-Livemint.com The Government did not visualize there were problems in the way it was designed, the methodology itself was faulty Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), the flagship programme launched with much fanfare in 2016, has run into rough weather. With both the area covered and the number of enrolled farmers declining, the country’s premium crop insurance scheme is certainly in need of an overhaul. While Parliament’s committee on estimates, chaired by senior...

-The Hindu Business Line The Supreme Court on Tuesday paved the way for Vedanta to reopen the Sterlite copper smelter plant in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, refusing to stay the December 15 order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT). A Bench headed by Justice RF Nariman today heard two cases on the issue. The first was on the stay given by the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on the NGT order...

-The Indian Express According to the Cooperative Department website, the three societies, which are currently under investigation, have waived loans of 3,073 farmers. Jaipur: Several residents of Govadi village in Rajasthan’s Dungarpur district on Saturday discovered that they were beneficiaries of the farm loan waiver announced by the previous BJP Government in the state. However, the realisation soon led to confusion among the residents as they had never taken an agricultural...

-The Economic Times Despite substantial increase in agriculture production and productivity levels over the years, farmers’ indebtedness has not changed significantly. According to the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) All India Rural Financial Inclusion Survey (Nafis) 2016-17, 52.5% of agricultural households were indebted. Considerable efforts have been taken in channelising institutional credit to farmers and raising farm credit disbursement targets, with allocations increasing by Rs 1 lakh crore in...

-The Hindu Business Line To help farmers, a long-term plan to improve input delivery, irrigation and rural infrastructure is a must Some 60 years ago, the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said: “Everything can wait except agriculture”. But for the last two decades, agriculture has been waiting even as the economy has continued to make rapid strides. The country is today paying a price for the omissions and commissions of successive Governments...