-The Hindu Strengthening the repayment capacity of farmers by improving and stabilising their income is the only way to keep them out of distress Indian agriculture is characterised by low scale and low productivity. About 85% of the operational landholdings in the country are below 5 acres and 67% farm households survive on an average landholding of one acre. More than half of the area under cultivation does not have access to...

-IANS NEW DELHI: Imposition of 18 per cent rate on pesticides under the Goods and Service Tax (GST) system has become a cause of worry not only for farmers but crop protection product manufacturers as well. Manufacturers say it will increase agricultural input costs, putting additional burden on farmers as use of pesticides is essential owing to its role in controlling pest and increasing productivity. As the current farming season is at...

-Hindustan Times Supreme Court asks Centre and states not to protect any kind of vigilantism and sought their response on violent incidents related to cow protection across the countr New Delhi: The government does not support cow vigilantism and it was for the states to crack down on such self-styled groups, the country’s top law officer told the Supreme Court on Friday. Solicitor general Ranjit Kumar, appearing for the Centre, said law and...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government, which had promised to facilitate the creation of 10 million new jobs each year, can finally boast a direct hand in carving out employment in a season of layoffs and self-inflicted economic wounds. But the jobs are in a sector the Prime Minister had promised to trim: his own administration. The foreign ministry plans to hire 400 computer-literate men and women to help it...

-The Tribune Over 150 farmers’ bodies have come together on a common agenda IS the farmers’ movement in India entering a new phase? Six weeks is too short a window to answer this question with certainty. But the nature of farmers’ protest across the country since the beginning of farmers’ strike in Punjab shows signs of something new. This impression is confirmed in a two-week journey connecting farmers, organisations and movements across six...