Tests conducted on soil samples to determine level of macro and micro nutrients

Study on the availability of micro and macro nutrients in soil samples collected from Valapurnadu Panchayat atop Kolli Hills reveals that it lacked three of the four main macro ingredients – organic carbon, nitrogen and potash. “On the other hand availability of zinc (micro nutrient) is also below average,” M. Janakiraman, a Soil Pedologist and Consultant said.

A second science-based Green Revolution is needed for increasing rice productivity as the health of rice-based systems determines the fate of Indian agriculture, Robert S. Zeigler, director general, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines, said here on Friday.

At a seminar on “Rice Research Innovations for Addressing Global Food Security in a Changing Climate” held at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in connection with the Centenary Year of the Paddy Breeding Station, he said that this revolution would be made possible by tapping innovations in genetics, molecular biology and plant physiology, and linking soil biology and chemistry.

Farmers can now get online information on the amount of fertilizers that they must apply to a particular kind of soil and crop. This will help them overcome the problem of over-use of fertilizer that is eroding soil health.

The Bhopal-based Indian Institute of Soil Science has developed a web-based system that calculates the quantum and quality of fertilizers that should be applied to the soil for targeted yield.

Inaugurating the programme, the Nilgiris Collector Archana Patnaik urged the farmers to switch to organic farming. The government will extend a helping hand in marketing their products, she said.

Underscoring the need to bring about a mindset change among farmers, she said that they should personally take care of their lands and become technology savvy. Over dependence on subsidies should be eschewed.

Anew site being explored by the Mars rover Opportunity has yielded soil samples unlike any examined before on the red planet and that appear more favourable for life, scientists said.

The chairman of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), CP Gautam, on Sunday said more than 60% of distilleries in the state do not comply with pollution control laws, becoming a major source o

A Subba Rao, Director and his associate K Sammi Reddy, Principal Scientist, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Bhopal, jointly conferred prestigious 'Hari Om Ashram Trust Award 2008-09'.

They received a cash award of `1,00,000 and a citation from Union Minister of Agriculture Sharad Pawar on July 16, 2011 at New Delhi.

It is projected that India will need to grow its agricultural output 12% to feed its people in 2020. Much of this has to come by growing more on the same amount of land.