Sarkozy (France) Bats For India + BIRD FLU + CLIMATE CHANGE + Fish Diversity

[Guest guest]

NEWS Bulletin from Indian Society For Sustainable Agriculture And Rural Development ********************************** BIRD FLU--- 1. Govt working out package for bird flu victims INDIA-FRANCE--- 2. France bats for new global role for India CLIMATE CHANGE----- 3. Climate change to impact Indian agriculture : IARI FISH DIVERSITY--- 4. India begins documenting fish species ---------------------------- Govt working out package for bird flu victims http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Govt-working-out-package-for-bird-flu-victims/266295/ ASHOK B SHARMAPosted online: Monday , January 28, 2008 at 2211 hrs IST New Delhi, Jan 28 The central government will soon decide upon the compensation package to be doled out to the poultry industry and farmers, with a view to offset the losses suffered on account of the recent incidence of bird flu in West Bengal. The poultry industry has planned to meet the Union agriculture minister, Sharad Pawar on Wednesday to discuss the issue of the compensation package. Briefing mediapersons on Monday, the animal husbandry secretary in the central government, Pradeep Kumar said : "The compensation package

will, however, be different for the farmers and the industry. Industry has suffered losses on account of the fall in prices of poultry products and the farmers have incurred losses on account of death of birds, destruction of feed and eggs. We are working out the data of the losses to be compensated." Bird flu has now spread to 13 districts in West Bengal and newer areas in the affected districts. Despite the rapid spread of bird flu in West Bengal since the first detection in two districts in January 15, the central government still contends that the effect is localized and confined only to West Bengal. The neighbouring state, Bihar had done some culling operations in its adjoining areas, apprehending the spread of bird flu virus. The 13 districts in West Bengal which come under the influence of bird flu are Birbhum, Dakshin Dinajpur, Nadia, North 24-Parganas, Murshidabad, Burdwan, Cooch Behar, Malda, Uttar Dinajpur, Howrah, Bankura, Hoogly and Purulia. Bird flu has not yet been detected so far in Kolkata, thiugh it has reached the surrounding districts like North 24-Parganas, Burdwan, Howrah and Hooghly. So far 19,30,024 birds have been culled, 2,10,705 eggs and 36,880 kg feed have been destroyed in all the 13 affected districts of West Bengal. Kumar said that by the end of the month the culling operations would be completed in all the districts with the exception of Murshidabad and 900-ood rapid response teams were at work. Samples for possible incidence of bird flu virus on humans have been collected and send for testing in three laboratories, the results of which are

awaited------- France bats for new global role for India http://www.financialexpress .com/news/France-bats-for-new -global-role-for-India/265457/0 ASHOK B SHARMAPosted online: Saturday , January 26, 2008 at 0054 hrs IST New Delhi, January 25: France joined Britain in pitching for India's case for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council and

membership of the expanded G-8. It has also decided to support India in developing the energy for the future – nuclear energy. French Companies would help India to opt for sustainable development while addressing environmental concerns India has sought French collaboration in space research, apart from other technical collaboration, bilateral trade and investment. The French President Nicolas Sarkozy while addressing the India-Economic Conference in Delhi organized by two apex industry bodies – FICCI and CII – in Delhi on Friday said : "G-8 should be turned into G-13 to include China, Brazil, South Africa, India and Mexico." The British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown when he was in Delhi on January 21, this year, had supported India's case for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. He also proposed expansion of G-8. Sarkozy said that G-8 and the United Nations should be revamped to reflect the reality of the 21st century. India needs to have a permanent seat in the UN security Council in the interest of the global community, he said. Keeping in view the next G-8 summit scheduled in Tokyo, Sarkozy said: "I know Japanese friends may have problem in inviting a neighbouring country in Asia. But India along with China, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico need to be rightly included in G-8." Sarkozy who is leading a large French official and business delegation to India is slated to be the official chief guest on occasion of the India's Republic Day on Jauary 26, 2008. He said that France admired how India as a populous, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic country could overcome challenges and register an economic growth rate of 7% to 10%, create jobs and also export skills. He said that some French

companies, having green technology, were eager to help India on the path of sustainable development, while addressing environmental concerns. He also said that France would support India in adopting clean nuclear energy. Sarkozy invited Indian investments and proposed to increase the seats for Indian students undertaking education in France by threefold. The Indian commerce and industry minister, Kamal Nath also pleaded for French investment in India saying:"our country respects global rules, including IPRs and geographical indications" Kamal Nath arrived from Davos on Friday to meet the French President and is expected to fly back today to join the ongoing World Economic Forum meeting there. He noted that though France was the 8th largest investor in India, French investments were just tip of an iceberg, being only 1.48% of total foreign

