Presidential Poll: Pranabda set to rein supreme

Polling for the presidential election concluded in Parliament House and state capitals on July 19. Pranab Mukherjee is all set to win the race to the Rashtrapati Bhavan, as the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has the right numbers on its side. Former Lok Sabha speaker P.A. Sangma is the candidate of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi accompanied Mukherjee as the leaders cast their ballot. Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi also voted, along with Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar. From the opposition, BJP leaders Murli Manohar Joshi, Anurag Thakur, Yashodhara Raje, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leaders B. Mahtab, Baijayant Panda, P.K. Patsani, were among the early voters.

As many as 4,896 lawmakers - 776 MPs and 4,120 MLAs - were eligible to vote in Parliament and state assemblies. The total vote value was 10.98 lakh and a candidate needed to get 5,49,442 vote value to win if all the lawmakers exercise their franchise. Mukherjee is expected to get ~65% of the vote value. Besides the UPA and its four supporting parties - SP, BSP, RJD, Janata Dal (S) - NDA members like the JD(U) and the Shiv Sena along with the CPI(M) and Forward Bloc had declared their support for Mukherjee. UPA ally Trinamool Congress, which first opposed Mukherjee's choice, backtracked on that decision recently. TMC chief Mamata Banerjee announced on Tuesday that her party will reluctantly vote for Mukherjee in the Presidential poll. She, however, added that Mukherjee is a poor second choice.

Former President APJ Kalam was TMC's first choice. Sangma received initial backing from Naveen Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Jayalalithaa's AIADMK. The BJP and Akali Dal decided to back Sangma, who quit the NCP, the party he founded with Sharad Pawar, to contest the Presidential election. Sangma is expected to win only ~35% of the votes. The counting of votes will be done on Sunday. President Pratibha Patil's five-year tenure ends on July 25.

Monsoon turns below average for week ended July 19

India's monsoon rains turned below average for the week ended on Thursday after turning above average in the previous week for the first time in the four-month season. Rainfall was 22% below average in the week through July 18 as against 1% above average rains in the previous week, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said. Total rainfall from June 1 to July 18 was 22% below average, fanning concerns about a possible drought this year instead of average rainfall expected by the Government at the start of the season. The IMD will update its official forecast by the end of July. A drought is declared if rainfall turns out to be less than 90% of long-term average. India suffered a drought in 2009, when monsoon rainfall was 22% below average. Sowing of pulses and rice has been behind schedule, prompting Agriculture Minister, Sharad Pawar, to warn about a possible shortfall in foodgrains output, particularly rice. Food Minister K.V. Thomas has said that output of pulses (lentils) could fall.  Domestic supplies of rice and wheat is pretty good after bumper harvests in the past two years. Mid-August will be the time to decide on exports, when the strength of the monsoon will be clear, Thomas said recently. India currently allows unrestricted exports of rice, wheat and sugar. The agriculture sector accounts for ~15% of India's economy, Asia's third-largest.

No drought situation in India as yet: Sharad Pawar

India is not yet facing a drought like situation, although challenges remain in maintaining record foodgrains production due to a weak monsoon, Union Agriculture Minster Sharad Pawar said on Monday. "We have not reached the drought situation yet. This year the monsoon is playing hide and seek. It is a challenge for our farmers to maintain the same performance as compared to the last two years," he said. The southwest monsoon hit Kerala on June 5 but its progress across the country has been delayed and sluggish, adversely impacting sowing of crops such as paddy, coarse cereals and oilseeds. "This year, we have a challenge to maintain 4% agriculture growth against the backdrop of weak monsoons," the Agriculture Minister said at the 84th ICAR Foundation Day. India produced a record 252.56mn tons foodgrain in 2011-12 crop year (July-June), spurred by an all-time high production of wheat and rice. "For the first time, we have exported 5 MT of non-basmati rice, 1.5 MT of wheat, 2.5 MT of sugar, 11.5 million bales of cotton due to good production last year," Pawar said. Monsoon rains in July may be less than forecast, L.S. Rathore, the Director General of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), was quoted as saying. "There may be some deficiency in rains in July and September," Rathore said.

