&w=3840&q=100)
Maharashtra agro corp to set up units to manage farmers' crop surplus
Oversupply in the market forces farmers to sell their produce, particularly the perishable ones, at throwaway prices or even discard them. The MAIDC initiative aims at ensuring good returns to the growers, said the managing director of the corporation, Mangesh Gondavale.
The official said they will procure two machines and deploy them in two districts by the next monsoon season on a pilot basis. Each machine can process 16-18 products and can be customised depending on the region, he said.
Processing includes washing, peeling, drying, chopping, slicing and liquefaction. For instance, tomatoes can be converted into puree, while onions can be dried for longer storage.
Sometimes, the overall production of a crop in a region becomes high. To ensure that farmers do not incur losses in such a situation, we will introduce two portable processing units, Gondavale said.
These machines can be taken directly to farms, saving farmers transportation costs, he said.
Each unit can process 150-200 tonnes of produce per day and is equipped for specialised packaging that extends shelf life by 12-18 months, he added.
Farmers can then take the product to the market when it is favourable to them. Also, processed crops fetch better prices, said Gondavale.
A Rajasthan-based startup founded by an IIT graduate will provide the processing units, each costing about Rs 1.5 crore, Gondavale said.
We have done a survey of the types of crops that these units can process. We will use the machines on an experimental basis in two districts by the next Kharif season. We will then propose to the district administrations to procure the units to help farmers in their region, he added.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India.com
23 minutes ago
- India.com
No Rafale or F-35! Army Demands Rs 1.12 Lakh Cr Defence System, Gets Only Rs 36,000 Cr
New Delhi: After Operation Sindoor, India's defense upgrades are speeding ahead like a bullet train. With over Rs 3 lakh crore being pumped into military modernisation, the government is on a mission to acquire or indigenously develop fighter jets, submarines and advanced missile systems. One by one, big-ticket purchases are being cleared, and the pace is relentless. Earlier this month, the Ministry of Defence approved military procurements worth over Rs 1 lakh crore in one go. Among them, Rs 44,000 crore has been set aside for 12 Mine Counter Measure Vessels and Rs 36,000 crore has been sanctioned for six regiments of the Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile system, better known as QRSAM. These six QRSAM regiments will be split evenly between the Indian Air Force and the Army. But here is the twist. This is only a fraction of what the armed forces actually asked for. The Army had demanded 11 regiments. What they got was only three. The Air Force's separate demand? Also unmet. If both services were to receive the full complement, 11 regiments each, the total cost would have soared to Rs 1.12 lakh crore. But the government stopped short. Enter the 'Baby S-400' Apart from being a missile defense system, QRSAM is being nicknamed the 'Baby S-400'. India already has three operational regiments of Russia's S-400 system and expects two more by next year. But defense planners know that S-400s and indigenous Akash systems alone cannot transform the country into a secure fortress. The threat matrix has changed. China is watching, and so is Pakistan. And they are not standing still. Operation Sindoor proved India's air defense muscle. But it also exposed gaps, ones that Pakistan tried to exploit through waves of drone incursions, many supplied by Turkey and China. Hundreds were launched. All were neutralised. But the lesson stuck – air defense needs to be multi-layered, relentless and everywhere. That is where the QRSAM fits in. Designed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), it is built to intercept fighters, drones and helicopters within a 30 km radius. Not as long-range as the S-400's 400 km or Akash's 100-200 km reach, but perfect for quick and short-range airspace protection in dense threat environments. More importantly, it's Indian-made, fast, precise and combat-ready. Not Enough for a Fortress At Rs 6,000 crore per regiment, scaling up to the Army's full demand alone would cost Rs 66,000 crore. Add the Air Force's likely mirror request and you are staring at a Rs 1.12 lakh crore bill. Expensive? Yes. But what is the price of making the skies over India completely off-limits to 5th-gen fighter jets, drones, cruise missiles or worse? With full deployment, India's air defense would shift from deterrence to denial. Nothing would be able to breach the perimeter. During Operation Sindoor, India's air defenses held. But in military planning, holding is never enough. The military is not asking for luxury, it is asking for survivability. Against future drone swarms, supersonic fighters or long-range missile salvos, six regiments are just a start. If the government greenlights the remaining 16 regiments, the Army and the Air Force both, it would send a message that India is preparing. And once QRSAM rings the nation's skies, even the birds will need clearance to fly.