direct investments (FDIs) to India. Cumulative French FDI in India was only $ 0.94 billion. Bilateral trade between the two countries was only $ 6.2 billion in 2006-07, he said. Nath, however, said that bilateral trade between India and France more than trebled in the last 16 years and over this period Indian exports to France increased four-fold and Indian imports doubled. French companies are active in India in a number of projects, notably in construction and engineering sectors. A number of French fashion brands like L'Oreal and Louis Vutton have made forays in Indian market. Major French companies present in India are LaFarge, Alcatel, Societe Generale, L'Oreal, BNP, Danone, Alsthom, SanofiAvantis, Saint Gobain, Schneider, Renault, Michelin, Total, Loius Vuition, Airbus, Sodexho, Onyx and Environment SA. Indian companies which have registered their presence in France are

Tata Consultancy, Wipro, Infosys, Tata Steel, Reliance Communications, Jindal. Nath noted that Invest in France Agency, a body that helps to channel investments into France, last year identified 300 Indian companies to formalize their investment plans. In this context, Nath called for involving Indian industry associations. He urged the French small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which have R & D, to invest in India. He outlined that India needed academic exchanges, science and technology cooperation in high technology and industrial cooperation through direct investment He also invited French companies to invest in Indian farm sector and invited collaborations with Champagne-Ardennes, Picardie Industry and Agriresources Cluster and wanted a model similar to Agropole in Agen set up in India. On the occasion of Sarkozy's visit, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research

in India and the French National Science Research Institute – CNRS - entered into an agreement for the creation of joint research laboratory on sustainable chemistry at Interfaces. The joint research laboratory will focus its research partnership in the areas of green chemistry targeting therapeutic agents for cancer and neuro disorders, protein interactions for targeting alternative drugs/ biological systems. Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) at Hyderabad, one of the CSIR laboratories will be implementing the programme in partnership with CNRS laboratory for Molecular Chemistry on Molecular Photonics and University of Rennes in France. An agreement has been signed by Power Grid with the French company Areva for improving the sub-transmission grid in Bihar. Avera also signed an agreement with Aravali Power Company for Indira Gandhi Super Thermal Power Project at Jhajjar. BNP Paribas Lease Group has signed an agreement for strategic partnership in equipment finance for infrastructure. BNP will invest $ 140 million in the joint venture. Carrefour confirmed its decision to enter Indian market with cash and carry stores and would select an Indian franchisee partner for all other retail stores. Degremont signed an agreement with Mumbai authorities to design, built and operate in four years one of the biggest drinking water treatment plant in the country. It has also agreed to build and operate a wastewater treatment and reuse plant in Delhi. The total value of the two contracts is 85.5 million euros. A MoU has been signed EADS company and the National Aviation Company of India for jointly creating a maintenance, overhaul and repair centre for Airbus aircraft.

Laboratories Pierre Fabre and Nicholas Piramal Pvt Ltd signed a MoU for R & D in oncology. Sagem Orga inaugurated a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Noida, near Delhi to serve telecommunication, banking and security markets throughout Asia-Pacific. SNCF signed a MoU with the ministry of railways. The French rail engineering consultant – SYSTRA – and Indian railways engineering consultant – RITES – signed an agreement for cooperation in the implementation of high speed rail lines in India. GIFA group signed a joint venture agreement with Cast Master for manufacturing of ambulances car based on a Tata Motors model. ------- Climate change to impact Indian agriculture : IARI http://www.financialexpress .com/news/Climate-change-to -impact-Indian-agri-IARI /266207/0 ASHOK B SHARMAPosted online: Monday , January 28, 2008 at 0154 hrs IST New Delhi, Jan 27 A recent group of studies done at the Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI) on the impact of the global climate change on Indian agriculture indicates the possibility of loss of four to five million tonne in wheat production with every rise of 1 degree Celsius temperature throughout the growing period, even after considering carbon fertilisation. Irrigation potential is likely to decrease in the near future,

