-Economic and Political Weekly Farmers' unions and political parties have been demanding the implementation of the Swaminathan minimum support price (cost plus 50%) to address agrarian crisis and farmers' distress. But they have not raised demands for the implementation of the recommendations of the National Commission on Farmers, which have the potential to provide lasting solutions. Ranjit Singh Ghuman (ghumanrs@yahoo.co.uk) is a Nehru SAIL Chair Professor, Centre for Research in Rural and...

-Business Standard The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) helped lower poverty by  32 per cent between 2004-05 and 2011-12, lifting almost 14 million in this regard, says a recent survey by the National Council for Applied Economic Research and the University of Maryland. The study involved 26,000 households and used data from the two rounds of the India Human Development Survey, 2004-5 and 2011-12. In this period, though overall economic...

-The Hindu Kerala: 'Vithu Muthal Vipani Vare Vishudhi' launched by Earth Care Foundation to ensure maximum price for farmers and toxin-free food for consumers. The Earth Care Foundation Trust, a non-profitable organisation working for spreading zero-budget farming methods, has launched a project ‘Vithu Muthal Vipani Vare Vishudhi’ in the district on Tuesday aimed at ensuring a steady market for the produces of registered natural farmers. Besides, the trust also aims at giving them...

-Tehelka Last year’s Red Fort rhetoric has not been matched by action on the ground, with separate toilets for students remaining elusive as ever One part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech on Independence Day this year can safely be predicted: the reeling out of statistics to prove that the Swachh Bharat campaign is sweeping the nation. The cleanliness drive launched on 2 October, 2014, was announced from the ramparts of the...

Although MGNREGA has been looked upon with suspicion by the Government, industry as well as the landed farming class for various reasons including inefficiency, leakages, corruption, rise in rural wages, cost escalation etc., a new report reveals that the programme reduced poverty among its participants between 2004-05 and 2011-12 by providing employment. The report entitled Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act: A Catalyst for Rural Transformation has estimated that...