Rainfall in July will likely be 98% of the long-term average, the weather bureau had said on June 22. El Nino weather conditions may emerge in August or September, Rathore said. The southwest monsoon has been vigorous over sub-Himalayan West Bengal & Sikkim, Rayalaseema, Tamilnadu & Pondicherry and active over Bihar, Assam & Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and Telangana, the IMD said in its daily forecast. The axis of monsoon trough would continue to run to north of its normal position during next three days, the weather bureau said. Thereafter eastern end would shift southwards and dip into northwest Bay of Bengal, leading to formation of an upper air cyclonic circulation over northwest Bay of Bengal. Monsoon covered the entire country on 11th July (4 days prior to the normal date), the IMD said in its weekly press release on Friday...Read More

Govt ready for any eventuality on rains: Pawar

India's inflation dips in June...April's figure revised

India's annual inflation decreased in June from the previous month, raising expectations of monetary easing by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on July 31. Inflation, as measured by the wholesale price index (WPI), stood at 7.25% in June as against 7.55% in May, the Union Commerce & Industry Minister said. The annual inflation rate was at 9.51% during the corresponding month of the previous year. The official WPI for ‘All Commodities’ for May rose by 0.2% to 164.2 from 163.9 in the preceding month. Build up inflation in the financial year so far was 1.99% compared to a build up of 2.41% in the corresponding period of the previous year. The Government revised upwards the inflation rate for April to 7.50% from a preliminary estimate of 7.23%. The WPI for April has been revised to 163.5 as compared to a provisional reading of 163.1. Onions turned cheaper by ~9.40% in the month under consideration, while Vegetable prices were up by a whopping ~49% on an annual basis. Fruit prices were down by 3.6% year over year, while Milk prices increased ~7.30%. Egg, Meat & Fish became costlier by ~16.25% compared to the year-ago period. Potato prices soared by a staggering ~76% on an annual basis while Cereal prices went up by ~6.70% year over year. Prices of Pulses rose by ~20.50%. Annual inflation in Rice stood at ~7.5% while Wheat prices were up ~6.8%. In the Non-Food category, prices of Oilseeds rose by ~18.5% from a year ago while that of Fibres fell by ~12.7%. Mineral prices climbed more than ~14.5% from last year. In Fuel & Power category, LPG prices were up ~11.3%, petrol by ~13.1% and diesel by ~6.8%. In Manufactured Products category, Food Products prices rose by ~5.78%, while that of Edible Oils increased by ~10%. The price of Beverages, Tobacco & Tobacco Product jumped ~5.74% while that of Cotton Textiles fell ~5.8%. Sugar prices climbed by ~7%. Price of Wood & Wood Products increased by ~3.8% while that of Leather & Leather Products increased ~3%...Read More

Govt raises 2011-12 foodgrain output estimate to record

The Government released the 4th advance estimates of foodgrain production for 2011-12. As per the latest estimates, India has produced 257.44 million tonnes of foodgrains during 2011-12 compared to 244.78 million tonnes in the previous year. This is highest ever foodgrains production, surpassing all earlier records. Record production has been achieved in the case of rice ( 104.3 MT), wheat ( 93.9 MT), cotton ( 35.2 million bales), and sugarcane ( 357.7 MT).

The production estimates for major crops for 2011-12 are as follows:

Total foodgrains – 257.44 million tonnes

• Rice – 104.32 million tonnes
• Wheat – 93.90 million tonnes
• Coarse Cereals – 42.01 million tonnes
• Maize – 21.57 million tonnes

Pulses – 17.21 million tonnes

• Tur – 2.65 million tonnes
• Urad – 1.83 million tonnes
• Moong – 1.71 million tonnes
• Gram – 7.58 million tonnes

Oilseeds – 30.01 million tonnes

• Soyabean – 12.28 million tonnes
• Groundnut – 6.93 million tonnes
• Rapeseed & mustard – 6.78 million tonnes
• Cotton – 35.20 million bales (of 170 kg each)
• Sugarcane – 357.67 million tonnes

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