-The Hindu A successful pilot project involving outreach staff at the State’s only de-addiction facility exclusively for women has been discontinued While Punjab is waging an all-out war against drugs, it faces a Herculean task in curbing substance abuse by women, who have often been overlooked in the discourse. Against this backdrop, a recent video showing a young, inebriated woman by a roadside bench in Kapurthala has caught the glare of public...

-Down to Earth Could diversify feedstock basket, help secure long-term sustainability with improved economics  Ethanol-blended petrol is regarded as one of the most acceptable alternative fuel blends for transportation; however, the use of molasses and broken grains for its production raises the question of food vs fuel. Second-generation (2G) bioethanol could help to secure long-term sustainability with improved economics for the Indian biofuel market.   Union Minister of State (Ministry of Science and...

-TheWire.in Data from the NCRB on farmers' suicides, when compared with data collected from the ground by the Punjab Agricultural University, shows a severe undercounting of the phenomenon in the country. While answering a question from MP Suresh Danorka about the determinants and distribution of farmers’ suicides, agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar did not recognise the extensive study done by the Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana (PAU), sponsored by the government of Punjab. The...

-VillageSquare.in With intensifying monsoons and deepening soil erosion, Assam is becoming one of India’s states most vulnerable to climate change, hurting food production and livelihoods in the process. Each year, during the monsoon, the mighty Brahmaputra River and its tributaries burst their banks and engulf huge tracts of farming and residential land in the remote north-eastern state of Assam, home to 34 million people. The state government, engineers and other experts are exploring...

-PTI/Hindustan Times Farmers in Punjab have started disposing crop residue -- which is usually burnt and causes air pollution -- in a sustainable manner; these farmers have not only reduced consumption of fertilisers by mixing crop residue in the soil but have also begun to monetise the practice by managing the stubble of other growers Chandigarh: A handful of farmers in Punjab have started disposing crop residue -- which is usually burnt...