particularly in the Indo-Gangetic plains with the fast melting of Himalayan glaciers. Besides, there would be competition for water use by other sectors. The estimated loss in wheat production can, however, be minimised to one to two million tonne, if farmers go for early planting of wheat to escape the possible abnormal rise in temperature at the ripening stage. Losses for wheat and other winter crops would be greater than summer crops. According to IARI estimate the current average wheat yield is 2.8 tonne per hectare and to meet the demand by 2020, the average wheat yield needs to be raised to 3.9 tonne per hectare. However, there is a hope for increasing the yield of wheat as its biological potential yield is around 8 tonne per hectare and biophysical potential yield is 5 tonne per hectare. One beneficial impact of warming would be the reduced

frequency of damage to crops on account of frost, particularly in northwestern India. One study done by IARI found that pathogens and insect population strongly dependant upon temperature and humidity. Increase in temperature and humidity would change their population dynamics, resulting in crop production loss. According to IARI, global warming in short-term is likely to favour agricultural production in temperate regions, particularly Europe and North America and negatively impact crop production in South Asia, Africa and Latin America and thus have consequences on international food prices and trade. Small changes in temperature and rainfall would have significant impact on quality of fruits, vegetables, tea, coffee, spices, aromatic and medicinal plants. Rise in temperature has already impacted the yield and quality of apples in Himachal Pradesh. India's premium rice –

Basmati – would become vulnerable to temperature rise and coral reefs in the Indian seas would decrease. The warming effect is likely to increase water, shelter and energy requirement for livestock for meeting the projected milk demand. Heat stress on dairy animals would adversely affect their productive and reproductive performances. The rise in sea and river water temperatures are likely to affect fish breeding, migration and harvests. Coral reefs in the Indian seas are predicted to decline from the year 2030. Only benefit for the fishery sector would be the availability of new flooded areas. According to PK Aggarwal one of the IARI study noted the contribution of agriculture to greenhouse gas emissions, particularly of methane from paddy fields, enteric fermentation in ruminant animals and nitrous oxide due to application of chemical fertilisers. The gross emissions from

Indian agriculture are likely to increase significantly in the future, if attempts are made to boost food production by excessive use of chemical fertilisers. ------- India begins documenting fish species http://www.financialexpress .com/news/Indian-begins -documenting-fish-species /266209/0 ASHOK B SHARMAPosted online: Monday , January 28, 2008 at 0155 hrs IST New Delhi, Jan 27 The Lucknow-based National Bureau of Fish

Genetic Resources (NBFGR) has begun the process of Indian fish germplasm accessions with a view to develop a repository for future use and as well as for protecting the Indian species from bio-piracy. The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has constituted a six-member committee headed by its deputy director-general for fisheries for protection of fish germplasm through registration and documentation. NBFGR as a nodal agency has issued the necessary guidelines for implementation. India has rich aquatic biodiversity spread across different ecosystems. Out of the the 27,800 fish species found across the world, about 11% are found in Indian waters. Apart from finfish resources, nearly 2934 species of crustaceans, 5000 species of mollusks and 765 species of echinoderms also contribute to India's rich aquatic germplasm resources, according to AD Diwan, assistant director-general of fisheries. India is the fourth largest producer of fish in the world and second largest producer of inland fish. The total fish production is around 6 million tonne per year. The fishery sector provides employment to seven million people and its share in the GDP is around 1.4%. Majority of aquaculture is supported by three species of Indian major carps and one species of shrimp. Natural aquatic germplasm resources are important as majority of the genetic resources for food still come from the wild due to low documentation level in the fishery sector. In other words, capture fishery is equally important as breeding for nutritional security across the globe. This is in contrast to the animal farming and agriculture where domesticated varieties only contribute to the food basket. Therefore, management of fisheries resources draw parallel to that followed in wild life and forestry besides the agriculture. Besides a source for food.

Aquatic germplasm resources are also an important source of various products of commercial value and to sustain other related trades like ornamental fishes. "The NBFGR has taken up the challenge to secure the IPRs related to aquatic germplasm so that the country is able to maintain its stake on its natural wealth and their potential benefits," said a senior scientist. He said that the repositories would store the accessions of genetic stocks discovered and varieties developed. It would maintain accessions for future use to retrieve information as well as whole or part of genome, if species were not found in nature. To harness the potential of biotechnological innovations, it will be essential that DNA, whole and modified such as gene constructs be part of the repository, he said and added this would also provide material for future research

work. The species level accessions can be secured through building DNA and tissue bank as a fast mode to store materials for long term. Sperm or cells and live gene bank accessions can be made only for prioritized and selected fish species. Identification of of genetic stock or racee in the wild populations of cultivable fish species would be taken up through concentrated efforts using molecular markers, morphological and production traits.

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