-The Indian Express The govt believes the shortfall of cotton coupled with greater overall demand in the market will ensure higher returns to the farmers Mumbai: Cotton production in Maharashtra is likely to fall by 10 to 15 per cent this year, the agriculture ministry has said. Farmers postponed the sowing of cotton because of a delayed monsoon, which can lead to a drop in output. The cotton-growing farmers in Marathwada and...

-The Hindu New Delhi: Seed technology major Monsanto says it is suspending plans to introduce an upgraded version of its genetically modified cotton in India because of uncertainty in the “business and regulatory environment”. Activists say this is a “hypocritical” position. On July 6, Monsanto notified the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee, the regulatory authority for approval of biotechnology traits in India, that it was withdrawing its application for the commercial release of...

Rising prices of dal: How to deal with it? The 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly declared 2016 as the International Year of Pulses. In India, however, ordinary citizens are under enormous duress due to the skyrocketing prices of dal/ lentils since the last one year. The website of Price Monitoring Cell of the Department of Consumer Affairs shows that dal prices varied across places. For example, the...

-The Hindu Business Line Ahmedabad: The Centre is planning to develop kiosks for farmers at railway stations to facilitate e-auctions of agriculture products, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Parshottam Rupala, said here at the 9th International Summit on Food Processing, Agribusiness and Dairy. Speaking at the summit, Rupala said the Centre is planning kiosks for farmers, which will be made available soon at Railway stations. Speaking on Rail Cold...

-Down to Earth A parliamentary standing committee blamed Agriculture Ministry’s skewed policy for the inequality in fertiliser usage The parliamentary standing committee on agriculture has recommended formation of a “Pesticide Development Authority” to ensure balanced use of chemical fertilisers in the wake of declining agricultural productivity. The 29th report, called “Impact of chemical fertilizers and Pesticides on agriculture and allied sectors in the country”, was tabled in Parliament by the committee. The...