Oilseeds: 37.70 MT
8. Groundnut: 10.11 MT
9. Soyabean: 12.99 MT
10. Rapeseed & Mustard: 11.75 MT
11. Sugarcane: 431.81 MT
12. Cotton: 31.20 million Bales (170 kg each)
13. Jute & Mesta: 10.32 million Bales (180 kg each)

3^rd Advance Estimates of Area & Production of Horticultural crops (2021-22)

Production of Horticultural Commodities

Area coverage under Micro Irrigation

• Drip: 3.58 lakh hectare
• Sprinkler: 6.57 lakh hectare
• Total: 10.15 lakh hectare

Recently given GI tag 2022-23

Note: Total number of GI tags now reaches to 432 till December 2022. Karnataka ranks 1^st in holding maximum GI tag followed by Tamil Nadu and then UP.

Procurement Agencies & Commodities procured

• FCI (Food corporation of India): Wheat & Rice
• NAFED (National Agriculture Cooperative Marketing Federation): Pulses & Oilseeds.
• CCI (Cotton corporation of India): Cotton
• JCI (Jute Corporation of India): Jute

CCI was established on 31st July 1970 under the administrative control of Ministry of Textiles, Government of India as a Public Sector Undertaking under the Companies Act 1956.
HQ- Navi Mumbai (Maharashtra).

JCI was incorporated by GOI in 1971 as a price support agency. HQ- Kolkata.

Fish Production

• India accounts for 7.96% of global fish production and ranks 3^rd (according to annual report of Fisheries) while, 2^nd (Economic survey 2021-22).
• Total fish production in FY 2020-21: 14.73 million metric tonnes. Out of that, Inland: 11.25 MMT and Marine: 3.48 MMT. Thus, percentage share of Inland fishery and Marine fishery is 74% and 26% respectively.
• Rank in Marine fish production: Gujarat> Tamil Nadu> Andhra Pradesh.
• Rank in Inland fish production: Andhra Pradesh> WB> UP.
• Percentage share of item-wise export of fisheries products by value and quantity both (2019-20): Frozen shrimp> Frozen fish.

Share of GVA (Gross Value Added) of Crops & Allied sectors in total Agricultural GVA at current prices

• Crops: 10.7%
• Livestock: 5.2%
• Forestry & Logging: 1.3%
• Fishing & Aquaculture: 1.2%

APEDA Statistics (2021-22)

Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) was established by GOI under APEDA Act 1985. Its head office is in New Delhi.

• Maximum value earned among all exported products: non-Basmati Rice.
• Maximum value earned from country: Bangladesh> UAE.
• Maximum fresh onions, dairy products, non-basmati rice, wheat, maize also exported to Bangladesh.
• Maximum flowers exported to country: USA> Netherland.
• Maximum fruits and vegetables seeds exported to Bangladesh (quantity wise) and Netherland (value).
• Maximum walnuts, fresh mangoes, pulses, sheep & Goat meat, Alcoholic beverages, millets exported to UAE.
• Maximum fresh grapes exported to Netherland.
• Maximum Buffalo meat exported to Egypt.
• Maximum natural honey exported to USA
• Maximum Basmati Rice exported to Iran.

ICMR Recommendation & Availability

• Cropping Intensity in India: 141.6%.
• Fertilizer consumption per hectare (state-wise): Puducherry> Punjab> Haryana.
• Average Fertilizer consumption all over India: 137.15 Kg/ha.

Note: Here fertilizer includes N+P+K.

See also…
ALL SCHEMES ONE LINEAR
Current MSP Rate 2022-23