India’s Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar has said that his ministry requires more funding for implementing the proposed Food Security Bill in the country.

Pawar, who supports Congress on the food security programme, has said that the budgetary allocations for the agricultural ministry must be increased so that it can implement the programme.

Thane, Oct 1: Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar has advised both Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P. Chidambaram to place all facts related to the 2G Spectrum allocation before the public in the interest of good governance.

"In the interest of good governance, Mukherjee and Chidambaram must project the truth about the 2G telecom spectrum allocation," Pawar told the media.

Dubai, Sep. 23 : International Cricket Council (ICC) President Sharad Pawar has paid tribute to Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, the former India captain, who died aged 70 on Thursday.

Due to approaching festive season in India, the Government has increased the cap of sugar stock that can be held by the traders. The Government has issued the order so as to avoid the shortage of sugar and inflation in sugar prices.

With increase in the output of sugarcane the country is planning to increase the export limit in October. The increase in the production of sugar has risen for the second year. The price of the raw sugar was recorded at a fall of
2.75%.

The past week saw onion prices soaring so high that they were almost out of reach of the middle class. There were political digs taken at the government over the soaring prices, and also an emergency meeting was called in the capital by the CM Sheila Dikshit.

Ban on onion exports and the waiver of import duty somewhat helped stabilizing the conditions as there were a few trucks of onions imported from our neighbor Pakistan.

Union minister for agriculture and cooperation Sharad Pawar today highlight the requirement to start improvement, as well as the use of technology, to stop all excuses in the public distribution system (PDS).

He informs reporters here today it self that they have got criticism by the area concerning distraction of food grains from the public distribution system. It is the nation which shall act. There shall be a vigilance committee at the reasonable price shop-level, usual meetings and checking’s.

According a major announcement made the Farm minister recently, it has been learned that the country is looking at allowing the sugar exports after the festive season in the month of November.

Farmers in dearth strikes districts in this uncommonly intense rains monsoon season will obtain a diesel subsidy of Rs 500 per hectare, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar declared here on Friday at the beginning of the National Conference on Rabi Campaign, even as the Centre awaits bumper crop production for most key Kharif crops counting paddy, coarse cereals, pulses, and sugarcane.

Oilseeds are the only crop where land is lower than usual and production is anticipated to be less than normal.

According to Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar the suggestion for decontrolling the sugar domain shall be all set within next 10 days and passed on to other ministries for discussions.

At the moment the sugar segment is under the government's jurisdiction. The Food Ministry apportions the monthly allowance that the mills vend in the open market, and also via ration shops. Apart from this the mills are expected to sell 20 per cent of their production to the government for allocating under the PDS.

On Tuesday, Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar said that soon the government will be preparing a blueprint for tightly and properly regulating the sugar sector.

This, he said, will be available within next 10 days and would be put before the cabinet in 3 months time for their consideration.

The government is expecting to levy import duty on sugar harvest in the month of August as it anticipates a buffer crop, the Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar expressed on Saturday.

He further added that they shall be gathering the sowing information by the first week of August and after that they shall decide upon the issue. He also voiced that the sowing data offered by this date has been very promoting.

Even though his ministership is under threat, Sharad Pawar is sure that this year as the Agriculture Minister will be good. This is what he says when he predicts that the food grain production in India is going to be bumper this year.

Rise in total area under cultivation and the most-expected good rains this year are going to be the factors behind this good news.

It will help in reducing the inflation which is still in double digits and is expected to be above 8 per cent in 2011, as per reports.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Friday said the decline in prices of agricultural commodities will bring down food inflation, which is pegged at 12.63 percent at present.

Pawar said that the rates of most agricultural commodities are declining.

He added that it is great relief to final consumers. The tendency of food inflation will continue to fall in the coming weeks.

"Food inflation is coming down day by day," he added.

For the week ending on June 26, food inflation dropped for the second successive week.

Sharad Pawar, the Union Agriculture Minister has discarded to take part in bidding of Indian premier league (IPL) team which was organized by a Pune-based company. He says that neither he nor his any family members are interested in any IPL team or in the bidding process.

And he has complained that Mr. Anirudh Deshpande, the MD of City Corporation had made the bid with his capacity. Pawar and his family have 16% share in City Corporation and that amount has been used in bidding of an IPL team which is Rs. 1.176 Cr approximately.

Amidst all the controversies surrounding the Minister of State for external affairs, Shashi Tharoor and the IPL commissioner, Lalit Modi, it has been learned that the son-in-law of the BCCI Chief Sharad Pawar, Sadanand Sule (the NCP president) controls about 10% stake in Multi Screen Media (formerly Sony Entertainment Television).

The information has been given by the person who is aware of the shareholding pattern of the company but quoted on the conditions of anonymity.

The Cabinet and the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) has cleared the Food Security Bill. The information was given by the agriculture minister Sharad Pawar.

As per the bill, every person living below the poverty line will be eligible to receive 25 kilogram of wheat or rice every month. The grains would be available for as little as Rs. 3. This would not change as per the market rates.

Talking to media, the Agriculture Minister said that the since EGoM had no authority of taking a final decision on the bill, it was ultimately cleared by the cabinet.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar announced that the sugar productivity for the marketing year (0ctober 1, 2009 to September 30, 2010) would surpass 16 million tonnes mark assisted by higher yield in two key producing states.

Maharashtra is India's top sugar manufacturer and Uttar Pradesh the top sugar cane producer.

You may have paid up to Rs 100 for a kg of tur dal but this hardly reached the farmers who grew it.

Tur dal cultivators continued to get Rs 25 for a kg, the price they commanded in 2008.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar recently claimed that the price rise has helped farmers get more for their produce.

Hindustan Times spoke to some farmers and found that though consumers are paying twice as much for foodgrains this year, farmers have not gained.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, who is currently taking flak for the recent price hike for essential commodities, has said that he did not bother with consequences when it came to taking decisions to protect the interests of farmers.

Pawar said this at the inauguration of a private milk plant at Saswad, 30 km from here.

Without referring directly to the controversy over his remarks on sugar and milk prices, he said any pro-farmer decision always attracts large-scale resentment.

New Delhi, Jan 20 : Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar Wednesday indicated that the price of milk would increase in north India on account of a dip in milk production.

"There is a gap of 18 lakh tonnes between demand and the current milk supply," the minister said here even while maintaining that the government was looking into the issue of price rise.

Pawar was addressing the national conference of state ministers of animal husbandry and dairy here.