India’s record rice export this year will help to keep rising food prices in check, according to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization.
The country’s export may reach an all-time high of 16.2 million tons this year will help keep rice prices in international markets affordable unlike maize, soybeans, and wheat.
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More on India’s rice production:
The New Normal in agriculture: Convergence, collaboration, and inclusion
Convergence, collaboration, and inclusion proved to be the keys for preparing the agricultural sector in managing unforeseen situations in the future. The Convergence Platform, developed in Bihar under the Cereal System Initiative for South Asia prior to the pandemic, presents a possible model where major players collaborate, innovate, and deliver to reduce the vulnerability of smallholder farmers to extreme crises.
Drought-tolerant rice varieties help ensure food security in Eastern India
Drought-tolerant rice varieties can serve as the most coherent approach to ensure food security in drought-prone rainfed areas in the eastern states of India, according to a case report published in Sustainability 2020. In the report, Drought-tolerant rice for ensuring food security in Eastern India, farmers cultivating Sahbhagi dhan reported a yield advantage of up to 1.6 tons per hectare over long-duration compared to traditional varieties.
India makes access to food a right, not a privilege
In September 2013, India’s parliament passed the National Food Security Act (NFSA), which, when fully operational, will be the world’s largest subsidized food program. It is a very ambitious program that provides access to subsidized food grains for around two-thirds (810 million) of the country’s population of more than 1.2 billion people—the food being provided solely from Indian cereal and coarse grain (various types of sorghum and millet) production at an estimated annual cost of US$20–22 billion. Over the years, the Indian government has, through its Public Distribution System, provided subsidized food to households living below the poverty line. Now, the NFSA guarantees it.
