-The Economic Times blog Farmers, from Punjab in the north to Tamil Nadu in the south, have started agitations demanding farm loans be waived. The Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra governments have already considered it politically expedient to write them off. Some other states may follow the suit. However, such decisions are as misguided as they are misleading. Nonetheless, it will be a mistake to treat the agitations as a domino effect of...
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Two charts show why western Madhya Pradesh became the epicentre of violent farmer protests -Mridula Chari
-Scroll.in Soyabean, the main crop of Malwa region, has seen a sharp fall in prices. As a small-time commission agent who buys soyabean from farmers on behalf of oilseed crushing companies in Indore, Manilal Patel has a ringside view of what sparked the farmer unrest in western Madhya Pradesh this month. The fertile Malwa plateau here produces around 20% of India’s’s soyabean. As much as 80% of the crop used to be...
More »Haryana farmers refuse to withdraw agitation -Sukhbir Siwach
-The Indian Express State govt starts gathering details of outstanding farm loans Chandigarh: Agitating farmers in Haryana have refused to withdraw their agitation despite the acceptance of several demands of farmers in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Haryana farmers, who are sitting on dharna in many parts of the state, have decided to block national highways and state highways for three hours on June 16. On the other hand, keeping in view the...
More »Why loan waivers won't fix India's agriculture woes -Milind Murugkar
-The Economic Times Yogi Adityanath’s government in Uttar Pradesh opened a Pandora’s box of loan waivers and there seems to be no stopping it. The BJP, perceived by many as a reformist party committed to addressing chronic structural issues, is taking populism to new heights. Loan waivers could prove to be a huge drain for the exchequer and might deal a blow to the creation of much-needed infrastructure in agriculture. The chief...
More »Mandsaur agitation: How demonetisation brought MP farmers onto streets -Aman Sethi and Punya Priya Mitra
-Hindustan Times In Mandsaur, demonetisation has disrupted every aspect of the rural economy – land markets, credit networks, procurement, and crop prices. Mandsaur (Madhya Pradesh): Traders rued their burnt shops, farmers mourned the death of their sons to police bullets; but as four days of violence drew to a close, both sides could only speak of one thing: demonetisation. “Notebandi destroyed the trust between farmer and trader,” said Sunil Ghatiya, a soybean trader...
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