-Down to Earth The United States Department of Agriculture has said rice production in India may decline by 0.9% in 2022-23 due to uneven rains Rice prices are spiking across India, even in areas where it is the staple. This development comes even as the country has experienced an abnormal Kharif season, with uneven distribution of rainfall. The cereal that forms the staple diet of over half of India’s population has become prohibitively...

-The Telegraph While the BJP and Opposition continue with their political machinations, the larger issues on the ground are these: climatic aberrations and consequent losses How are we supposed to deal with long, dry spells as well as sudden and extreme rainfall in the same season? Or drought in one state and floods in another,for that matter? While the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Opposition continue with their political machinations, the larger...

-TheWire.in * In his independence day speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said natural farming and chemical-free farming can give a boost to self-reliance. * Because organic farming means less intensive agriculture, and in turn, decreased crop productivity, experts say India’s food security could be impacted. * Rather than a radical shift to organic farming, a middle path that combines conventional agriculture will suit the country best, they say. Kochi: “Organic farming is our duty,”...

Is India going to face inflation in cereal prices during the rest of the current financial year? Experts differ on this. An analysis by Nomura Global Economics and CEIC finds that a below normal monsoon does not always translate into high retail inflation in food. Similarly, an above normal southwest monsoon does not always bring down the rate of food inflation. However, some agricultural experts (please click here, here and...

-GaonConnection West Bengal is India's top paddy growing state. Bardhaman region in the state, which is known as the rice bowl of Bengal, has received minus 47% deficient rainfall leading to a drastic reduction in paddy sowing. A Gaon Connection ground report as part of its Paddy Pain series. Kalyanpur (East Bardhaman), West Bengal: Dinonath Ghosh, a farmer for more than four decades believes that this must be the worst paddy farming...