Mint
23 minutes ago
- Mint
Boeing Defense Workers Reject Contract in New Labor Turmoil
(Bloomberg) -- Boeing Co. faces the risk of a strike at its St. Louis defense hub after union workers rejected a contract offer that would boost their wages by 20% over four years. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 837, which represents 3,200 Boeing defense workers in Missouri and Illinois, voted overwhelmingly against the new terms Sunday. The Boeing proposal 'fell short of addressing the priorities and sacrifices' of the company's skilled workforce, the union said in a statement. 'Our members are standing together to demand a contract that respects their work and ensures a secure future.' While the present contract expires at 11:59 p.m. Central Time on Sunday, management still has a chance to win over rank-and-file members by sweetening its offer during a seven-day 'cooling off' period. If that's unsuccessful, IAM Local 837 workers will walk off the job and shut down manufacturing in Boeing's military aircraft hub. The aerospace manufacturer is seeking to avoid another labor standoff after a strike by a Seattle-based Machinists union crippled manufacturing at its commercial jet factories for more than two months last year. Boeing could not be immediately reached for comment. Any labor strife would be costly for Boeing's defense division, which hasn't earned an annual profit since 2022 and is in the middle of a turnaround. A strike would shut down assembly lines for Boeing's F-15 and F/A-18 fighter jets, T-7A trainer, MQ-25 drone refueler and other weapons systems. The labor uncertainty will be a focus for analysts when Boeing reports quarterly earnings on Tuesday. It's also a bellwether as GE Aerospace launches contract negotiations with a separate IAM local on Sunday. St. Louis workers last went on strike in 1996 and don't have a history of activism, unlike Boeing's unions in the Pacific Northwest, according to Scott Mikus, an analyst with Melius Research. Union members initially rejected management's offer during the last negotiation with Boeing in 2022, before accepting a three-year deal with a 14% general wage increase and cost-of-living adjustments. While Puget Sound labor leaders endorsed Boeing's initial offer last year, they were rebuffed by rank-and-file members embittered by an earlier 10-year contract that stripped away pensions and locked in low wage increases while inflation soared. The lengthy strike squeezed the company's working capital and spurred Boeing to sell equity worth almost $24 billion. --With assistance from Bill Haubert. (Updates with comments from labor union in third paragraph, attempt to reach Boeing in fifth paragraph.) More stories like this are available on
Time of India
37 minutes ago
- Time of India
Rs 56cr approver for development of Chintpurni Devi temple: Union tourism minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Shimla: The central govt has approved Rs 56.26 crore under the 'Swadesh Darshan 2.0' scheme for the development works at Chintpurni Devi temple to strengthen the tourism infrastructure in Himachal Pradesh, informed Union tourism minister . Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In response to a question asked by Kangra MP Rajeev Bhardwaj in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing monsoon session, Shekhawat informed that under the 'challenge-based destination development' component of the Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme, Rs 24.82 crore was approved for developing tourism infrastructure in the Kaza sub-division of Lahaul-Spiti, while Rs 4.96 crore was approved for developing tourism infrastructure in Rakchham-Chitkul. He also informed that during the financial year 2016-17, the central govt approved Rs 68.34 crore under the original 'Swadesh Darshan' scheme to develop the Himalayan circuit covering Kiarighat, Shimla, Haatkoti, Manali, Kangra, Dharamshala, Bir, Palampur, and Chamba. Regarding a question about the drying up of the Dal Lake, Dharamshala, in recent years, the minister said it falls under the jurisdiction of the state govt, and the Union ministry of tourism did not have a dedicated programme for handling issues in reservoirs or reservoir conservation. TNN
